The intra-urban burial inside Greek poleis in Asia Minor

Hadwiga Schörner (1)

1 Institute of Classical Archaeology

The phenomenon 'intra-urban burial' in Greek influenced Asia Minor can at first be grasped with the extraordinary Maussolleion at Halikarnassos. With this exception Maussollos formed his image in choosing by himself the site of his grave, a big part of the cult rites and the architecture, in which he joined Greek and oriental elements. The development of grave sites, cult rites and architecture forms for instance of the late-classical graves of Termessos or Ephesos will be analysed in succession of Maussollos. During Hellenistic times euergetism played a big role inside micro-Asiatic cities, and the intra-urban grave was part of the honours from the polis to the benefactor. The special meaning of this cult place honoured a couple of centuries in the middle of a city can be recognized by detailed and copiousness inscriptions, for example of the burials of the euergetai at Kyme. During the time after establishing the Roman province Asia and during the Roman Empire in the East the intra-urban burial was anew a special honouring given by the polis, but the importance in relation to the creation of identity for the city changed. On the basis of a selection of intra-urban graves from the 1st and 2nd century AD the way how to deal with these burials within the poleis, their creation of identity of the city and the way of self-imaging of the deceased will be examined.

Mots clés: euergetism; hellenistic period; Turkey; Maussoleion at Halikarnassus

Domaines: Archéologie et Préhistoire

Hadwiga Schörner. The intra-urban burial inside Greek poleis in Asia Minor: The example of Termessos. 2èmes Rencontres d'archéologie de l'IFEA : Le Mort dans la ville Pratiques, contextes et impacts des inhumations intra-muros en Anatolie, du début de l'Age du Bronze à l'époque romaine, Nov 2011, Istanbul, Turkey. pp.223-230. ⟨halshs-00808328⟩