Italic thermae, Etruria

Etruria is probably the Italic region with the highest number of Italian thermal baths, it was spread partially on Umbria, Tuscany, and Northern Latium, covering one of the areas with the highest number of warm thermal spring. Among the various centres, some towns and centres live mainly thanks to the healthy waters, one being Chianciano Terme, close to an ancient burg, a metropolis of wellbeing in the middle of Tuscany hills, that was the natural set for the Fellini Oscar winning movie  8 ½ . For the film buffs, the surreal square of Borgo Vignoni, in the province of Siena, with the springs within the village and a swimming pool instead of the central square is a must see, it was the natural set for  Andrej Tarkovsky's Nostalgia and for Carlo Verdone's Al lupo al lupo. These thermal warm waters were one of the meeting points for the Etruscans and, later, hosted and inspired Lorenzo il Magnifico, Saint Caterina da Siena, pope Pio Piccolomini,  and more contemporary artists enchanted by the presence of a big thermal bath in the middle of a burg and not, as usual, in the outskirts of a city, and by the suggestive fog much more evident during winter nights with a clear sky. Italic populations knew and appreciated very well the therapeutic virtues of the healthy waters that gained the respect and protection for generations till now, so that they arrived unaltered or still untouched to present. In particular in Etruscan thermae, ancient gestures melt with luxury contemporary rituals, reserving a space also to the 'popular' use, fully respecting nature. A good example is the famous Saturnia complex with the natural small falls freely accessible and the SPA that offers paths studied for a selected public, based on the well studied salvage of the tradtions for the wellness market, with thermal products elaborated on ancient recipes, massages and cures for the body and the self that mix the most cutting-edge wellbeing techniques with gestures deeply rooted in the Italic and pre-Roman culture. The scarce information on the Etruscan culture, show us quite a liberal and libertine society, attentive to beaty, the frivolity of apparences and, obvuously, to wellbeing of the body with oils, creams and, most probably, clays and muds. A revival of traditions in the contemporary society, especially in the industry that make of the daily pleasures a matter of luxurious attention to the self. 

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