Theodor Kraus (archaeologist)

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Theodor Kraus (born May 27, 1919 in Augsburg ; † March 13, 1994 in Rome ) was a German classical archaeologist who headed the Rome Department of the German Archaeological Institute from 1962 to 1984 as 1st director .

Theodor Kraus was born in 1949 at the University of Munich with the dissertation The tendrils of the Ara Pacis. A contribution to the history of the development of Augustan ornamentation . Together with Ulrich Hausmann , Rolf Nierhaus and Friedrich Vittinghoff, he belonged to the second post-war class, who was again awarded the travel grant of the German Archaeological Institute for his doctorates in 1950/51 , with Nierhaus and Vittinghoff taking on even older grants, which they were awarded for reasons of war, but could not compete. As a scholarship holder, he was able to travel to the Mediterranean region . After his return he worked on the so-called Megarian cups at the Roman-Germanic Central Museum in Mainz . Kraus completed his habilitation at the University of Heidelberg in 1958 with the thesis Hekate. Studies on the nature and image of the goddess in Asia Minor and Greece . In 1961 he was appointed second director of the Rome Department of the German Archaeological Institute. After the first director Reinhard Herbig died in the same year , Kraus was his successor and remained in the position until his retirement in 1984. His successor was Bernard Andreae .

In Rome he took up the plans of his predecessors again and turned his attention to the greater Greek areas of southern Italy and Sicily . Kraus was also able to put these plans into practice for the first time. In addition, during his tenure, the work of the Roman Institute was expanded beyond Italy to North Africa: in Zeugan in Algeria , where an old spring shrine was examined, and in Chemtou in Tunisia , where the ancient city and the well-known quarry are still being examined today. Kraus was considered an archaeologist who maintained teamwork. In many cases, he gave the institute's staff free space for their own research. In addition, he often withdrew himself. For example, when Hermine Speier was entrusted with the revision of “ Helbig ”, the guide to the public collections of classical antiquities in Rome , he accompanied the work from beginning to end. Ultimately, he had a great influence on the work, as he had the authors read the texts on site in the face of the originals and often made suggestions for improvement. After completing his doctorate, Kraus himself devoted himself primarily to Greek art, such as Aphrodite of Knidos and influences from Asia Minor on Greece, for example in a habilitation thesis on the goddess Hecate . When he moved to Rome, he mainly focused on topics that were important for the Rome department of the German Archaeological Institute. With the book Pompeii and Herculaneum and the volume The Roman Empire of Propylaea Art History , he also reached a broad readership. In addition, he published various specialist articles and reviews , especially in the periodicals of his department.

Kraus was married, but lost his wife, with whom he had three sons, quite early due to an illness.

Fonts

  • Megarian cups in the Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum zu Mainz , Verlag des Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseums, Mainz 1951 (catalog of the Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseums zu Mainz 14)
  • The tendrils of the Ara Pacis. A contribution to the history of the development of Augustan ornamentation , Gebr. Mann, Berlin 1953
  • Aphrodite von Knidos , Dorn, Bremen 1957 (Opus nobile, issue 10)
  • Hecate. Studies on the nature and image of the goddess in Asia Minor and Greece , Winter, Heidelberg 1960 (Heidelberg art-historical treatises. New series, Volume 5)
  • The Roman Empire , Propylaea Publishing House, Frankfurt am Main, Berlin and Vienna 1967 ( Propylaea Art History Volume 5)
  • Pompeii and Herculaneum. Face and fate of two ancient cities , DuMont Schauberg, Cologne 1973, ISBN 3-7701-0578-8

literature

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