Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece and Rome
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Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece and Rome Conference, May 12 – 13, 2022 Rome, Istituto Svizzero, Via Liguria 20, 00187 Engraving of the fully preserved tombs from the via Aurelia unveiled in 1663 at the villa Corsini (today villa Doria Pamphili) by Bartoli (1680) pl. 4 (after Wikimedia Commons)
Tomb Plundering in
Ancient Greece and Rome
Conference, May 12–13, 2022
Rome, Istituto Svizzero, Via Liguria 20, 00187
Thursday, May 12th Friday, May 13th
Session I: Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece Session III: Tomb Plundering in Ancient Rome
Chair: M.A. G. Wheeler, Universität Bern Chair: M.A. I. Gullo, Universität Basel / Istituto Svizzero
9:30 Welcome & Introduction 9:30 Grave Robbing in the Vagnari Cemetery
Dr. M. Böhmer, Istituto Svizzero & PD Dr. C. Murer, Universität Bern Dr. L. Brent, Kenyon College
10:00 Use and Looting in Mycenaean Tombs 10:15 Sul tema dell’inviolabilità dei sepolcri nella Roma
Prof. Dr. Y. Galanakis, University of Cambridge tardoantica: dati epigrafici ed archeologici
Prof. Dr. L. Spera, Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata
10:45 coffee break
11:00 coffee break
11:15 Distruzione, saccheggio e riuso nelle necropoli ateniesi
in età ellenistica e romana 11:30 Spoliazione e decostruzione delle tombe monumentali
Dr. C. Parigi, Universität zu Köln sulla via Flaminia: il caso del mausoleo di M. Nonio Macrino
12:00 Traces of Tomb Looting in Ancient Greece Dr. D. Rossi, Dr. F. Chiocci & Dr. R. Zaccagnini, Archeologia Belle Arti
from the Classical Period to Late Antiquity e Paesaggio di Roma & area metropolitana di Roma & Soprinten-
Dr. N. Dimakis, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens denza ABAP per la provincia di Viterbo e per l´Etruria Meridionale
12:15 Destruction and Reuse of the Roman Funerary Monu-
13:00 lunch ments in Northern Gallia Belgica in Roman Times
Dr. P. Henrich, Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier
Session II: Epigraphic and Legal Evidence
Chair: Dr. N. Laubry, École française de Rome 13:00 lunch
14:30 The Epigraphic Evidence for Tymborychia in Session IV: Tomb Plundering beyond Ancient Greece
Greco-Roman Asia Minor and Rome Chair: PD Dr. C. Murer
Prof. Dr. K. Harter-Uibopuu, Universität Hamburg
15:15 Roman Funerary Fines: The Case of Iulia Concordia 14:30 Ancient Egyptian Tomb Robberies: The Gurob Burnt
Dr. F. Luciani, Università degli Studi di Urbino Carlo Bo Groups Case
Dr. V. Gasperini, Università di Bologna / Institut français d’archéolo-
16:00 coffee break gie orientale du Caire
15:15 Reopening Graves in the Early Middle Ages
16:30 Actio sepulchri violati (D. 47,12) and its Legal Context Dr. A. Klevnäs, Stockholm University
Dr. J. Domisch, Universität Freiburg
17:15 La violazione dei sepolcri nella legislazione 16:00 coffee break
tardoimperiale
Prof. Dr. P. O. Cuneo, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca 16:30 Keynote Lecture II
Tomb Raiders – Methodological Challenges in Assessing
18:30 Keynote Lecture I the Extent of Tomb Violation in Ancient Rome
Tomb Violation and a New ‘Body World’ Prof. Dr. B. Borg, University of Exeter
in Late Antiquity
Prof. Dr. E. Rebillard, Cornell University 17:45 Summary & Final Discussion
Prof. Dr. S. Rebenich & PD Dr. C. Murer, Universität Bern
organisation: C. Murer, Universität Bern, cristina.murer@unibe.ch
registration: https://www.istitutosvizzero.it/it/conferenza/tomb-plundering-in-ancient-greece-and-rome/Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece and Rome Conference, May 12–13, 2022 Rome, Istituto Svizzero, Via Liguria 20, 00187 This conference is dedicated to the subject of grave looting and robbing in the Graeco-Roman World. Bringing together archaeological, epigraphic, li- terary, and legal evidence, this conference will be the first time that the phe- nomenon of ancient tomb plundering, and its many historical contexts will be discussed from a perspective of longue durée (from the Bronze Age to the Early Middle Ages, 2500 BC - AD 800). To this end, experts in various discip- lines (ancient history, classical archaeology, classical philology, legal history, and related disciplines) will shed new light on the wide variety of potential motivations behind this habit (ranging from economic to ideological to cultu- ral factors) and the possible actors responsible for the plundering of tombs in very different time periods. The aim of the conference is to clarify whether such transgressions occur more frequently in times of major socio-political instability. Furthermore, the conference aims to ensure that the phenomenon of tomb plundering is given greater attention in future classical studies and related disciplines.
Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece and Rome Conference, May 12–13, 2022 Rome, Istituto Svizzero, Via Liguria 20, 00187 Abstracts Session I: Tomb Plundering in Ancient Greece Prof. Dr. Yannis Galanakis, University of Cambridge «Use and Looting in Mycenaean Tombs» Looting, ancient and modern, is frequently used in Mycenaean archaeology as an explanation for the, often, disturbed nature of burials and things inside tombs. Yet very few projects to date have actually employed rigorous taphonomic protocols for the recovery of high-resolution data that could enable us to come closer to the micro-scale of human activity: i.e., the identification of specific choices made by the tomb-using group as well as the post-funeral life of these monuments and their contents. In this paper, I would like to revisit the use of ‘looting’ as an archaeological explanation, and to propose instead that in a number of instances we may be dealing with well-organised funerary or post-funerary activities, sometimes most complex than others, and not (just at least) with episodes of ancient and/ or modern looting (which clearly also happened, but their detection may not be as forthright as currently thought). This paper, using examples from recent excavations, tries to re-address the issue of ‘looting’ in burials, highlighting both the complexities associated with identifying sometimes such an activity in the archaeological record, but also the many different other episodes that could have taken place; episodes that may actually leave behind similar-looking archaeological traces leading erroneously to them being described as ‘looting’. The paper briefly assesses the impact such an identification has for Mycenaean burial studies, and more broadly, and for the ways we understand the life-histories of these monuments and their associated burials. Dr. Caterina Parigi, Universität zu Köln «Distruzione, saccheggio e riuso nelle necropoli ateniesi in età ellenistica e romana» Il contributo intende offrire una panoramica della situazione delle necropoli nell’Atene tardo- ellenistica e romana. Per questo vengono presi in esame i principali cimiteri che si sviluppano già da epoche più antiche subito al di fuori delle mura su tutti i lati della città. Attraverso la presentazione e l’analisi di alcuni casi esemplari verranno messe in evidenza singole tracce di distruzione, di saccheggio e di riuso riscontrabili nelle sepolture. La valutazione di queste tracce nel quadro storico generale della città offrirà la possibilità di comprendere quanto e se questi fenomeni siano da mettere in relazione ai principali eventi traumatici che scuotono la città – come ad es. l’assedio di Silla nell’86 a.C. e il sacco degli Eruli nel 267 d.C. – e ai cambiamenti del tessuto urbano, dovuti ad es. alla ricostruzione delle mura in età valeriana. Dr. Nikolas Dimakis, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens «Traces of Tomb Looting in Ancient Greece from the Classical Period to Late Antiquity» Tomb looting in ancient Greece has been mainly discussed by scholars in the light of epigraphic and written sources. However, burial evidence, a type of evidence usually furnished both by material culture and ideologies, and therefore potentially informative for understanding sociopolitical and cultural circumstances, has been largely neglected. In spite of the many constraints imposed by the limited previous research and the scarcity of evidence, the information provided by a search through past investigations of Classical through to Late Roman cemeteries is still far too valuable for archaeologists to disregard. Main aim is here to discuss an intriguing category of evidence coming from various cemeteries in Greece that could be associated with acts of grave looting performed already in antiquity. It is thus anticipated that further light shall be shed in the way people treated death and the dead in various post-depositional conditions.
