Mortuary Practices in Late Antique Corinth by Jeremy Ott a Dissertation
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Mortuary Practices In Late Antique Corinth By Jeremy Ott A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Institute of Fine Arts New York University January, 2016 ______________________ Thelma K. Thomas © Jeremy Ott All Rights Reserved, 2018 PREFACE In the interest of not restricting scholarship only to those who can afford to purchase it, I am releasing the present version of my 2016 doctoral thesis as an open access work. In addition to correcting a small number of typographical errors, I have reoriented the bibliography toward an international scholarly audience through the use of Greek and Cyrillic scripts for relevant materials published in Greece and Bulgaria, while including Romanized versions of authors’ last names to provide points of access for non-specialist Western audiences. The main text is otherwise identical to the submitted version of the thesis, and any errors remain my own. A large number of published images from beyond the domain of ancient Corinth have been necessarily excluded from this open access edition. Jeremy Ott Berkeley, December 2018 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation benefitted immeasurably from the advice, and support, of many individuals and institutions. I thank Corinth Director Guy Sanders for allowing me to study Corinth’s Late Antique burials and for sharing countless insights, particularly on critical assessments of the archaeological and historical records. The wisdom and patience of my doctoral advisor, Thelma Thomas, helped me in no small way to manage the study of a large body of archaeological evidence while I resided in multiple countries while writing, and aided my final steps to completion immensely. At Corinth, Ioulia Tzonou-Herbst and James Herbst offered invaluable assistance in locating museum objects, working with images, and many other aspects of research and study center life. I shared the good company of too many Corinthian scholars to name, but I should single out Nancy Bookidis, Betsey Robinson, Paul Scotton, and Charles K. Williams, II for not only enjoyable conversation but especially discussions of burials as they relate to their own studies and excavations. It is also a pleasant duty to thank Athenian Agora Excavations Director John Camp, who allowed me to examine material from the Agora as comparanda. Finally, I am grateful for funding and logistical support provided by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, the American Research Center in Sofia, the Hellenic Ministry of Education, and New York University. iv ABSTRACT Corinth’s Late Antique mortuary archaeological record, consisting of more than 600 graves revealed during the course of over 100 years of excavation, offers a unique window on the religious beliefs, urban changes, economics, and ethnic composition of the city as it gradually abandoned the classical model. This dissertation considers in detail two expansive burial grounds: the first, of 6th to early 7th century A.D. date, within the area of Lerna Court and farther west within the line of the Classical city wall, and the second, dating from circa 600 A.D. to the 9th century, in and around Corinth’s abandoned Forum. The topographical relevance of these cemeteries to the community of the living, tomb architecture, mortuary objects and ritual, and special cases of mortuary deviation from local tradition by non-Greek individuals are assessed with the assistance of extensive documentary material including inventoried artifacts, field notebook records, and images, most of which is unpublished and presented here for the first time. Substantial continuation of preceding Roman practices in regard to cemetery location, tomb architecture, and deposited objects is demonstrated into the early 7th century and corresponds closely to Athens and other sites in southern Greece. While burials of the latter 7th to 9th centuries differ importantly from their 6th and early 7th century predecessors, especially in the sharp decrease in ceramic deposition, such trends may be explained in part by altered forms of object deposition within a ritual that remained largely constant, or by the increasing use of perishable objects. These relatively late burials are invaluable for the characterization of continuing occupation at Corinth, and find only limited points of comparison across Greece. Other changes, most dramatically the sudden appearance of weaponry in mortuary contexts and v an increase in some forms of personal clothing accessories and jewelry, testify to the presence of non-Greek individuals arguably originating in the migratory groups of Eastern Europe and potentially residing at Corinth as soldiers within the Byzantine military. The only city in southern Greece possessing clear archaeological evidence for such persons, Corinth thus offers an important model of a Late Antique multiethnic community. