Tarquinia was founded by the Etrurians and it had been one of the main Etrurian towns because of its strategic geographical position (it was more towards North-East than it is nowadays) that gave it the opportunity to dominate the surrounding plain from an high ridge.

Nowadays Tarquinia still has lots of Etrurian evidences kept in the Archeological Museum, where you can find one of the best collection of etrurian founds in Italy (such as some statues, vases, sarcophagi). Two km from the town there is the etrurian necropolis, called "the town of dead people", with 6000 graves built excavating into the tuff and decorated with some painting representing ordinary life scenes.