The Appropriation of Death In Classical Athens

<p>This thesis is about the change in Athenian burial practices between the Archaic and Classical periods (500-430 B.C.E.), within the oikos and the polis. I argue that during this period there was a change in both burial practice and ideology. I hypothesise that the Homeric conception of death was appropriated by the state leading to a temporary ideological change in Athens between 500-430 B.C.E., with the result that the aristocratic Athenian oikoi exhibited a trend of anti-display. There then followed another shift in ideology, whereby the Athenian aristocrats reappropriated death, taking state funerary symbols and applying them to private death, which then resulted in the re-emergence of lavish yet iconographically different grave monuments. This is a study of varied and disparate sources ranging from archaeological evidence to later literature. It is divided into three parts. Chapter One outlines exactly what the changes in funeral practice were between the Archaic and Classical periods. It focuses on the decline of grave markers, the shift to extramural burial, the change in how funerals and death were depicted, the increased emphasis on state burial and the change in both public and private mourning practices around 480 B.C.E. I argue that there was a definite change in how the Athenians interacted with their dead, both physically and ideologically. Chapter Two examines the reasons behind the change in burial practices around 480 B.C.E. I argue that it is improbable such a complex change had simple factors or motivations behind it but rather that the most likely cause of such a shift in attitude was a combination of complex reasons, where a few predominate, such as appropriation of death by the polis resulting in glorified state burials and development of democracy. Chapter Three examines the re-emergence of grave monuments. The archaeological record reveals a reappearance of stone funerary sculpture a decade or so after the middle of the fifth century (c. 440-430 B.C.E.). I argue that the re-emergence of funeral sculpture was influenced heavily by foreign workers who brought with them their own burial practices which in turn inspired Athenian aristocrats to re-appropriate death and begin erecting private funeral monuments, however instead of only using Homeric imagery, as they had in earlier periods, they appropriated state symbols and incorporated them into private monuments.</p>

The Appropriation of Death In Classical Athens

<p>This thesis is about the change in Athenian burial practices between the Archaic and Classical periods (500-430 B.C.E.), within the oikos and the polis. I argue that during this period there was a change in both burial practice and ideology. I hypothesise that the Homeric conception of death was appropriated by the state leading to a temporary ideological change in Athens between 500-430 B.C.E., with the result that the aristocratic Athenian oikoi exhibited a trend of anti-display. There then followed another shift in ideology, whereby the Athenian aristocrats reappropriated death, taking state funerary symbols and applying them to private death, which then resulted in the re-emergence of lavish yet iconographically different grave monuments. This is a study of varied and disparate sources ranging from archaeological evidence to later literature. It is divided into three parts. Chapter One outlines exactly what the changes in funeral practice were between the Archaic and Classical periods. It focuses on the decline of grave markers, the shift to extramural burial, the change in how funerals and death were depicted, the increased emphasis on state burial and the change in both public and private mourning practices around 480 B.C.E. I argue that there was a definite change in how the Athenians interacted with their dead, both physically and ideologically. Chapter Two examines the reasons behind the change in burial practices around 480 B.C.E. I argue that it is improbable such a complex change had simple factors or motivations behind it but rather that the most likely cause of such a shift in attitude was a combination of complex reasons, where a few predominate, such as appropriation of death by the polis resulting in glorified state burials and development of democracy. Chapter Three examines the re-emergence of grave monuments. The archaeological record reveals a reappearance of stone funerary sculpture a decade or so after the middle of the fifth century (c. 440-430 B.C.E.). I argue that the re-emergence of funeral sculpture was influenced heavily by foreign workers who brought with them their own burial practices which in turn inspired Athenian aristocrats to re-appropriate death and begin erecting private funeral monuments, however instead of only using Homeric imagery, as they had in earlier periods, they appropriated state symbols and incorporated them into private monuments.</p>

THE CARISBROOKE HAND: ANGLO-SAXON SCULPTURE AND THE HAND OF GOD?

This paper discusses the significance of a fragment of stone sculpture built into the north wall of the churchyard at Carisbrooke, Isle of Wight. The sculpture depicts an open right hand that is larger than life-sized and is probably of late Anglo-Saxon date. The size and character of the sculpture favours a manus dei (hand of God), forming the upper element of a large rood assemblage. The authors consider allied sculpture in which such a hand appears on Anglo-Saxon grave markers and in similar low relief depictions where Christ is figured on the Cross. At Carisbrooke, this architectural sculpture would have formed a significant feature of an Anglo-Saxon minster church that was rebuilt in the early Norman period. The siting of this building and the extent of its parochia is briefly considered. Supplementary material reviews the probable significance of the sculptural use of Quarr stone at Carisbrooke and elsewhere.

