The rock-cut chamber tombs of Labraunda

In the Ancient Anatolia “mountainous section” of Phrygia Region is the section between Dorylaion (today the province of Eskisehir), Kotiaion (today the province of Kutahya) and Akroinos (today the province of Afyon) and it was named “Highlands of Phrygia”. In addition to magnificent monuments related to Mother Goddess worship carved in rock in “Phrygian” period as well as monumental tombs of the same period, various types of tombs and chamber tombs carved in rock in Hellenistic and Roman Imperial Periods can be found in Highlands of Phrygia Region. In almost half of the rock-cut chamber tombs carved in rock in Mountainous Phrygia Region in Hellenistic and Roman Imperial Periods facade architecture and ornaments at various levels could be detected. Some of the chamber tombs having such facade architecture are monumental in nature and they are required to be assessed not only in terms of tomb typology but also in terms of “facade design” separately due to ornaments and certain other elements in their facades. For this reason, approximately 20 of the rock-cut chamber tombs with the monumental facade architecture in question which I consider to be significant examples have been examined in the article for different aspects. These are Kumbet-Deliklikaya, Kumbet – Solon’s tomb, Zehran, Gerdekkaya which is the most monumental rock-cut tombs with temple form in the region, Kirkgozkaya located in Sacred Phrygian Yazilikaya, Church, chamber tombs in Yapildak necropolis within the boundaries of the province of Eskisehir, chamber tombs in Ahlatciinler necropolis, rock-cut chamber tombs in Ayazin town, in Gulluk location, from the necropolis nearby village Demirli within the boundaries of the province of Afyon. Two significant elements of comparison have been taken into consideration while dating the rock-cut chamber tombs in Highlands of Phrygia Region: tomb typology and facade architecture/ornaments. Tomb typology is an issue quite separate from the main content of the article and consequently it was not discussed in detail in this study. For facade design, in addition to the ordinary comparisons to be made with structures or carvings in different Ancient regions and geographical regions, the comparisons made for rock carvings in Phrygia Region and Highlands of Phrygia Region with “false door steles” mostly used as “tursteine” or “doorstone” in the literature, reflections of them in the rock carvings in the region as well as Dokimeion type tombs which is one of the most significant tomb production centers of the ancient geography and located in splitting distance to Highlands of Phrygia are remarkable. Furthermore, description of the goddess in her own holy region on the rock in all most all periods is another special example for the concepts of “tradition” and “continuity”.

This paper presents an intervisibility study applied to a set of necropolises on the island of Menorca. 25funerary complexes have been analysed, each comprising a variable number of funerary units. These complexes include caves from different prehistoric periods, ranging from the Late Bronze Age to the Second Iron Age and the Roman period. Among them, both natural caves and the so-called artificial caves (rock-cut tombs) are documented. These artificial caves exhibit notable morphological variability, either for chronological reasons or due to their inherent structural differences. The intervisibility analyses aim to identify mesospatial patterns in the arrangement of caves within each complex, to determine which ones exert greater visual control over the rest and which are more exposed. The results have been cross-checked against previous studies of cumulative visibility and related to the typology of the tombs, examining them from a morpho-architectural perspective. It should be noted that some of the caves that are structurally more complex show a significantly greater investment of labour in their external elements, in some cases, through moulded bands framing the entrances; in other cases, one can observe the excavation of open courtyards in the rock at the funerary chambers entrance. For the analyses, the research team used the Visibility Analysis plugin available in QGIS, a free and open-source software under the GNU GPL license. First, a 1-m-resolution digital terrain model (DTM)was generated from light detection and ranging (LiDAR) point clouds available as open data from the Spanish National Geographic Institute (IGN). Subsequently, intervisibility calculations were run for each funerary complex and the data were compared with the cumulative visibility results obtained in previous work. Raster-based calculations were used to identify the funerary units that exercised greater visual control over the rest and those that, applying spatial statistics, commanded a larger portion of the surrounding territory. To sum up, this set of analyses makes it possible to recognize the caves that play a predominant role within the funerary complexes under study, as well as to formulate hypotheses, both about their spatial articulation and about its possible reflection in the social order of the prehistoric communities that inhabited Menorca during the first millennium BCE.

