TATARLI – A FIFTH-CENTURY bce PAINTED WOODEN TOMB IN ANATOLIA: STUDY, CONSERVATION, RESTITUTION AND RECONSTRUCTION

Abstract

The Tatarlı tumulus in Central Anatolia housed a tomb chamber with painted wooden walls and ceiling. Datable to the fifth century BCE on the basis of style and dendrochronology, it represents a very rare example of the almost lost genre of painting on wood during antiquity. The Tatarlı tomb chamber is not only the largest painting on wood preserved from the ancient Eastern Mediterranean, but is also unique in construction and decoration. To explore this important work of art, an interdisciplinary project was set up to bring together the interests of archaeology, architecture, conservation, scientific analysis and computer studies. The aim of the project is the reconstruction and exhibition of the chamber in the Archaeological Museum in Afyon, Turkey.