Biography:
Biographical Outline
Mother: Theophilis daughter of Cleocha of Locris. Locris was
a thriving Italian colony set up in the toe of Southern Italy
by Hellenes from Locria, an region situated opposite Corinth on
the mainland side of the Greek isthmus.Theophilis claimed to be
a member of the 100 noble families of Locris, but then most Locrians
did. She managed to use her all too gregarious nature to gain
a position an assistant priestess at the world famous sanctuary
of Persephone, goddess of wifely virtues. Unfortunately, while
Theophilis’ vivacious nature would have made her an excellent
priestess at the nearby temple of Aphrodite, she didn’t
quite fit in at the sanctuary of virtuous wives.A series of graffiti
found on votive offerings may point to the reason why: “Theophilis
daughter of Cleocha, she services everyone, even slaves and foreigners”(1)
Needless to say, Theophilis found herself expelled from the temple
and exiled in 501 BC
Father: An Etruscan trader from the city of Veii. Not much is
known about Vermeti “the Grunter” other than that
he married Theophilis in 501 BC returning to Veii. He seems to
have considered Theophilis as something of a trophy wife, her
being Greek, a priestess and being able to read, write and speak
in polysyllabic words. Theophilis was a big hit in Veii, being
very popular with all the top ranking men in the town.Vermeti,
being a trader by natural inclination, appears to have a hand
in her increasing celebrity status.
500 BC Vermeteves is born. Given a Hellenised Etruscan name.
494 BC Vermeteves begins his education at Locris under the tutelage
of Timaeus, Pythagorean philosopher and later confidant of Socrates
of Athens.
493 BC Vermeteves is expelled from Timaeus’ academy.
492 BC Vermeteves is given “a second chance” after
yet another of his mother’s ersuasive interventions.
492 BC Vermeteves is expelled a second time.
491 BC Vermeteves is re-admitted to the academy, definitively.
485 BC Vermeteves is re-expelled, definitively. Timaeus’
appraisal of his pupil of 9 years appears critical: “a bully,
braggart and thoroughly arrogant brat who would even have made
a perfect member of the Spartan ruling classes were it not for
his inverterate cowardice and lack of any moral principles whatsoever…”(2)
485-481 BC Vermeteves is given money to travel the world, funded
by his doting father in an effort to complete his education. This
period of 4 years appears somewhat vague,as the wars which engulfed
the Greek mainland have destroyed all documentation. However,
it is clear that Vermeteves began a tour of the Ionian coast,
landing at Miletus.He also visited Sardis and may even have seen
Babylon and Persepolis.
481-479 BC Vermeteves appears to have left the Asian continent
in something of a hurry. We can only surmise as to why, though
yet again impending wars may have been the reason. He spends this
period trying to charter a ship to take him back to Italy. He
was no doubt,forced to prolong his sojourn in Greece by the frequent
shipping disputes between the Great King and the Athenian navy.
(1) Pinake No 346 Museum of Locri
(2) PLATO: PROLOGUE TO TIMAEUS
(3) Not much is known why this diplomatic mission ended so badly
for the Etruscans. However, a damaged stone idol, possibly Ligurian,
has been found with the Etruscan inscription: VEMETI UIS, roughly
translated as VEMETI WAS HERE
(Museum of Lunigiana: Tuscany). Whether Vemeteves was attempting
to impress the Ligurians with his writing skills is a matter of
conjecture.