This paper presents an intervisibility study applied to a set of necropolises on the island of Menorca. 25funerary complexes have been analysed, each comprising a variable number of funerary units. These complexes include caves from different prehistoric periods, ranging from the Late Bronze Age to the Second Iron Age and the Roman period. Among them, both natural caves and the so-called artificial caves (rock-cut tombs) are documented. These artificial caves exhibit notable morphological variability, either for chronological reasons or due to their inherent structural differences. The intervisibility analyses aim to identify mesospatial patterns in the arrangement of caves within each complex, to determine which ones exert greater visual control over the rest and which are more exposed. The results have been cross-checked against previous studies of cumulative visibility and related to the typology of the tombs, examining them from a morpho-architectural perspective. It should be noted that some of the caves that are structurally more complex show a significantly greater investment of labour in their external elements, in some cases, through moulded bands framing the entrances; in other cases, one can observe the excavation of open courtyards in the rock at the funerary chambers entrance. For the analyses, the research team used the Visibility Analysis plugin available in QGIS, a free and open-source software under the GNU GPL license. First, a 1-m-resolution digital terrain model (DTM)was generated from light detection and ranging (LiDAR) point clouds available as open data from the Spanish National Geographic Institute (IGN). Subsequently, intervisibility calculations were run for each funerary complex and the data were compared with the cumulative visibility results obtained in previous work. Raster-based calculations were used to identify the funerary units that exercised greater visual control over the rest and those that, applying spatial statistics, commanded a larger portion of the surrounding territory. To sum up, this set of analyses makes it possible to recognize the caves that play a predominant role within the funerary complexes under study, as well as to formulate hypotheses, both about their spatial articulation and about its possible reflection in the social order of the prehistoric communities that inhabited Menorca during the first millennium BCE.

Rock-cut chamber tombs are characteristic monuments of the Bronze and Iron Ages in southern Sicily. They are found in large numbers and prominent locations at several Late Bronze Age sites, most of which were first investigated over a century ago by Paolo Orsi, but received little attention subsequently. One famous example is the UNESCO World Heritage site of Pantalica, where the author recently conducted fieldwork aimed at clarifying the form, distribution and topographical relationships of the tombs, which date from about 1250–650 b.c. Although these monuments present various practical problems for research, and their contents were removed long ago, the author argues that they can be profitably studied from an architectural, contextual, and landscape perspective. A new sample of the Pantalica tombs is presented, showing a wide range of forms and associations that provides a basis for the discussion of several issues: links with domestic architecture, demography, accessibility, visibility, temporality, and perception.

Horvat Midras is situated in the central Judean Foothills, approximately 6 km northeast of the Roman city of Beth Guvrin–Eleutheropolis, alongside the primary Roman route to Jerusalem. At its zenith during the Roman period in the 1st century CE, the settlement spanned over 12 hectares, making it one of the largest ancient rural sites in the area. This Jewish settlement was destroyed during the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 CE).Our excavation team uncovered a Late Antique church in the northern section of the village. Beneath the church floor, we found earlier strata that include remains of a building and underground chambers from the Late Hellenistic to Early Roman periods. These interconnected underground chambers, forming a typical hiding complex, fell out of use after the Bar Kokhba Revolt.Following a period of abandonment in the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE, the remnants of the earlier structures were leveled to make way for a new basilica, which featured a white mosaic floor. This construction, dating to the 4th century CE, was linked to a venerated rock-cut tomb, which we believe was the primary purpose of the architectural complex. The tomb, created within a rock-cut chamber integrated into the earlier hiding complex, also dates to the 4th century.In the subsequent architectural phase, a basilical church with marble columns, capitals, and exquisite multicolored mosaic floors was built within the former basilica, reusing some of its columns and walls. The apse was constructed above the tomb, with access provided via a room north of the apse that served as a martyrium.We identified at least two construction phases for this church, distinguished by the mosaics in their floors. The second phase, dating to the third quarter of the 6th century CE, involved extending the bema westward, sealing the passage between the north aisle and the martyrium, creating a new northern entrance to the martyrium, and constructing what appears to be a baptismal font atop the passage leading from the martyrium to the empty tomb. Numismatic evidence and the style of the mosaics and capitals support this dating. The structure remained in use during the Umayyad period until its destruction in the earthquake of 749 CE.As at other sites in the Judean Foothills, the study of the subterranean chambers carved out of the local chalk provides valuable insights into the site’s history. The survey revealed nearly 60 artificial cavities and subterranean complexes, including cisterns, quarries, columbaria, ritual immersion baths, and storerooms. Ten cavities beneath the ancient settlement contained typical hiding complexes, which, along with the artifacts found, offer important information about the settlement during the late Second Temple period and the Bar Kokhba Revolt.Additionally, dozens of rock-cut tombs were excavated from the surrounding slopes. One decorated hypogeum built of ashlars dates to the 1st and 2nd centuries CE. This hypogeum is connected by a tunnel to a smaller rock-cut tomb with three arcosolia, hewn during the Byzantine period. Red crosses and the Greek letters ΙΧ (iota and chi, representing Ιησους Χριστος, or Jesus Christ) and ΑΩ (alpha and omega, alluding to Jesus’s statement “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” [Revelation 22:13]) were found on the tomb walls.

