Articles

Symbol or Utilitarian? Perspectives on the Function of Two Unusual Artefacts from the Chalcolithic Settlement Isaiia-Balta Popii

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(2): 189-206 Alina PATRICHE, Felix-Adrian TENCARIU DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-2-1 ABSTRACT The article brings to the attention of both specialists and the general public two clay artifacts, quasi-conical, provided with holes and perforations, discovered in the Precucuteni II-III settlement at Isaiia-Balta Popii, Iasi County. Although objects with similar characteristics are rather rare, the authors have managed to find a few nearly exact analogies. This is all the more surprising as the analogies come from various Neolithic and Eneolithic cultural contexts in Central and Southeastern Europe, giving this object an archetypal character. Establishing its functionality, however, proved to be much more challenging, leading many archaeologists who discovered or approached similar artifacts to easily place them in the somewhat ambiguous sphere of symbolism and cult. Although this interpretation cannot be categorically ruled out, there are arguments supporting a surprising utilitarian functionality, albeit situated, in a sense, within the realm of(…)

Themes and Motifs in the Letters of Aldelmo of Malmesbury. The Man, The Literature, The Society

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 179-185 Patrizia MASCOLI DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-10 ABSTRACT Among the epistolary collections that have come down to us, the epistolary of Aldelmo of Malmesbury, of which the first Italian translation is in progress, is of interest. This paper deals with some key themes which occur in the letters of this bishop, related to society and human behavior. REZUMAT Printre colecțiile epistolare păstrate, cea aparținând lui Aldelmus din malmesbury prezintă un inters aparte. În acest articol autorea tratează câteba thme-cheie din scrisorile acestui episcop, legate de societate și de caracterul uman. KEYWORDS Aldelmo of Malmesbury, epistles, Anglo-Saxons, solidarity.   FULL ARTICLE Download PDF (free)

Peculiarities of the Funeral Treatment Applied to Children in the Province of Scythia Minor

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 153-177 Laura GHEORGHIU DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-9 ABSTRACT The article represents a contribution to the funerary archeology of the province of Scythia, outlining the picture related to the funerary practices addressed to children. It is emphasized that the burial rituals, most of the time, were different from those applied to adults in terms of the space within the necropolises, the position, the orientation, or the burial inventory. REZUMAT Articolul reprezintă o contribuție asupra arheologiei funerare din provincia Scythia, conturând imaginea legată de practicile funerare abordate asupra copiilor. Se subliniază faptul că ritualurile funerare, de cele mai multe ori, erau diferite față de cele aplicate adulților în ceea ce privește spațiul în cadrul necropolelor, poziția, orientarea sau inventarul funerar. KEYWORDS Infant burials, Scythia Minor, funerary archaeology.   FULL ARTICLE Download PDF (free)

“People in Dark Times”: Damaskius on Political Persecution and the Philosophical Way of Life

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 141-152 Eugene AFONASIN DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-8 ABSTRACT The Neoplatonic philosophers developed a complicated and quite ingenious concept of the grades of virtue, starting with such common human virtues, as the natural, ethical and political, and finishing which those attainable only by the real seekers of the highest truth, such as the purificatory, contemplative, paradigmatic, and hieratic. In the paper I trace the evolution of the Neoplatonic grades of virtue by means of the select passages from Damascius’ “Philosophical History,” which deal specifically with the character of Damascius’ revered teacher. The life of Isidore is presented by his student as an ascent along the path of Neoplatonic perfection, moreover, by chance or not, but in the surviving fragments of this work, which tells about many remarkable philosophers and theurgists, it is Isidore who ultimately attains the last seventh degree of virtue. Possessing outstanding personal qualities and even(…)

A Greek graffito Discovered in the Sântana de Mureș-Chernyakhov Settlement from Negrilești, Galați County

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 105-121 Ana HONCU, Paul CIUBOTARU DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-7 ABSTRACT . The paper publishes a Greek graffito on a Zeest 80 amphora, found in Negrilești, in the settlement of Sântana de Mureș- Chernyakhov culture. The words ΝΑΥΚΛΕΡ(…) ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΟΝ inscribed on the upper part of the amphora can be associated with primary content the transport process –loading the container on the ship at the place of origin of the content. The characteristics of the amphora and the inscription are connected with the oil supply in the province of Scythia. The information highlights the trade connections of the settlements from the Lower Danube with the eastern provinces of Roman Empire at the end of the 3rd century, the beginning of the 4th century AD. REZUMAT Articolul propune restituirea unui graffito în limba greacă de pe o amforă Zeest 80, descoperită la Negrilești, în așezarea Sântana de Mureș- Cerneahov. Cele(…)

The Cult of Azizos in Roman Dacia: New Approaches

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 105-121 Juan Ramón CARBÓ GARCÍA DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-6 ABSTRACT The spread of the cult of the divinity of Syrian-Arabic origin Azizos from the East to the Danubian provinces and Rome has traditionally been related to its importance in the Syrian city of Edessa and to different Roman military campaigns against the Parthians and the Sassanid Persians in that same area, in the second and third centuries A.D. Through the analysis of the epigraphic repertoire of this divinity in Dacia, as well as with the study of certain monetary emissions of the time of Emperor Elagabalus and with the revision of the ancient literary texts, we present certain results, which can open new perspectives of study. The importance of Edessa as the origin of the spread of the cult of Azizos in Dacia can be generally confirmed, in the cases of some inscriptions of precise dating and(…)

Territorium Ciuitatis Ausdecensium: an Open Issue of Ancient Topo-Demography

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 71-104 Alexandru CODESCU DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-5 ABSTRACT This paper aims at re-examining the available data regarding the location of ciuitas Ausdecensium in Moesia Inferior, starting from the uncertainty as to the place where was discovered the inscription CIL III 144372 – the famous boundary stone which records the resolution of a land dispute between this ciuitas and a neighbouring population of Dacians. The analysis is focused on some key-elements which could elucidate the relation between ciuitas Ausdecensium and the Thracian strategy Οὐσδικησική recorded by Ptolemy: the fact that we deal with a boundary stone which, therefore, was initially placed at an extremity of the territory belonging to this ciuitas, the fact that this territory extended in the opposite direction, most probably to the south, from the place where the boundary stone was installed, as well as the fact that the interprovincial border between Moesia Inferior and(…)

Minor Inscriptions from The Western Pontic Area Between The 1st-3rd Centuries A.D. Re-Gatherings and Discussions on Their Account

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 29(1): 56-69 Bogdan CHIRILOAIE DOI: 10.47743/saa-2023-29-1-4 ABSTRACT This study deals with a less discussed topic, minor inscriptions, in the literature. It discusses how some minor inscriptions can provide us with information about the economic and commercial situation in the West Pontic area. The results obtained allowed us to identify the economic context of the province and also to observe where these inscriptions are concentrated, mainly in the military environment. It was found once again that the West Pontic towns never formed their own system of distribution of goods and did not benefit from a policy that allowed them to function as an economic system in their own right. We have also attempted to highlight the language and socio-communicative framework in which we arrive at the hypothesis that inscriptions of any kind were a sign of ownership. REZUMAT Studiul de față tratează un subiect mai puțin discutat,(…)