A carved funerary stele from the 1st century AD was discovered in the ancient Greek city of Parion, in the province of Canakkale in northwestern Turkey.
It was found in the southern necropolis of the city in an area that was damaged by mechanical excavators during the construction of an elementary school.
Many graves were damaged in the process, but the stele and burial chamber of Tomb 6 were found in relatively good condition.
The stele has an area of about a meter and is a scene of a funeral banquet, installed inside the architectural frame of the fluted columns on the left and right. On the left is a seated female figure accompanied by a maidservant (disproportionately small to distinguish servants from their masters). On the left above it is the kalatus, a basket used to store skeins of wool or harvest fruits associated with women, marriage and fertility.
The central figure is a reclining man. In front of him is a sturdy mensa Delphica, a tripod table with legs carved to resemble animal legs. To his right are two servants: one is delivering a drink from a large crater, the other is a groom, presumably with the master’s horse. On the right, above the servants, a chest and a box are visible, which symbolize the wealth of the family.
The Latin inscription on the bottom of the stele identifies the couple on the relief: “Lucius Fournius Lesbonax, freed by Lucius, built this funerary stele for himself and his wife Fournia Simpneruza.”
Four graves with the remains of 10 people were discovered around grave 6. One deceased was a child, the other nine were adults. Each person was buried with their own separate inventory.
Pointing out that the stele is an important find, the head of the excavation, Professor Vedat Keles, said: “This stele showed us that the southern necropolis of Parion was actively used in Roman and earlier periods. At the same time, when we look at the state of the tomb and the city, it shows us that the ancient city was rich in the Roman period. “
“The names on the stele are also very important. For example, Lesbonax is not a Latin name. His wife’s name is also not Latin. These are Greek names. We can even say that Lesbonax was someone who lived on the island of Lesvos. We realized that they were slaves and subsequently received Roman citizenship. We realized that when the Romans came to this city, they enslaved those who were here and then granted them citizenship, ”he added.
Previously, HB wrote that two 2,500-year-old marble statues and an inscription were found during excavations at the Temple of Zeus, one of the best-preserved Roman temples in Anatolia, in the Turkish province of Mugla.
Built with donations in the second century BC, the temple is located in the ancient city of Euromos. The names of some of the benefactors remained engraved on the columns.
Sytki Kochman, head of the excavation committee and lecturer at the Department of Archeology at Mugla University, said that work is currently underway in the temple, agora, theater, bathhouse and city walls. “We took about 250 blocks stacked on top of each other on the southern facade of the temple and moved them to a suitable site for use in restoration work. Then we started excavating, hoping that there are also architectural blocks underground. But we are faced with big surprises. Two statues and an inscription were found underground, ”Kyzyl said.
