ARUSPICINA. - It is the body of doctrines of the haruspices, intended to interpret the will of the gods through the examination of the entrails of sacrificial victims; thus the term is equivalent to extispicium. A. is undoubtedly of Etruscan origin, as is probably the first part of the name. The true hostiae consultoriae, that is, the animals whose entrails were used for consultation, were the ox and the sheep, but especially the latter.
Among the entrails, the liver occupied an almost exclusive place; however, the gall bladder, heart, and lungs were also examined. In examining the liver, the haruspices had raised their virtuosity to an extreme degree: they observed the colour of the fibres, the number of superficial fissures, and divided the organ, by means of a complicated topography, into numerous compartments, each of which had its own meaning and was sacred to a different divinity. At least, this seems to be deducible from the well-known bronze liver of Piacenza. Certain connections exist between Etruscan and Babylonian A., but we do not know whether they are due to direct influences.