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv ABSTRACT v LIST OF APPENDICES xi LIST OF PLATES xii INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1 Landscapes of the Living and the Dead 6 1.1 Introduction 6 1.2 The Fortified Lower City 6 1.3 The Area Immediately Surrounding the Fortified Lower City 8 1.4 Greater Corinth 12 1.5 The Lerna Court Area 19 1.5.1 The Asklepieion and Lerna Court 20 1.5.2 The Gymnasium 30 1.6 The Forum 31 1.7 The Shifting Spaces of Corinthian Landscapes in the 4th to 8th C. 43 1.8 Conclusion 52 CHAPTER 2 The Lerna Court Area Cemetery 54 2.1 Introduction 54 2.2 Excavation of the Asklepieion and Lerna Court (1930-1933) 55 2.2.1 Tomb Markers 61 2.2.2 Chronology 65 2.2.3 Cemetery Space and Ritual Routes 72 2.3 The ‘Gymnasium’ (1965-1970) 81 vii 2.4 The ‘Hill of Zeus’ (1933) 83 2.5 The 1896 Campaign (Westernmost Burials) 86 2.6 Conclusion 88 CHAPTER 3 The Forum Area Cemetery 91 3.1 Introduction 91 3.2 Excavation at the Forum 92 3.3 South Stoa 93 3.4 South Basilica 101 3.5 Central Shops and Bema Church 106 3.6 West Terrace 108 3.7 Forum Northwest 119 3.8 Peirene Fountain 121 3.9 Forum East 126 3.10 The Greater Forum Area 129 3.10.1 Temple E 120 3.10.2 Sikyonian Road 133 3.10.3 Lechaion Road 134 3.11 Cemetery Chronology and Spatial Development 139 3.12 Conclusion 144 CHAPTER 4 Tomb Architecture 146 4.1 Introduction 146 4.2 Vaulted Tombs 146 4.3 Flat-roofed Tombs with Entry Shafts 155 4.4 Cist Graves 158 viii 4.5 Tile Tent Graves 165 4.6 Amphora Burials 169 4.7 Irregular Composite Tomb Types 172 4.8 Mortuary Platforms 174 4.9 Epitaphs 175 4.10 Conclusion 179 CHAPTER 5 Mortuary Objects and Ritual 181 5.1 Introduction 181 5.2 Objects 182 5.2.1 Buckles 182 5.2.2 Belt Accessories 191 5.2.3 Earrings 194 5.2.4 Finger Rings 199 5.2.5 Beads 202 5.2.6 Coins 205 5.2.7 Weapons and Tools 208 5.2.8 Lamps 213 5.2.9 Pottery 218 5.2.10 Glass and Metal Vessels 225 5.2.11 Miscellaneous Objects 227 5.3 Ritual 232 5.4 Conclusion 242 CHAPTER 6 Corinth’s Immigrant Burials 244 6.1 Introduction 244 ix 6.2 Previous Scholarship 245 6.3 Burials with Weapons and Tools at Corinth’s Forum 249 6.3.1 South Stoa 249 6.3.2 West Shops 253 6.3.3 Temple Hill 254 6.4 Burials with Weapons and Tools Elsewhere at Corinth 255 6.4.1 Kraneion Basilica 255 6.4.2 Acrocorinth 256 6.4.3 Discussion 258 6.5 Atypical Forum Cemetery Burials without Weapons and Tools 260 6.6 Discussion 263 6.7 Immigrants and the Development of the Forum Cemetery 267 6.8 Conclusion 269 CONCLUSION 271 APPENDICES 278 BIBLIOGRAPHY 416 PLATES x LIST OF APPENDICES APPENDIX A LERNA COURT AREA CEMETERY LERNA COURT-ASKLEPIEION MORTUARY ZONE 278 APPENDIX B LERNA COURT AREA CEMETERY HILL OF ZEUS MORTUARY ZONE 342 APPENDIX C FORUM AREA CEMETERY 369 xi LIST OF PLATES Pl. 1. Map of circa 4th to 8th C. Corinth Pl. 2. Lerna Court Area Cemetery (after Wiseman 1967b, pl. 92) Pl. 3. State plan of Lerna Court and Asklepieion (J. Travlos, Corinth Plan 220 088a Pl. 4. Lerna Court and Asklepieion, Cemetery Plan (after J. Herbst) Pl. 5. Lerna Court and Asklepieion, Cemetery Plan, West Zone (after J. Herbst) Pl. 6. Lerna Court and Asklepieion, Cemetery Plan, Central Zone (after J. Herbst) Pl. 7. Lerna Court and Asklepieion, Cemetery Plan, East Zone (after J. Herbst) Pl. 8. Lerna Court and Asklepieion, Cemetery Plan, Access Routes (after J. Herbst) Pl. 9. Lerna Court Area Cemetery, Hill of Zeus trenches I, II (Corinth Notebook 0138, p. 7) Pl. 10. Lerna Court Area Cemetery, Hill of Zeus trench II, south (Corinth Notebook 0138, p. 21) Pl. 11a-b. Lerna Court Area Cemetery, Hill of Zeus trenches III (left), IV (right) (Corinth Notebook 0138, p. 31, 40) Pl. 12. Forum (“Agora”) area, circa 200 A.D. (Scranton 1957, Plan 3) Pl. 13. Forum area cemetery (after Williams and Bookidis 2003, Plan IV) Pl. 14. Forum area cemetery, South Stoa west Pl. 15. Forum area cemetery, South Stoa west Pl. 16. Forum area cemetery, South Stoa central Pl. 17. Forum area cemetery, South Stoa east Pl. 18. Forum area cemetery, South Basilica Pl. 19. Forum area cemetery, West Terrace north Pl. 20. Forum area cemetery, West Terrace central xii Pl. 21. Forum area cemetery, West Terrace south Pl. 22. Forum area cemetery, West Terrace south, temples Pl. 23. Forum area cemetery, Forum southwest Pl. 24. Forum area cemetery, Northwest Shops Pl. 25. Forum area cemetery, Captives Facade Pl. 26. Forum area cemetery, Peirene Fountain Pl. 27. Forum area cemetery, Julian Basilica Pl.