Kioniskos
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A simple form of ancient tombs is called Kioniskos ( Latin Columella ).
Kioniskoi are tombs in a cylindrical shape. They had been in use for a long time, for example in ancient Athens, next to the representative tombs. According to a law of Demetrios of Phaleron , the ruler of the city between 317 and 307 BC. BC, which was supposed to prevent the luxury of tombs, they were the only permitted grave decorations besides trapezai or vessels. They were allowed to reach a maximum height of three cubits, i.e. about 1.30 meters. Since Demetrios sent officials to check and imposed high penalties for violations, the law was largely observed. Kioniskoi have been the predominant form of tombs in Attic cemeteries since that time. They were almost always made of Hymettic marble . At the upper end there is usually a circumferential bead. The painting of the Kioniskoi is seldom preserved; when it is, it often shows that the bead represents a braided band made of sacrificial bandages. The only adornment besides the painting were generally inscriptions . In the case of men, these usually stated the name of the deceased, the patronymic and the demos ; in the case of women, in addition to their own name, the name of the father or husband. In addition to the new grave monuments, the old ones continued to exist, the new ones were not infrequently placed in the older grave areas and then mostly in the rear area. As, for example, in the case of the tomb of Isidorus , two Kioniskoi could also be combined into one, which, however, was extremely rare.
Tombs of outstanding people could be erected in the middle of a small stuccoed tumulus . Occasional reliefs have been carved out on the Kioniskos, for example an ivy wreath on the Kioniskos for Hieronymos . Inscriptions in Latin, as for the one after 44 BC, are rare. Died Numerius Granonius. Kioniskoi were used in Athens' cemeteries until the 5th century.
literature
- Jutta Stroszeck : The Kerameikos in Athens. History, buildings and monuments in the archaeological park. Bibliopolis, Athens 2014, ISBN 978-3-943741-04-9 , pp. 150–151.
