THE
ROMAN LAPIDARIUM
The
greatest from the artistical point of view andthe most significant epigraphical
monuments and Roman scultures, selected from the rich collection of the
Archaeological Museum of Deva, are being exposed for the guests in the six halls
fromt he ground floor of the south wing of the Magna Curia building, forming the
Roman lapidarium.
In the
first fall, situated at the left of the hall next to the door, an explained text
situated onthe wall between the two windows offers information of general order
reffering at the 91 group of the collectrion's exponents.
The
first hall is dominated by the five imposing funeral feminin statues, made of
marble from Bucovina, which distinguish though an artistical execution of
certain value. The forms elegance, the thin line of the drapes, seen to be
copies after the famous Roman femnin statue, from the time of Octavian Augustus
(27 BCE - 14 CE), known in archaeology under the name of "La grande
Ercolanese". (The Big Ercolanses).
Together
with a man's statue, dressed in a toga, specific coat fromt he Roman antiquity,
this scultural representations...
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43]
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I^mpreuna(
cu statuia unui ba(rbat, i^nves,mi^ntat i^n toga(, haina( specifica(
antichita(t,ii romane, aceste reprezenta(ri sculpturale au fost descoperite i^n
metropola provinciei romane Dacia, Colonia Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa.
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Between
the the feminine statues it is to be noticed a piece with an inscription - CLA (adius)
SATVRNIN (us) SCVLP (sit) - that mentiones the name of the sculptor, fact met
very rare inthe Antiquity. These
sculptures with a funerar nature, present an amazing similarity with the statues
from the big antique centres from Italy.
In a
plaque of marble, it is sculpted the Meduse's head, set above one garland, a
segment of the top in composit style, ornated with the acant leaves and two base
of column adorned with the alternating ove with overlap arrows because ofa
circle, all these certify the beauty and the monumentality of the building in
residence town of Dacia's providence.
The
corridor with the second room shelters a funerar plaque from white marble, that
was put on the girl's grave. Although
the inscription doesn't give any information because of its form, this plaque is
a sign of the Sarmizegetusa's existence of the stone graves, that look as the
one from Italian halfisle.
The
epigraphical monuments from the second room contain important information and
dates about the social, religious life. On
the first pedestral in the left side of the room, it is a monument dedicated
tothe Antonius Pius King, by two important persons from Ulpia Traiana.
Not less important are the two altars discovered in Micia, situated at
the boundary of the Vetel's country. One
of griststone, the other of marble, the altars were built with Marcus Cornelius
Stratonius' money. In the two
epigrapheses the dedicater shows in public his respect of the King's house, a
manifestation adequate to his statues of slave of imperial cult. The fact that
on the both altars Domus Divina, it appears in combination with the Miciei's
genius shows that Statonicus had important interests that tied him of his town.
The formula "In Honorem Domus divinae" is an element dated post
quem of the three inscriptions. So,
these inscriptions are after the year 192 CE, the period when the King's cult,
went almost to the divination. From Micia also provicus the plaque of marble set
onthe stand from the south wall of the room. In high relief are represented
Pluton (the wealth's god) and Proserpina, the cult of these gods have a large
spread in the ordinary people.
The
altar from the north side of the second room, devoted to some gods (Sarapis,
Jupiter, Diana, Isis, Luna), show the three Dacias in it's text, representing
one of the epigraphic proves refering to the division ofthe province in region,
an administrative political measure taken by the empire for consolidation of hte
Roman authority on the Dacian's land. In the third room are exposed the most
representative scultural Roman works which were discovered in the archaeologist
complexes from Hunedoara.
One of
the funerar monument types discovered only in Micia, is the big pier, finished
with pyramidal roof. On two of the
sides of the piece are sculted some motifs about the cult of the death people
(...). The principal element of the monument is the group of two or four human
figures represented by bodies, and when (are four human figures) they are four,
they are represented on two registres.
Comparing
with the others funerar monuments in pier forms from Galia, Dalmatia and
Aquileia, those from Dacia, from a special group of the same kind of pieces.
The left-handed way of composition of the monuments shows that they were
worked by the superficious worker of who the inscriptions remains, the scultors
that were organised in a colleage at the Micia's place.
the
monument that distinguishes by this rarily of the sculptural motif is the
gritstone piece set on a pedestal from the left side of the room. In the
circular part, actually a wreath of leaves catched wiht a ribbon was presented
in a high relief, the mythological scene of Europa's Kidnap (the king of
Agenor's daughter) by Jupiter, transformed in a bull. Although the sculture wasn't accompany with a epigraphical
text, the sense of the monument was evident.
The Europa's Kidnap scene shows once again, the high level of the Roman
Dacia.
The
wall where are sculpted two characters (heros), a man and a woman, shown in the
suits of this epoch, are fromt hose monuments, rare enough, discovered only in
the Superior Dacia. Much more commanding are the other scultoral pieces (altars,
stars) discovered only to Micia's place, all these are buildings complexes
enough, compound from three walls remits that have in the superior part a
different roof. The stylistic
criterions, evident in the dresses of that period, are agree witht he datetion
of this exemplar in the third century when Micia knew a great economical
development that some of it's habitans could have jewels and expensive funerar
buildings.
