\paperw3000 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 \fs22 THE DODECAPOLIS\par
The term ½dodecapolis╗ is a modern one. The ancient authors speak of a league of twelve peoples,
corresponding to the most important city states of Etruria, and similar federations must have existed in the Etruscan communities of the Po Valley and Campania. The league was probably headed by the Zilaq Mecl Rasnal, or the ½praetor of the fifteen peopl
es,╗ and this office continued to exist even when Rome had turned the confederation into a mere religious association. The representatives of the cities met periodically at Volsinii to discuss problems common to the whole Etruscan nation. \par