Funerary Aspects of the Ancient Roman Province of Noricum (The Medallion Tomb Stelae)
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JFTH Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) ISSN: 2314-7024 E-ISSN: 2682-2180 Funerary Aspects of the Ancient Roman Province of Noricum (The Medallion Tomb Stelae) Fathia Gaber Ebrahim Associate Professor- Department of Archaeology and Graeco-Roman Studies Faculty of Arts, Alexandria University Abstract There were in Graz and other places in with another Egyptian and Attic element more Austria special collections of Roman funerary than the Roman ones. stelae, with different shapes, and they can be found only in the museum Catalogues, so it Keywords: Roman, Tomb Stele, Noricum, has never undergone a comparative study, to Austria. know if this type of stelae was characteristic 1. Introduction: in the ancient Roman province of Noricum or not. This study deals with the funerary stelae 1.1 Historical notes about Noricum: which depict the deceased person inside a The Danube River was very important to the medallion, and the research aims to know if Romans, as it was indicated by the Roman this was something related only to Noricum or presence in Central and Eastern Europe in it was a tradition in all the Roman provinces early first century A.D. to the last decades of in the same time. Some of those represented the fourth century (Wilkes, 2005) and has dead people on the medallions stelae from formed the northern boundary of Noricum,* to Austria were Roman soldiers, others were the east and southeast of it is Pannonia ordinary people depicted while doing their province, Rattia is to the west and Italy to the profession as for instance the stela with the south. These borders were fortified in the depiction of a writer holding a pen and a book. And finally those Medallion Stelae were special for the Western Roman *Modern Austria: Thanks to Erasmus, post doctoral provinces, especially in Noricum and scholarship which the researcher obtained twice, in 2014 and in 2016, which enabled her to see and take Pannonia, with different subjects of myths, photos for those Tombstones, which are kept in and although the shape of the medallion was different museums and sites in Austria. Especial thanks Roman, and many of them were soldiers, are to Proff. G. Koiner from Karl Franzens Universitate, Graz and to the director of Graz Celtic elements are found in their depiction, Archaeological Museum for permitting me to take photos and measures of some objects. The Scientific Journal of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Alexandria University, Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) 181 Funerary Aspects of the Ancient Roman Province of Noricum (The Medallion Tomb Stelae) Fathia Gaber Erahim second century AD against the Germanic discoveries of new constructions, both civil tribes who came from the north and east. and military, and of inscriptions that increase Those tribes could not fight Italy without the statistical predominance of records dating from A.D. 193 and 235 when compared with crossing the provinces of Noricum and all other eras. Some have suggested that much Pannonia; this is why they became of strategic of this activity was linked directly with the importance to the Roman Empire. passage through the area of Severus and his family in A.D. 202 on their return from the The original inhabitants of the region were a Parthian campaign. Other finds have also been mixture of Illyrians and Celts who came from linked with the presence of Caracalla on the the Balkans between 750 and 450 BC. There Danube in A.D. 213 on his route for the were early trade relations with Italy. The Eastern campaign (Birley, 1999). In addition, Celtic people were among the most influential the emperor Severus brought many changes to elements in the province, especially the Norici the Roman military. Half-increased soldiers' pay, they were allowed to be married while in tribes (Pleyel, 1987). service, and greater opportunities were The ancient reference to Noricum appeared in provided for promotion into officer ranks and Livy (39, 22, 6) when referring to the the civil service (Baynes, 1891). founding of Aquileia (Strabo, 5, I, 8) in 186 BC. Before Noricum had officially annexed to In the reform of civil and military the Roman Empire, where it existed as an administration in the early fourth century independent kingdom by the name of Regnum A.D. all the Danube provinces were divided. Noricum (Balduin, 1950; Scherrer 2002). Superior areas adjacent to the Danube became the provinces Noricum Ripense (Noricum Its borders were not well known, it included along the river) and Pannonia Prima, now most of present Austria, northwest of Slovenia separated from the inner region of Noricum and part of Hungary Perhaps a few parts of Mediterrnea and Savia. Pannonia Inferior was Switzerland. The administrative center of the divided into Pannonia Secunda and Valeria, kingdom was in Virunum, which became the both including stretches of the Danube capital of the province (Hudeczek, 1977) on (Wilkes, 2005). Already under Gallienus the Magdalensberg hill. same policy continued in reinforced form Noricum was peacefully annexed to the