The
monuments that restore the Greco-Roman gods and the statue of the militar
convict, are different from the scultures from the 4th room.
On special artistical realisation by its elegance and masivity of the
form, it is Hygea's statue, discovered at Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa. On the
socle of the precious exhibit, an inscription says that it was dedicated to the
god by Publius Aelius Theimes, known from the other epigrapheses like the one
from the Dacian province. It is special also for the visitators, the statue of
the supreme god from the Roman world, Jupiter by an artistical execution well
enough realised.
The
altars from the 5th room, that aren't very good execited, dappered, all these
compensate all these shortcomings by the valour of the texts.
The numerous number of them are dedicated to the gods honorable gods from
the Roman antiquity (...) being built by the soldiers belonging to the XII
Gemina legion. Others inscriptions atestates the building in the Ulpia Traiana
Sarmizegetusa and Micia of some temples or some public buildings. On one of the
statives, a piece of marble - adorned with wild birds, between two roses - draw
the attention by the special artistical execution and by a very careful to
written text. The inscription was put as it is shown in his contain, by the
auxiliar Numerus Maurorum Miciensium trupis that rebuilt a temple with them
money. The intensionated clean of
the Caracula's wife (198 - 217) Fulvia Plantilla andher father, Fulvius
Plantianus, shows that the temple from Micia was repaired before the year 205 CE
whenthe two heros entered in the King's discrace.
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Patru
din altarele de pe postamentele din partea sti^nga( a sa(lii si^nt dedicate
zeit,ei Fortuna al ca(rei atribut era, i^n credint,a anticilor, i^mpa(rt,irea,
dupa( bunul ei plac, a fericirii sau a nenorocirii, a boga(t,iei sau a
sa(ra(ciei.
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...
On the two sanctuaries which are in the corner of the room, the name of
the whimsical goddess goes with the epithet "redux", symbolising the
secret power of Fortuna to facilitate the return home of those whoare gone in a
long and dangerous journeys. The
both sanctuaries are made by militaries, who belonged tothe XIII legion Gemina,
and one was "praefectus" of the "numenus".
On the
left stand of the door to the 6th room there is the unique sanctuary fromt he
collection of epigraphs from Deva's museum in which the IV legion is named
"Flavia Felix". The
interest for this monument is bigger because the name of the god Jupiter is
doubled by the nam Heliopolitanus. In
this case the caracter was from Heliopolis (Baallek) and he brought from his
native country the remember of the gods and the remember of his native lands.
The
sanctuaries dedicated to the gods Silvanus and Hercules fromt he right
pedestals, though it's great number, prove the power of this gods between the
populations from the valley of Mures.
The
monument's text from andezite of Uroi,of the pedestal, prove the existance of
administration and the existence of land agens of the salt mine and grassland in
Dacia in the 3rd century.
The
land agents of the states treasures had offices in all kind of cities like it
was in Micia. The land agent,
libertul Publius Aelius Euphorus, made this sanctuary for Silvanus Domesticus
for his health and also for the health of his boss Publius Aurelius Marus.
On the
metalic support from this wall, who separate the fifth room from the sixth room,
is there a marble gable which dominates the room. The monument is very good
preserved and it is fromt he end of the second century.
In the center of the gable is the bust of a character with beard and
hair, made with great printion.
On the
both sides of human figure are represented a dophin with a cross body and
another fish with a flat body. The
expression of the character is sever, has a special gravity who is underlined by
the authoritative look and sever features. The body is made simple without any
clothing or anatomical details.
His
sever figure makes us recognise the feared supreme god of the Romans, Jupiter,
in our case with the funeral signification.
It is about Jupiter Danubianus, which apears in sepulchral art from
middle and inferior Danube. To the
presented gable it is mentioned, like an unusual detail, the fact that the two
figures who goes with Jupiter's face they are not identical, in the way that
they usually appear in this kind of pieces.
A good
remark would be that, the funeral monuments who have a shape like a triangular
gable are not so frequent in Dacia or in other Danubian provinces.
The
second funeral piece, who is different from the majority of the sepulchral
monuments from the museum's collection from Deva, it is a crowning.
This is special because of his capital shape, with the very known volute
which are specific of Ionic style. In
the middle surrounded by the the volute's spirals, there is the reduze's head
with big eyes, big outh and with hair in vowes, that suggests the funeral
character of the monument.
The
works style put it in the group of sculptures made in Dacia during the 3rd
century. The series of the votive's
sanctuaries and sculture and architectural monuments go on in the forth room of
the lapidarium. Of one of the sanctuary the name of the Jupiter comes with the
epithet Apenino, and on the other with the epithet Icropolitanus. Underliningthe
great number of names which the great god had fromthe different populations
which were in the Ceasar's empire.
This
monument is one of those written proofs for the existence of Dacian population
on his native land in the 3rd century. The
speaces between the epigraphic and sculpural monuments from lapidarium are
completed with different bases and columns which have different size.
The
architectural elements made from marble, travertine and sometimes even from
gritstone, discovered especially in Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, in Micia, in
Aquae, remind from monumentality and the elegant aspect of many buildings from
Roman Dacia.