Chiusi e il Clusium Group
Article , Content / 2010-12-02

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Chiusi e il Clusium Group. Un nuovo documento dagli scavi di Orvieto By Fernando Gilotta Abstract This note deals with sherds of a very important “new” Etruscan red-figure cup from Orvieto (Excavations Campo della Fiera, 2006), showing a fragmentary group of Fufluns/Satyr and a winged female goddess. The poorly preserved paintings, close to the “Clusium Group” as far as the central medaillon is concerned, are reminiscent of older “tiberine” vases, such as the Casuccini stamnos and related pottery, and at the same time show intriguing links with later Faliscan and Campanizing red-figure. This combination of stylistic and workshop relationships sheds light on the milieu from which the Clusium Group (possibly) emerged around the middle of the fourth century BC. As for the kylix, a date toward the third quarter of the fourth century BC is suggested. Bibliographical information Fernando Gilotta, ‘Chiusi e il Clusium Group. Un nuovo documento dagli scavi di Orvieto’, Opuscula. Annual of the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome (OpAthRom) 3, 179–184. Stockholm 2010. ISSN: 2000-0898. ISBN: 978-91-977798-2-1. Softcover, 224 pages. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-03-08

Marsyas in the garden?
Article , Content / 2010-12-02

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Marsyas in the garden? Small-scale sculptures referring to Marsyas in the forum By Julia Habetzeder Abstract While studying a small-scale sculpture in the collections of the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm, I noticed that it belongs to a previously unrecognized sculpture type. The type depicts a paunchy, bearded satyr who stands with one arm raised. To my knowledge, four replicas exist. By means of stylistic comparison, they can be dated to the late second to early third centuries AD. Due to their scale and rendering they are likely to have been freestanding decorative elements in Roman villas or gardens. The iconography of the satyrs of the type discussed is closely related to that of a group of fountain figures. These fountain figures are believed to refer to a motif well known in Roman times: the Marsyas in the forum. In this article I argue that the satyrs of the type discussed refer as well to this once famous depiction of Marsyas. Bibliographical information Julia Habetzeder, ‘Marsyas in the garden? Small-scale sculptures referring to Marsyas in the forum’, Opuscula. Annual of the…

Water, well-being and social complexity in Insula V 1

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Water, well-being and social complexity in Insula V 1. A Pompeian city block revisited By Anne-Marie Leander Touati Abstract Swedish archaeologists have been working in Pompeii since 2000. Our fieldwork has consisted mainly of the study of standing walls and cleared floor levels in a city block unearthed in the 19th century and of the production of a comprehensive documentation, presented in an open access publication: www.pompejiprojektet.se/insula.php. The perspective of the present paper is the insula as a whole. Its main study objects are features of recurrent nature that in varying form and frequency are found in many of the separate houses and other units that constitute this insula: for example, the divergent materials used for the rubble masonry in the first phase of urbanisation, structures used for water management such as water supply and drains, possible earthquake damage and resulting repairs, preferences for where kitchens and sanitary installations are placed, markers indicating property borders and dependencies such as pavement curbing, courses of water inlets and drains, shops communicating with the houses through rear doorways, and the existence and…

Labraunda 2009

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Labraunda 2009. A preliminary report on the Swedish excavations with contributions by Jesper Blid and Olivier Henry By Lars Karlsson Abstract The 2009 campaign in Labraunda accomplished three goals: the termination of the excavations in the Byzantine fort on the Acropolis and in the Late Roman Tetraconch and the complete excavation of the impressive marble chamber tomb along the Sacred Way. In the Acropolis Fortress, evidence was found to support the military character of the Byzantine establishment: the rooms along the fortification wall were paved and had a rectangular shape, suggesting defensive rooms. In these rooms sling stones were found. Structures dating from the Hekatomnid period were further investigated this year, and a well cut into the gneiss bedrock was excavated. In the Tetraconch, the north apse was excavated down to bedrock and a coin from Constantius II (348–357/8) suggests an ante quem dating for this unique and sophisticated structure. The geophysical investigations indicated that a church is located on the terrace below the Tetraconch and a first sondage was conducted here. The large marble chamber tomb was completely…

Un inedito lastrone a scala da Tarquinia presso l’Antiquiarum di Monte Romano
Article , Content / 2010-12-02

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Un inedito lastrone a scala da Tarquinia presso l’Antiquiarum di Monte Romano By Maria Gabriella Scapaticci Abstract This is the publication of an as yet unpublished recently acquired large stepped slab dating from the orientalising period. It was delivered to the Antiquarium of Monte Romano (Vt) by the local resident who found it. The find comes from the “Ancarano” area of Tarquinia which is near the border of the Monte Romano district. The piece is of the stepped slab class, typical of seventh century BC production from Tarquinia. The slab completes a similar one which was also from Tarquinia but is conserved in the Archaeological Museum of Florence and was purchased from Mr Milani in Tarquinia at the end of the nineteenth century. Through photocomposition and integrated graphic restoration we propose a reading which links the two finds. Hence the decoration of an important funerary monument has emerged, most likely belonging to an Etruscan prince who recounts his hunting exploits, which are symbolic of elevated social status. Bibliographical information Maria Gabriella Scapaticci, ‘Un inedito lastrone a scala da Tarquinia…