The 41 rock-cut tombs at Etenna provide a clear impression of this very early and widespread tradition for the region. They allow us to compare the Lycian, Pamphylian, Cilician and Pisidian rock-cut tomb architecture and understand connections and discontinuities between them. They also illustrate how features of such tombs are based on natural and technical factors, on local architectural traditions, or on the rock-cut architecture of neighbouring cultures. But basic similarities, such as the cutting of a tomb chamber in the rock, could occur without any influence from other cultural regions, for instance because of similar burial needs, similar natural materials or similar architectural knowledge. The influences between the rock-cut tombs of different regions and periods can be seen in the particular details, and their relation to local burial customs. Questions are asked, such as: if there were Lycian tombs in the Classical period, why were there no rock-cut tombs in Pamphylia in this period; why did the ‘dominant Lycian Classical culture’ not influence Pamphylia; and what were the tombs of the higher social classes of the societies of Classical Pamphylia?

:<i>Architecture in Ancient Central Italy: Connections in Etruscan and Early Roman Building</i>

&lt;p&gt;This study presents the preliminary description and evaluation of the architectural remains (namely, the city walls surrounding the acropolis and the lower city, the theater on the western skirts of the acropolis, the three bridges spanning the Uludere stream, the rock-cut tombs located on the northwestern and northeastern peripheries of the city) identified in the ancient city of Hypaipa during the field survey in the summer of 2012. Hypaipa, on which we do not have any detailed&lt;br /&gt; knowledge except for a few references in ancient sources and in some traveller records, is regarded as one of the cities in the Lydian region. The city whose foundation is presumed to date back to the Lydian period (the last quarter of the 7th century B.C. to the first half of the 6th century B.C.) had a distinct status because of its Persian temple dedicated to the Persian goddess Anahita. With particular reference to this temple, Hypaipa was mentioned in a number of ancient sources along with Hierocaesareia. In addition to its temple, Hypaipa was also famous for Arakhne, one of the well known mythological figures in the antiquity.&lt;br /&gt; Hypaipa appears to be a rather developed settlement, particularly in the Roman period. Moreover, the rock-cut tombs that we discovered to the north of the acropolis dating back to the 6th century BC constitute the earliest findings of the 2012 field survey in Hypaipa carried out by our team, providing further evidence for the significance of the site in connection with the Lydian and Persian archaeologies.&lt;/p&gt;

Our aim is to understand the economy and sociology of rock-cut building sites on the basis of the analysis of technical processes. The use of the concept of chaînes opératoires allows us to question current hypothesis found in the Cappadocian literature. The sites under study are located in the Cappadocian Volcanic Province (CVP) and more precisely in the area of Göreme. Buildings are caved in the ignimbrites, a kind of soft volcanic rock that comes from pyroclastic flows. They are the product of volcanic eruptions that took place during the Upper Miocene-Quaternary age. The ignimbrites are heterogeneous because they are composed by volcanic welded ash and, mostly, hard lithic blocks. Thanks to the soft characteristics of ignimbrites, tool marks are visible on the walls. It is therefore possible to reconstruct the way in which tombs and churches were made. The means of production and the rock-cutting processes can be studied with the help of use-wear archaeology. Furthermore, these analyzes underscore the incongruities in the type of tools used and the reasons that push workers to abandon a site. Then, the economy and sociology of the rock-cut monument-sites can be approached. Most of the researchers, who are working on Roman and Byzantine periods, think that churches could have been made by monks, as the monuments were not that voluminous and the ignimbrite, a soft rock easy to carve. Thanks to the technical approaches, this hypothesis can be questioned. Rock-cutting techniques are so complex that workers need to be professionals. Furthermore, technical studies can be used to perceive the evolution of techniques and explain the modifications of landscape in rural Cappadocia. Why rock-cut monuments are so numerous since the medieval period? Leo the Deacon defined the Cappadocian as Troglodyte during the 10th century, why this appellation appeared so late? Some answers can be given with the help of the anthropology of the techniques.

