A New Inscribed Assos Sarcophagus from Alexandreia Troas and The Collegium of Shipwrights

Abstract

This paper presents a new inscribed Assos-type sarcophagus found recently in a village close to the ancient city of Alexandreia Troas. A characteristic feature of the general decoration of Assos-type sarcophagi is the attention-grabbing shape of the large central panel positioned on each of the long sides of the sarcophagus. It is proposed that these large central panels may have been schematic representations of rectangular or round funerary altars. Accordingly, the depiction of the funerary altar on the sarcophagus is considered to be a new hybrid style of the practice in the necropolis of Assos of erecting a funerary altar along with the sarcophagus.  With this sarcophagus inscription dating to the third century AD, the presence of the professional association of shipwrights, which is known to have existed in a number of important harbour cities in the western part of the Roman Empire, is attested for the first time in the ancient city of Alexandreia Troas and Asia Minor in general. The epithet ἱερώτατος labelling the collegium suggests that the association may have gained a privileged position in the ancient city. The anonymous owner of the sarcophagus must have been associated with the collegium of shipwrights at Alexandreia Troas and, presumably, he was a shipwright. 

Keywords

• Alexandreia Troas,Assos sarcophagus,tabula,funerary altar,sarcophagus inscription,association,collegium,shipwright,naupegos

Aleksandreia Troas’tan Yazıtlı Yeni Bir Assos Lahdi ve Tersane İşçileri Derneği

Öz

Makalede yakın zamanda Aleksandreia Troas yakınlarındaki Kemallı Köyü’nde bulunmuş yazıtlı bir Assos lahdi tanıtılmaktadır. Yazarlar, Assos lahitlerinin her iki uzun yüzünde bulunan ve şekilleri itibariyle dikkat uyandıran geniş orta panelin aslında dikdörtgen veya silindirik gömü sunaklarının lahitler üzerine işlenmiş şematik bir tasviri olabileceğini ileri sürmektedir. Buna bağlı olarak, mezar sunaklarının lahit üzerine betimlenmesinin Assos nekropolisinde lahitle birlikte bir gömü sunağı dikme geleneğinin yeni bir melez biçemi olabileceği varsayılmaktadır. Roma İmparatorluğu’nun batısında birkaç önemli liman şehrinde faaliyet gösterdiği bilinen tersane işçileri derneğinin Aleksandria Troas ve Asia Minor’daki varlığı, MS 3. yüzyıla tarihlenen bu yazıtla ilk defa epigrafik olarak belgelenmektedir. Derneği tanımlamak için kullanılan ἱερώτατος epitheti bu derneğin kentte belli bir prestije sahip olduklarını düşündürmektedir. Lahdi hazırlatan kişinin bu dernekle bir bağlantısının olması muhtemeldir. Belki, o da bir tersane işçisiydi. Yazıtın tercümesi şöyledir: “[- - - ve] evlatlarım Sulpicius Aurelius [cognomen] ve Sulpicius Aurelius Smintheus için [- - -] eğer biri (lahdi) açarsa ve (içerisine) başka bir ceset koyarsa son derece kutsal tersane işçileri derneğine 500 denarii verecek”.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Aleksandreia Troas,Assos lahdi,tabula,mezar sunağı,dernek,collegium,tersane işçisi,naupegos

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