Liver of Piacenza

The Liver of Piacenza (TM 153869 ) is a bronze life-sized model of a sheep's liver, the various sections inscribed in Etruscan with the names of gods. It was found by a farmer in 1877, not far from Piacenza, where it is now kept in the Musei Civici.
The liver is no doubt related to the Etruscan custom of predicting the future on the basis of this organ (haruspicy). A recent study has interpreted it as a handheld instrument for the calculation of a religious calendar, the layout of the 16 sections confirming that it was used at the latitude where it was discovered. The date of the Liver is controversial, some suggesting the 4th century BC, others the 1st.