This chapter is an introduction to current knowledge and debate on rural settlement and land use in North Africa primarily during the Roman period. It illustrates the dramatic social and economic changes that transformed North Africa into one of the more dynamic regions of the Roman world down through to the seventh century. Despite numerous concentrations of pre-Roman megalithic, rock-cut tombs, and burial mounds throughout the Northern African landscape, the settlements associated with them have rarely survived. In Africa rural labor in imperial and private estates was done mainly by sharecropping coloni and their families, peasant farmers, laborers of nominal free status, seasonal workers, and in minor measure by slaves. Both archaeological and epigraphic sources reveal the involvement of the local population in the agricultural enterprises and consequently the impact of the integration of local human capital and local knowledge as highly profitable for the management of the regional resources.

This study presents results from archaeological surveys and excavations at Hurbat Husham, a strategic hill site in the Judean Foothills. Investigations reveal a Jewish settlement that existed from the Hellenistic period through the Bar Kokhba revolt (3rd century BCE - 136 CE). Key findings include a fortress-like structure at the summit, three ritual baths (miqva’ot), an underground hiding complex, rock-cut tombs, and a large elongated cistern. Material culture—including distinctive pottery and chalk stone vessels—confirms the site’s Jewish character during the Second Temple period. The underground complex with connecting tunnels likely served as an escape system during the Bar Kokhba revolt, similar to those at nearby sites. Based on strategic location, architectural features (particularly the elongated cistern typical of Hasmonean-Herodian desert fortresses), and second-century BCE ceramic evidence, we identify Hurbat Husham with Thamnata—one of Bacchides’ fortresses constructed in 160 BCE as recorded in 1 Maccabees and Josephus’ Antiquities. This identification is supported by the preserved name at nearby Kh. Tibnah and the site’s position controlling major routes into Judea via Nahal Sorek and Nahal Elah. During the Hasmonean and Herodian periods, it served as a fortress associated with the Betholetepha-Pella Toparchy. We suggest Hurbat Husham was likely Rabbi Simeon the Timnite’s hometown during the interbellum period. Late Roman or Byzantine occupation featured a Christian community, evidenced by graffiti on a ritual bath doorpost. One graffito depicts birds alongside a Christogram combining a cross with the Greek letters chi and rho, while another may represent a fish—an early Christian symbol functioning as an acrostic for “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.” These symbols were later plastered over when the structure was converted to a water cistern, suggesting they date to the late third or early fourth century CE. The findings contribute significantly to our understanding of settlement patterns, defensive strategies, and religious transitions in the Judean Foothills, while addressing historical-geographical questions regarding Bacchides’ fortresses and Rabbi Simeon the Timnite’s origin.