The bronze headbands of prehistoric Lofkënd and their Aegean and Balkan connections
Article , Content / 2010-12-02

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. The bronze headbands of prehistoric Lofkënd and their Aegean and Balkan connections By John K. Papadopoulos Abstract This paper begins with an overview of the bronze headbands from the prehistoric (Late Bronze to Early Iron Age) burial tumulus of Lofkënd in Albania, which were found among the richest tombs of the cemetery, all of them of young females or children. It is argued that these individuals represent a class of the special dead, those who have not attained a critical rite de passage: marriage. In their funerary attire these individuals go to the grave as brides, married to death. The significance of the Lofkënd headbands is reviewed, as is their shape and decoration, but it is their context that contributes to a better understanding of Aegean examples, including the many bronze, gold, and silver headbands found in tombs from the Early Bronze Age through the Early Iron Age, as well as those dedicated as votive offerings in sanctuaries. In addition to discussing the evidence for headbands in the Aegean and much of southeast Europe, this paper also attempts to…

Excavations in Midea 2008–2009

Opuscula 3 (2010) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com, and Adlibris.com. Excavations in Midea 2008–2009 By Katie Demakopoulou, Nicoletta Divari-Valakou, Maria Lowe Fri, Madeleine Miller, Monica Nilsson & Ann-Louise Schallin Abstract Excavations in Midea continued in 2008 and 2009 as a Greek-Swedish programme under the direction of Dr Katie Demakopoulou in collaboration with Dr Ann-Louise Schallin. On the lower west terrace of the Acropolis excavation continued in Trench C in order to conclude the investigation of the syrinx discovered in 2007. A small trench was opened in the interior of Room I to examine the deposit below its floor. Furthermore, the cleaning of a large area outside the north section of the citadel wall brought to light a large part of a massive terrace wall. Investigations were made in three adjacent locations in the area east of the East Gate: in the baulk between Trenches 3 and 9, in Trench 9S and in Trench 12. As a result of these excavations new walls were discovered, which add to our previous knowledge of the layout of the series of rooms in this area, abutting the fortification wall. The finds include fragments…

Book reviews
Book review , Content / 2009-12-02

Opuscula 2 (2009) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com and Adlibris.com. Books reviewed in Opuscula 2 (2009) Gunnel Ekroth | M-Z. Petropoulou, Animal sacrifice in ancient Greek religion, Judaism, and Christianity, 100 BC to AD 200 (Oxford Classical monographs), Oxford 2008. xii + 336 p. ISBN 978-0-19-921854-7. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-02-13 Jenny Wallensten | S.I. Johnston, Ancient Greek Divination (Blackwell Ancient Religions), Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell 2008. 193 p. ISBN: 978-1-4051-1573-5. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-02-14 Simon Malmberg | P. von Rummel, Habitus barbarus: Kleidung und Repräsentation spätantiker Eliten im 4. und 5. Jahrhundert. Berlin: de Gruyter 2007. xi + 481 pp. ISBN: 978-3-11-019150-9. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-02-15 Lars Karlsson | O. Henry, Tombes de Carie. Architecture funéraire et culture carienne, VIe–IIe siècle av. J.-C. Rennes: Presses Universitaires de Rennes, 2009. 289 pp., 163 figs., 16 pls. ISBN 978-2-7535-0758-6. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-02-16 Bibliographical information ‘Book reviews’, Opuscula. Annual of the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome (OpAthRom) 2, 221–228. Stockholm 2009. ISSN: 2000-0898. ISBN: 978-91-977798-1-4. Softcover, 232 pages.

In memoriam: Berit Wells 1943–2009
Article , Content / 2009-12-02

Opuscula 2 (2009) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com and Adlibris.com. In memoriam: Berit Wells 1943–2009. Her work at the Swedish Institute at Athens By Ann-Louise Schallin This contribution is only available in print. Bibliographical information Ann-Louise Schallin, ‘In memoriam: Berit Wells 1943–2009. Her work at the Swedish Institute at Athens’, Opuscula. Annual of the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome (OpAthRom) 2, 219–220. Stockholm 2009. ISSN: 2000-0898. ISBN: 978-91-977798-1-4. Softcover, 232 pages. https://doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-02-12

Decorative effects and room functions

Opuscula 2 (2009) is now available for purchase and free download at Bokorder.se. Also available at Amazon.com, Amazon.de, Bokus.com and Adlibris.com. Decorative effects and room functions. The evidence of thresholds studied in the residential quarters of Insula V 1, Pompeii By Thomas Staub Abstract The present paper discusses the use of different types of thresholds in the Pompeian domestic architecture. The considerations proceed from observations made in three larger dwellings in Insula V 1 in Pompeii, the town quarter, which is under current investigation by the Swedish Pompeii Project. The thresholds are considered in the contexts of corresponding pavements and wall decorations as well as that of the related rooms. Differences will be studied between the areas around the atria and the zones around the peristyles. They indicate that while the thresholds around the atrium are of a homogeneous character, defined by the shape and decorations of the central room, the ones around the peristyle are defined by the decorations and dignity of each particular room opening up towards the central entity. It seems also that both the material used and the shape of the thresholds could be dependent on the taste defining the decorations, either of the floor or…