Measures under Diocletian are also in the Roman Empire at about 15 BC. Although this annexation did not result in its direct interior of the province (Balduin, 1950; conversion to the Roman province, it Stankovic, 2012) remained a kingdom with the same system This kingdom was economically important to and partition until it became an official the Romans, and was famous for the province under Emperor Claudius 41-54 AD production of iron, metal tools and high without any Military resistance of any kind, quality weapons. Its location was strategically and he established some cities such as important as Augustus enabled his Virunum (Piccottini, 2002) (Klagenfurt) and Iuvavum (Kovacsovics, 2002) (Salzburg). It expansionist policy to fortify and secure the was only during the reign of Emperor borders of the Rhine and Danube rivers. In the Antoninus Pius, where the second legion Pia so-called National hospitality settled in, and the commander of the legion (https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6446/) became the governor (Pleyel, 1987; The role of mining and metalworking, long Hainzmann & Pochmarski, 1994). acknowledged as major elements in the The close relationship between the Severan Danube provinces in general (Wilkes, 2005). dynasty and the Danube region, above all Pannonia, continues to be revealed by Its trade flourished during the first century The Scientific Journal of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Alexandria University, Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) 182 Funerary Aspects of the Ancient Roman Province of Noricum (The Medallion Tomb Stelae) Fathia Gaber Erahim AD. This encouraged emigration of many reorganization of the Danube borders, some merchants from northern Italy and other, other garrisons were added (Weber, 1969). which resulted in the imposition and 1.2. Religious and Funerary Aspects in domination of Roman control in all areas, Noricum whether economic or cultural. Augustus gave In many Danube communities, Roman cults the Roman citizenship to many local were dominant, generally with little or no aristocrats and nobles. Tiberius pursued this assimilation to local pre-Roman deities, an policy. The rest of the people who lived in the exception was the eastern alpine regions of center of the Alps and in other parts of the Noricum and Pannonia where, as in other province did not have Roman citizenship, but parts of the Celtic-speaking world, local some received a degree, without granting deities survived in equation with Roman gods (Wilkes,2005). them any rights (Smith, 1873). The Roman gods were worshiped in addition The military government in the neighboring to some eastern cults such as the cult of province of Pannonia and Ratia maintained Mithra and Isis. One of the most important commandment. In the reign of Claudius, the gods was the goddess Noria, protector of the capital of Noricum was transferred to province, who was assimilated with the Virunum. Vespasian established an important Egyptian Isis, as remains of the foundations of center in the province also called Flavia Solva a temple for Isis in Frauenberg, was found†. In (Leibnitz) as Pliny stated (III, 27)” "In the addition, some Celtic gods were mixed with rear of the Carni and the Iapydes, along the Roman ones as Mars Latopius who was course of the great river Ister, the Rhæti touch worshiped in different places (Hudeczek, upon the Norici: their towns are Virunum, 1977). Celeia, Teurnia, Aguntum, Vianiomina, Recently published cemeteries from the Claudia, and Flavium Solvense" (Modrijan & Danube hinterland in Noricum, in the south of Weber, 1965; Hudeczek, 1977; Pleyel, 1987; Hudeczek, 2002). the province constitute family tombs near Hadrian established some other cities such as Klagenfurt and a larger cemetery at Katsch in Carnuntun (Petronell), the Severan dynasty the territory of Solva. The well-known established Vindobona (Vienna) (Pleyel, monuments in the cemetery at Sempeter near 1987). Five cities were granted the status of Celeia preserved by a flood of the river Sava the Roman colony and began to build the continue to attract attention as one of the most borders of the Danube by setting up small vivid records of native Roman elite, in this military stations along the river. In the middle instance of Claudian Celeia. The great of the second century AD, the military posts western cemetery at Poetovio is now of the state were fortified and reinforced published after having been stored in the against the attack of some of the other museum at Graz for nearly a century, and that German tribes in an attempt to reach Italy in at Praetorium Latobicorum on the road about 166-171 A. D. (Wilkes, 2005) between Emona and Siscia is also now fully Although Noricum was a peaceful province published (Wilkes, 2005). but there were small military garrisons There is no evidence that the local inhabitants belonging to the Aryans and Pannonia, some of Noricum and Pannonia have used any inscriptions show the presence of the eighth elements to commemorate the deceased Augustan Legion and other inscriptions before the Roman era, and when the Romans mentioning soldiers belonging to the first Noricum Legion from the first century AD.