The Temple of Demeter Chthonia at Hermione

Author(s):  
Jesper Blid ◽  
Baukje van den Berg

This paper presents the results of an architectural survey of the foundations of a Classical temple, presumably that of Demeter Chthonia, located inside the chief sanctuary of the ancient city of Hermione. It also studies ancient architectural members built into the walls of the Taxiarches Church situated on top of the temple foundations. By analysing these material remains and connecting them to the observations of 19th-century travellers to Kastri (Hermione), the paper draws conclusions about the original size and appearance of the Temple of Demeter Chthonia.

Author(s):  
Alexey B. Mazurov ◽  
Alexander V. Rodionov

The article considers theoretical development of the problem of the origin and provenance in the 15th — the first quarter of the 19th century of the famous Old Russian book monument — the Zaraysk Gospel. Although it has repeatedly attracted the attention of archaeographers, textologists, paleographers, linguists and art historians, this article is the first experience of studying these issues. Created in 1401 in Moscow, the Gospel, which is parchment manuscript, was purchased in 1825 by K.F. Kalaidovich for Count N.P. Rumyantsev from the Zaraysk merchant K.I. Averin, that determined its name by the place of discovery. The scribe book of Zaraysk in 1625 in the altar of the Pyatnitsky chapel of the St. Nikolas wooden church (“which’s on the square”) in the city’s Posad, recorded the description of the manuscript Gospel, corresponding by a number of features to the Zaraysk Gospel. The connection of the codex with the St. Nicholas church is indirectly confirmed by the drawing of the church placed on one of its pages (f. 156 ver.) with the remains of inscription mentioning St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. This allows concluding that the manuscript in the 17th century was in the book collection of the temple. In the 17th century, the ancient St. Nicholas church was re-consecrated to the Epiphany, and the sacristy was moved to the stone St. Nicholas cathedral in Zaraysk. It is most likely that in the first quarter of the 19th century, the merchant K.I. Averin purchased the Gospel from the members of the cathedral’s clergy. The article analyzes the context of the early contributions of the 15th century “to the Miraculous Icon of St. Nikolas of Zaraysk”, one of which, most likely, was the parchment Zaraysk Gospel. The authors assume that this contribution is related to the chronicle events of 1401 or 1408. The study is significant in terms of the theoretical development of methods for identifying ancient manuscripts and their origin.


Author(s):  
Zsolt Kiss ◽  

Two fragments of painted Roman funerary portraits on wooden panels of the Fayum type, discovered in 2001 during a revisiting of the Third Intermediate Period shaft tombs inside the Chapel of Hatshepsut in the Royal Mortuary Cult Complex at the Temple of Hatshepsut in Deir el-Bahari, come from 19th century excavations, hence are without anything but a general context. The pieces are very small—fragment of a robe, sliver of a face with one eye—but in a brilliant analysis of iconography and style Kiss identifies one as a depiction of a female, possibly a priestess of Isis, from the second half of the 2nd century AD, and the other as a male portrait from the 2nd century. The portraits may belong to what some scholars have called “Theban” painted funerary portraits and they must have come from a Roman necropolis in West Thebes, possibly Deir el-Medineh. On any case, they are proof that mummies with painted portraits of the deceased on wooden panels fitted into the cartonnages were not unknown in ancient Thebes.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Joan Pinar Gil ◽  
Jaime Vizcaíno Sánchez

Abstract During the 6th and 7th c. CE, Carthago Spartaria (modern Cartagena) became one of the most important cities in the Byzantine province of Spania. Recent archaeological excavations at Cerro del Molinete have significantly increased our knowledge of the ancient city, enabling the exploration of an early Byzantine neighborhood built over the Roman Forum district. A cast bronze ewer of type Werner A2 was found in a pit dug over the temple that presided over the Forum. The associated materials, mainly pottery and glass vessels, are compatible with a deposition between 580/90 and 650/60 CE. This assemblage improves our understanding of the trade networks interconnecting the Mediterranean basin during the 6th and 7th c. CE. In this context, we argue that the unknown production center of the A2 ewers was located in the northern Adriatic, probably in Ravenna.


Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish

A city with a strong and vibrant Jewish community during the Roman period, as well as a center for the worship of Artemis and home to a significant Christian community, Sardis is an intriguing place to visit for anyone interested in biblical studies or ancient religious history. The partially restored 3rd-century-C.E. synagogue in the city is the largest known synagogue outside Palestine from ancient times. Ancient shops, a bath-gymnasium complex, and the Temple of Artemis provide glimpses of the life of this ancient city. Once the capital of the ancient Lydian Kingdom, Sardis (Sart) lies approximately 60 miles east of Izmir along the modern highway (E96/300) connecting Izmir to Ankara in the Hermus River valley (today called the Gediz River). Portions of the ruins of Sardis are situated adjacent to the highway and are easily accessible. The ancient city was built along the Pactolus River, a tributary of the Hermus, and at the foothills of the Tmolus Mountains. The city’s acropolis was strategically located atop a spur of the Tmolus Mountains. The Tmolus Mountains (or Mt. Tmolus) were, according to some ancient traditions, the birthplace of the gods Dionysus and Zeus. Sardis first came to prominence during the 1st millennium B.C.E. when it served as the center of the powerful Lydian kingdom, which encompassed most of the western half of Asia Minor. The Lydians supposedly were the first to develop a technique to dye wool and also to invent dice games, knucklebones, and other games. (Interestingly, archaeologists found a terra-cotta die in the ruins at Sardis.) Legend says that Midas, the mythical Phrygian king, was able to rid himself of his golden touch by bathing in the Pactolus River. As a result, the sands of the river turned to gold. Though legendary, this account points nonetheless to the enormous wealth enjoyed by the Lydian kingdom. The earliest Lydian rulers belonged to the Heraclid dynasty, which according to Herodotus (5th-century-B.C.E. Greek historian) lasted 505 years. They were succeeded by the Mermnad dynasty, of which the first king was Gyges (r. ca. 680–ca. 652 B.C.E.).


2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-145
Author(s):  
Martin Hense

A reinvestigation of the so-called Serapis temple of Berenike produced proof for the existence of undisturbed archaeology around and even inside the building. Until recently it was assumed that this temple was completely excavated during the several, poorly documented, excavations of the 19th century. A small test trench against the back wall of the temple uncovered the remains of a secondary stone wall and parts of a small statue. The excavation of the northwest room resulted in the find of architectural details never published by the early excavators.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (17) ◽  
pp. 2711
Author(s):  
Luigi Capozzoli ◽  
Ilaria Catapano ◽  
Gregory De Martino ◽  
Gianluca Gennarelli ◽  
Giovanni Ludeno ◽  
...  

Southern Italy is characterized by important archaeological sites developed during the pre-roman period. Among these, Paestum and Velia Archaeological Park, located in the Campania region, represents one of the most important and well-preserved sites of the Magna Graecia. During the last year, several unexpected archaeological findings have permitted the supposition of the presence of another undiscovered temple at Paestum, in a not yet investigated area of the site, close to the fortification walls (Western City Walls) of the ancient city and a few meters away from the gate of Porta Marina. To support this amazing hypothesis, the Paestum and Velia Archaeological Park and the National Research Council planned an accurate campaign of geophysical surveys, based on the combined use of Geomagnetic and Ground Penetrating Radar methodologies. The results of the geophysical surveys have effectively supported the detection of the temple, providing detailed information about its location and highlighting the geometry of the basement of the structure with high accuracy. The discovery sheds new light on the archaeological and architectonic history of the site and may represent one of the most relevant archaeological discoveries of the XXI century performed in Italy.


Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish

Izmir, the modern name for the city that once was known as Smyrna, is the third largest city in Turkey, with a population of around 3 million. Situated on the Aegean coast, it is Turkey’s second busiest port. Not only is Izmir an interesting place itself to visit, but the city also serves as a good base from which to visit several important sites in the area, such as the ancient cities of Ephesus, Sardis, Miletus, Didyma, and Priene. The ancient city of Smyrna, which according to some reports was the birthplace of Homer, was commercially successful due to its harbor and its location (approximately 35 miles north of Ephesus) at the end of a major route through Asia Minor. The earliest settlement at this location was in the first half of the 3rd millennium B.C.E. on a hill known as Tepekule in the Bayraklï suburb of the city. In the 10th century B.C.E., the first Greek colonists from Aeolia settled at Tepekule. They remained there until the end of the 8th century, when Ionian Greeks took over. Excavations at the site have uncovered houses from the 9th to the 7th centuries B.C.E. In the 7th century a temple to Athena was built. This temple was destroyed around 600 B.C.E. by King Alyattes of Lydia when he captured the city. The people of Smyrna rebuilt and enlarged the temple, but it was destroyed again around 545 B.C.E., this time by the Persians. An insignificant settlement in the 5th and 4th centuries B.C.E., the site was finally abandoned. According to a story related by Pausanias (Description of Greece 7.5.1–3), the city was refounded by Alexander the Great, who was instructed in a dream to establish a new city on Mt. Pagus (now the site of the Kadifekale, or “Velvet Fortress”). The new city was actually not started until the beginning of the 3rd century by the Hellenistic ruler Lysimachus. During the subsequent centuries Smyrna, situated around the harbor, grew and prospered. By the 1st century B.C.E., Strabo was able to describe Smyrna as “the most beautiful of all” cities (Geography 14.646).


Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish

Pergamum is unquestionably one of the most impressive archaeological sites in all of Turkey. Pergamum’s attractions are hard to surpass—the breathtaking view from its theater carved out of the side of the acropolis, the magnificent restored Temple of Trajan, the foundations of the Great Altar of Zeus, the ancient healing center of Asclepius, the Temple of Serapis (the Red Hall), and the archaeological museum. A visit to Pergamum should not be rushed. There is much here to reward the patient visitor who will explore the riches of this ancient city. The site of ancient Pergamum is scattered in and around the modern town of Bergama, located in the western part of Turkey, approximately 65 miles north of Izmir. According to ancient mythology, Pergamum was founded by Telephus, king of Asia Minor and the son of Hercules (and thus the grandson of Zeus). Archaeological evidence indicates that Pergamum was settled as early as the 8th century B.C.E. Xenophon, the Greek historian who was involved in a mercenary expedition against the Persians, mentions that in 399 B.C.E. he and his soldiers spent some time at Pergamum. Little is known about Pergamum until the Hellenistic period, when Pergamum and all of Asia Minor came under the control of Alexander the Great. After the death of Alexander in 323 B.C.E., Lysimachus, one of Alexander’s generals (the Diadochoi) involved in the struggle for Alexander’s kingdom, eventually gained control of all of Asia Minor. He deposited a considerable amount of wealth in the treasury of Pergamum and placed one of his officers, Philetaerus, in charge. Philetaerus eventually turned against Lysimachus. After Lysimachus’ death, Philetaerus (r. 281–263 B.C.E.) used the money to establish a principality, with Pergamum as its capital. Unmarried (and supposedly a eunuch due to an accident), Philetaerus adopted his nephew Eumenes I as his successor. Eumenes I (r. 263–241 B.C.E.) was successful in defeating the Seleucid king Antiochus I at Sardis and expanding the rule of Pergamum throughout the Caicus River valley and all the way to the Aegean Sea. Upon his death, he was succeeded by his adopted son Attalus I Soter (r. 241–197 B.C.E.).


2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 315-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce Ravel ◽  
G.L. Carr ◽  
Christoph A. Hauzenberger ◽  
Wantana Klysubun

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