Parthian Monument

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Relief plate of the Parthian monument in Ephesus
Detail ( Ephesos Museum Vienna )
Detail: apotheosis of the emperor ( Ephesos Museum Vienna )

The Parthian monument of Ephesus is a building from the 2nd century AD that can only be reconstructed from remains. It takes its name from some relief panels that were found in 1903 in front of the ruins of the Celsus library in Ephesus . According to some researchers, it is not conclusively certain that the relief depictions are really Parthians ; Other "barbarians" are basically also conceivable.

The dating of the reliefs is not certain. Part of the research represents an early date between 138 and 141 AD, while representatives of a late dating would like to know that the reliefs and thus the monument were created between 166 and 172 AD. On the basis of his style analysis and historical considerations, Wolfgang Oberleitner came to the conclusion that the conception and start of construction should not be scheduled until 171/172, as it is a monument on the occasion of a great Parthian campaign by the Romans . The monument could therefore only represent the Parthian War of Lucius Verus . This war under Augustus Lucius Verus in the years 161 to 166 AD led to the sacking of the Parthian capital Seleukia-Ctesiphon. Lucius Verus then assumed the title Parthicus Maximus and finally celebrated a triumph in Rome as co-emperor of Marcus Aurelius, together with his counterpart . In memory of this victory over the Parthians, the monument would have been erected in Ephesus, namely after AD 171, i.e. after the death of Lucius Verus and his consecration , whose apotheosis is depicted in the frieze of the monument.

It is believed that the frieze was originally over 100 meters long. The reliefs found secondary use in late antiquity as part of a fountain that used the facade of the Celsus library as a display wall (similar to today's Trevi Fountain in Rome).

literature

  • Alice Landscron: The "Parthian Monument" from Ephesus. A monument to the Antonines . In: Annual Issues of the Austrian Archaeological Institute in Vienna , Vol. 75 (2006), pp. 143-183, ISSN  0078-3579
  • Wolfgang Oberleitner: The Parthian monument of Ephesus (writings of the Kunsthistorisches Museum ; Vol. 11). Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna 2008, ISBN 978-3-85497-150-4 (2 volumes).
  • Wolfgang Oberleitner: The Parthian Monument of Ephesus . In: Herwig Friesinger et al. (Hrsg.): 100 years of Austrian research in Ephesus. Files from the Vienna Symposium 1995 . Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1999. pp. 619–631, ISBN 3-7001-2732-4 .
  • Wilfried Seipel (Ed.): The Parthian Monument of Ephesus. Files from the colloquium, Vienna, 27. – 28. April 2003 (Writings of the Kunsthistorisches Museum; Vol. 10). Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna 2006, ISBN 978-3-85497-107-8 .

Web links

Commons : Parthian Monument  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ↑ So Alice Landskron, summarizing: Ethnikon on the battle frieze of the Parthian monument of Ephesus .
  2. ↑ See Wolfgang Oberleitner: On the Parthian monument of Ephesus. Comments on the article A. Landskron Ancient imagery and the so-called Parthian monument of Ephesus . In: Forum Archaeologiae . Journal of Classical Archeology , ISSN  1605-4636 .

Coordinates: 37 ° 56 ′ 20.9 "  N , 27 ° 20 ′ 26.5"  E