DORO MPANA: SITUS KUBUR DARI ABAD KE-13-14 MASEHI

Dompu or ‘dompo’ is a kingdom mentioned in Negarakertagama Book which dates to 1365 AD as one of the kingdoms Patih Gajah Mada wanted to conquer. Then, ‘Dompu’ reappears in Gowa Kingdom Chronicle in early 17th century AD. For three centuries it was unknown how Dompu Kingdom was. The findings of ceramics, pottery, human skeleton and dimpa stone at Doro Mpana, have given a hint of a community’s life and its culture in the past. This study aims to uncover the chronology of Doro Mpana as burial site and the burial cultural form. Data collected through excavation, observation and literature study. The data are analysed contextually related to the relation among archaeological data. To find out the absolute chronology, radiocarbon dating analysis was performed in the laboratory. The result shows the site came from 13th-14th century AD. The use of dimpa stones as grave markers is a characteristic of burial rituals, in addition to providing grave goods such as pottery and ceramics. The use of dimpa stones at Doro Mpana indicates the utilization of surrounding natural resources because the source of dimpa stones, which is diorite stones, found not far from the site. Dompu atau ‘dompo’ adalah nama sebuah kerajaan yang disebutkan dalam Kitab Negarakertagama yang berangka tahun 1365 Masehi, sebagai salah satu kerajaan yang ingin ditaklukkan oleh Patih Gajah Mada. Nama Dompu muncul kembali dalam kronik Kerajaan Gowa pada awal abad XVII Masehi. Selama tiga abad tidak diketahui bagaimana gambaran Kerajaan Dompu. Temuan keramik, gerabah, rangka, dan batu dimpa di Situs Doro Mpana, Dompu telah memberi petunjuk adanya sebuah kehidupan masyarakat dan budayanya di masa lalu. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengungkap kronologi dimanfaatkannya Situs Doro Mpana sebagai penguburan serta bentuk budaya penguburannya. Pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan metode ekskavasi, survei lingkungan, dan studi pustaka. Data dianalisis secara kontekstual terkait hubungan antardata arkeologi. Untuk mengetahui kronologi absolut dilakukan analisis radiocarbondating di laboratorium. Hasil analisis menunjukan situs berasal dari abad ke-13-14 Masehi. Penggunaan batu dimpa sebagai penanda kubur menjadi sebuah ciri khas dalam ritual penguburan di Doro Mpana, selain pemberian bekal kubur berupa gerabah dan keramik. Penggunaan batu dimpa di Situs Doro Mpana menunjukkan pemanfaatan sumberdaya alam sekitar karena sumber batu dimpa yaitu batu diorite ditemukan tidak jauh dari situs.

ՆՈՐԱՀԱՅՏ ՈԻՇՄԻՋՆԱԴԱՐՅԱՆ ԵԿԵՂԵՑԻ ԹԵՂՈՒՏՈՒՄ (2010 թ. պեղումների արդյունքները)

THE NEWFOUND CHAPEL OF THE LATE MEDIEVAL PERIOD IN TEGHUT (The Results of the Excavations in 2010) In 2010 in the results of the excavations carried out at the site of "Lands of Gharakotuk" in Teghut a cemetery chapel with almost a square floorplan (8.7x7.7 m2) was uncovered. The chapel has a rectangular apse highlighted from both inside and outside which is not common in Armenian architecture. The architectural plan of the chapel was distorted in the result of multiple and often incorrect reconstructions. The excavations revealed a variety of tombstones of the 14th17th centuries, including two grave markers with Georgian inscriptions (deciphering and commentaries by Temo Jojua), two complete and two dozen fragmentary khachkars (two of them dated 1513 and 1604), ceramic and metal artifacts. Based on the analysis of the found materials and the architectural structure, the chapel dates to the 16th-17th centuries. According to the environment ‒ sacred trees (Celtis caucasica) growing around the chapel and the cemetery, as well as a collection of specially hidden metal objects (human figurines, animal shoes, lock etc.) which had protective significance from the evil eye or various diseases, the chapel served also as a place for pilgrimage.

Memories Carved in the Wall : A 16th-Century Type of Funerary Monuments in Transylvania

Graves for the deceased were usually cut into the floor of churches, created in churchyard cemeteries or in the newly established public cemeteries in Transylvania in the sixteenth century. Not all graves were marked with stone funerary monuments. Wooden memorials were presumably widespread, but no contemporary sources inform about these. Grave markers from the cemeteries are simple or coped headstones and coffin-shape stones, preserved for example in Cluj (Kolozsvár) and Târgu Mureş (Marosvásárhely). These gravestones display commemorative inscriptions and simple imagery. A funerary inscription recently discovered in Ocna Mureş (Marosújvár) was carved into an ashlar within the external buttress supporting the choir of the church. This stone bearing an inscription represents a specific type of funerary monument from early modern Transylvania, most examples of which are known from Cluj. The paper presents these stone memorials: who and why chose this form of commemorating the dead.

Introduction

This chapter provides a background on the relationship of religious media and the landscape in the antebellum United States in order to rethink the meaning of space in American culture. It traverses a range of genres and media including sermons, landscape paintings, aesthetic treatises, abolitionist newspapers, slave narratives, novels, and grave markers. It also traces the birth of a distinctly modern form of sacred space at the nexus of mass print culture, the physical spaces of an expanding and urbanizing nation, and the religious images and narratives that ordinary Americans used to orient their lives. The chapter investigates the efforts of Protestant evangelical publishing societies to teach readers to use the landscape to understand their own spiritual lives and their role in sacred history. It talks about the “evangelical space” that ultimately spread beyond devotional culture to infuse popular literature, art, and politics.

Integrated Approach to Investigating Historic Cemeteries

Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) surveys were conducted at a historic cemetery at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, U.S., in order to confirm the presence of burials corresponding to grave markers and detect potential unmarked burials. Noise in the GPR data from surface features and subtle terrain differences must be addressed to determine the extent of anomalies of interest. We use singular value decomposition (SVD) to isolate and remove energy from GPR data. SVD allows one to remove unwanted signals that traditional processing techniques cannot. With SVD filtering, we resolve an anomaly adjacent to confirmed burials otherwise overprinted by unwanted signal. The migration of SVD-filtered data produces more distinct, spatially constrained point reflectors. Ground elevation is derived from georeferenced TLS data and compared to that from airborne laser scanning (ALS) to highlight subtle terrain that can assist data interpretation. TLS elevations show a subtle modern mound over the burial plot where ALS elevations show a depression. The targets of interest are approximately 20–30 cm higher in elevation if a topographic correction is performed using TLS versus ALS. In archaeological applications, a notable change is often recorded at the sub-meter scale. The combined approach presented here better resolves geophysical response of buried features and their positions in the ground relative to each other.