This article explores a potential interaction between a movie, Sandra [Vaghe stelle dell’Orsa], directed by Luchino Visconti in 1965, and a book, which stands as one of its possible sources of inspiration, The Garden of the Finzi-Continis [Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini] by Giorgio Bassani, published in 1962. These two works share a common thread: they employ elements of Etruscan archaeology to narrate stories linked with the memory of the Shoah. Both draw inspiration not only from significant archaeological sites – the city of Volterra, in Tuscany for the movie, and the Etruscan necropolis of Cerveteri, in the Lazio region, near Rome, for the book –, but they also weave in profound layers of meaning with their use of archaeological settings.
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis by Giorgio Bassani holds immense significance for Italian literature. Not only is it one of the most widely read literary accounts of the Shoah, but it also stands as one of the earliest examples of Italian memory...