Quarry origin determination of marble statues from Umm Qeis Antiquities Museum, Gadara, Jordan by multi-analytical techniques

Abstract

This study examines the quarry origin of seven statues displayed in the archaeological museum of Gadara (Umm Qeis), Jordan. The statues were excavated in Gadara in past decades and have been dated to the Roman period between the first and third centuries (or later). They represent the most important Gods and the masterpieces of the city, including an enthroned Zeus, an enthroned Tyche, a Maenad with Silenus, a Satyr with an animal’s skin, an Athlete, an Artemis of Ephesos, and a Seasonal Genius of the “Hermes Erbach” type. The results of the isotopic, mineralogical, petrographic and chemical analyses indicate that the island of Paros was the main source for the marble of the statues: the Lakkoi quarries produced the Maenad with Silenus, the Seasonal Genius “Hermes Erbach,” and the Tyche statue, and the Marathi quarries produced the marble for the most important deity of Gadara the Enthroned Zeus “Nikephoros” statue. The quarries of Pentelikon (Athens) and Cape Vathy (the island of Thassos) produced the Satyr with an animal’s skin and the Athlete statues, respectively, while the Artemis of Ephesos statue was carved of the Aphrodisian marble. The results reflect the high state of art of the Gadarenes and the wealth of the city, and they reflect the development of the city during the first to the fourth centuries AD.