Reviewed by: When Wisdom Calls: Philosophical Protreptic in Antiquity ed. by O. Alieva, A. Kotzé, S. Van der Meeren Diego De Brasi Alieva, O., Kotzé, A., and Van der Meeren, S. (edd.) 2018. When Wisdom Calls: Philosophical Protreptic in Antiquity. Turnhout: Brepols. Pp. 517. ISBN 978-2-503-56855-6. €100.00. At least since Paul Hartlich's dissertation De exhortationum a Graecis Romanisque scriptarum historia et indole (Leipzig: Hirzel 1889) the study of protreptic has been a significant aspect of research on classics, especially ancient philosophy and early Christianity. However, while scholarly attention in the last 130 years focused more on canonical authors like Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, and Paul of Tarsus, authors from the imperial era and late antiquity have been slightly neglected and a comprehensive, up-to-date overview of ancient protreptic literature is still missing. The book under review represents, thus, an extremely welcome addition to the analysis of ancient protreptic as it tries to fill this gap. Indeed, the volume offers a very good outline of protreptic and its interaction with other literary genres from the 'beginning' up to the 'end' of Antiquity. Of course, one cannot and should not expect from a collective volume a systematic approach to the subject matter, but the absence of methodological unity is not problematic in this case. As Olga Alieva in her inspiring opening essay shows ('Protreptic: a protean genre', pp. 29–45), scholars are far from reaching consensus on the criteria which define protreptic. Only the quite general claim that protreptic, as its etymology suggests, aims at the 'conversion' of the addressed audience seems to be widely accepted. Further, as Alieva also shows, and many contributors to the volume claim, even ancient authors – or at least some of them – use the term προτρέπειν and its cognates vaguely and do not distinguish clearly, for instance, between protreptic and παραίνεσις. In this regard, Alieva seems to side with those scholars of early Christianity who argue for different functions of protreptic and παραίνεσις (cf. also the contribution by Annemaré Kotzé, esp. p. 368). Although she recognizes the importance of questioning this dichotomy, Alieva explicitly challenges the analysis of Diana Swancutt, who systematically disputed the traditional interpretation. Swancutt argues that the difference between protreptic and παραίνεσις is explicable in socio-cultural [End Page 255] terms and is not an expression of different functions.1 Alieva is right in pointing out that we cannot find explicit mentions of socio-cultural aspects in the texts examined by Swancutt. However, it is questionable whether the absence of evidence in ancient texts is evidence of absence. We should not forget, indeed, that ancient philosophical texts are usually the expression of a 'closed' socio-cultural community, and philosophical authors perhaps did not feel the need to put the spotlight on such aspects in their arguments. After Alieva's contribution, which in some way represent a second, methodological introduction to the whole collection (while the actual 'Introduction', pp. 19–27, mainly epitomizes all contributions), the volume offers sixteen 'case studies' ranging from Hesiod to Marinus of Neapolis and dealing with more (e.g. Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, Seneca, Galen, Augustine) and less (e.g. Philo of Alexandria, Lucian of Samosata, Marinus) 'canonical' authors. The last essay by Sophie van der Meeren ('Protreptique et isagogique: les vestibules de la philosophie', pp. 407–55) deals more generally with the protreptic implications of late antique isagogical literature. The essays are subdivided into two main sections ('Classical and Hellenistic World' pp. 47–227, 'Imperial Rome' pp. 229–455) and ordered mainly chronologically. There is only one easily explicable exception: Johan C. Thom's paper deals with Iamblichus' use of protreptic but is the second contribution in the section on 'Classical and Hellenistic World' since it also elaborates on Iamblichus' use of the so-called Pythagorean Sayings. A general bibliography and an index locorum complete the volume. All contributions are well written, of very high scientific standards and quite engaging, but since it would be impossible to assess every single one, I will focus on very few essays which I found particularly stimulating. Johan C. Thom's contribution focuses, as I mentioned above, on Iamblichus' Protrepticus and its use of Pythagorean Sayings ('Protreptic and Pythagorean sayings: Iamblichus' Protrepticus...

From the Roman conquest to the end of Constantine's reign, the finds in Macedon allow one to examine mainly two categories of large-scale art: sculpture and mosaic floors. The surviving monuments are numerous, whereas wall-paintings are not, but they differ in their chronological duration and, up to a point, in their function. The types and imagery of the funerary monuments of the late Hellenistic and early imperial period show a continuation of Hellenistic tradition. In the imperial period, sculpture flourished in Macedonia. It is easier to trace elements of Romanisation in monuments coming from the Roman colonies. The types of the portrait statues are not new, with the exception of the togati. Of the numerous private portrait statues, honorary and funerary, and of the busts, few examples retain the torso and the head together. The idealistic statues largely reproduce known types of the classical and Hellenistic period. Keywords: early imperial period; funerary monuments; Hellenistic period; Macedon's art; mosaic floors; private portrait statues; Roman period; wall-paintings

This article explores the archaeology of place and memory from the standpoint of research on large cemeteries of chamber tombs cut out of the rock in southern Sicily. Burials of this kind were integral to the configuration of major settlements dating from the Early Bronze Age to the Iron Age (c. 2200–600bc) and are a distinctive feature of Sicilian cultural landscapes. Rock-cut tombs at the four key sites of Castelluccio, Thapsos, Pantalica and Cassibile, representing successive phases of the Bronze and Iron Ages, are discussed in relation to terrain and layout. One aim is to identify recurrent principles of spatial organization, while drawing attention to settlements as structured environments with complex ritual geographies. Changes in tomb form are discussed with reference to variations in funerary practices over time. I conclude that cultural traditions in this region were sustained in part by the prominence of funerary architecture and by re-engagement with older sites in later periods through acts of re-use and remembrance.

Lehtipuu. p. cm. — (Supplements to Novum Testamentum, ISSN 0167-9732; v. 123) Revision of the author's thesis (doctoral)—University of Helsinki, 2004. Includes bibliographical references (p. and index). ISBN-13: 978-90-04-15301-1 ISBN-10: 90-04-15301-2 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Bible. N.T. Luke XVI, 19