This thesis examines the development of the art of gem engraving in Etruria between the years from ca 520 to ca 470 BC. It is divided into two parts, the first of which is an analysis of the style of the intaglios, and the second an analysis of the iconography. In Part One attributions to individual hands or groups are suggested, and conventional names supplied; the relationships of the engravers both to each other and to the late archaic Greek schools are examined. In Part Two the iconography of the intaglios is examined both internally and against the wider background of Etruscan and Greek art;- where relevant, comparison is also made with the literary tradition; this study concerns itself only with the human figure, and the chapters are arranged around cycles of myth and the individual figure types.