Session II: Epigraphic and Legal Evidence Prof. Dr. Kaja Harter-Uibopuu, Universität Hamburg «The Epigraphic Evidence for Tymborychia in Greco-Roman Asia Minor» It is a widespread prejudice that the well over 4000 tomb inscriptions from Asia Minor and northern Greece, which contain prohibitions and sanctions, were intended to prevent grave robbery. Nevertheless, we find in the relevant texts recurrently, albeit in a different context. This paper will first present the system of grave protection that can be seen from the aforementioned inscriptions and, in a second step, the regulations of the city for the prosecution of grave robbers. This will be followed by an analysis of those funerary inscriptions that refer to the especially from the point of view of the legal basis of the aforementioned regulations. Finally, it is necessary to address the interrelation of Greek and Roman law in order to be able to refer to possible parallels. Dr. Franco Luciani, Università degli Studi di Urbino Carlo Bo «Roman Funerary Fines: The Case of Iulia Concordia» Between 1873 and 1876, around 270 sarcophagi were brought to light in the nearby of the ancient Roman colony of Iulia Concordia (modern Concordia Sagittaria, in the Veneto region). Whilst most of these sarcophagi were not inscribed, around a hundred of them bore an inscription on the front panel. The vast majority of these inscriptions include information about fines or penalties for tomb re-use or violation. This paper focuses on this important case-study in order to understand the legal basis of such fines and penalties, and their consequences from an administrative perspective. Dr. Jörg Domisch, Universität Freiburg «Actio sepulchri violati (D. 47,12) and its Legal Context» The actio sepulchri violati is a private law action in the praetorian edict to react to a violation of the tomb. The Digest deal with the action in title D. 47, 12. The lecture primarily explains the requirements and consequences of the actio sepulchri violati based on the content of the legal sources: Who has the right to sue? Which behaviour leads to the action? Of which content is the sentence? There is a need for a specific action, because the tomb is nobody’s property. It is – under certain conditions – a res religiosa and nullius in bonis (Gai. Inst. II, 3, 6, 9). In consequence, the action under the lex Aquilia and the actio furti may not be applied. Nevertheless, there are certain remedies and crimina that can be applicable beside or instead of the actio sepulchri violati. Furthermore, the grave inscriptions telling the wrongdoer to pay a fine in case of violation of the tomb are to be mentioned in this context. Their functioning and legal enforceability are unclear. Prof. Dr. Paola O. Cuneo, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca «La violazione dei sepolcri nella legislazione tardoimperiale» La violazione dei sepolcri è un crimine molto diffuso in epoca tardoimperiale. La sua gravità la si evince anche dal fatto che l’aver commesso tale crimine diventa giusta causa di divorzio. Il titolo 9.17 del Codice Teodosiano contiene alcune leggi sulla violazione dei sepolcri. Queste leggi non sono emesse necessariamente in periodi di instabilità politico-sociale. In molti casi erano inflitte pene molto severe, ma anche solo ammende, ad esempio, per chi è colto in flagranza nell’atto di demolire sepolcri; per chi abbia asportato dai monumenti funebri colonne o marmi; per chi, per avidità di lucro, ha demolito il sepolcro e trasportato il materiale a casa sua; per chi ha prelevato materiale dal sepolcro fabricae gratia o per venderlo; per chi ha esumato e trasferito i resti dei defunti o commesso l’illecito commercio delle reliquie dei martiri.
Session III: Tomb Plundering in Ancient Rome Dr. Liana Brent, Kenyon College «Grave Robbing in the Vagnari Cemetery» This paper explores archaeologically documented examples of grave opening and looting in the Vagnari Cemetery in southeast Italy during the Roman Imperial period. Unlike cemeteries with monumental tomb structures, most burials in the Vagnari Cemetery are characterized by their distinctly non-monumental nature: single, primary, inhumation burials that were covered with roof tiles. Such burials are not easy to reopen and seem like unlikely targets for ancient looting, yet there are several instances of grave opening that prompt us to consider why grave opening took place at this cemetery. Using methods from archaeothanatology (the archaeology of death and burial), this paper investigates how the position and preservation of human skeletal remains are vital for understanding and reconstructing missing objects and how we can distinguish these activities from more recent acts of disturbance or looting. Prof. Dr. Lucrezia Spera, Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata «Sul tema dell’inviolabilità dei sepolcri nella Roma tardoantica: dati epigrafici ed archeologici» Una nuova analisi complessiva delle sepolture in urbe nella Roma tardoantica – fenomeno, come si sa, affermatosi tra VI e VII secolo, molto dibattuto e approfondito negli ultimi decenni – ha portato a comporre un repertorio piuttosto consistente di iscrizioni che possono con grande probabilità essere ricondotte a tali sepolcreti. La valutazione di insieme di tali manufatti permette di evidenziare intanto che si tratta prevalentemente di prodotti officinali, spesso con tracce di ordinatio preliminare, caratterizzati da marcata omologazione dei formulari, con l’introduzione locativa hic requiescit (generalmente anticipata da una croce), talora il riferimento all’acquisto del sepolcro, con frequenti formule anatemiche per evitare la violazione di questo. È logico il sospetto che l’uscita dagli ambiti prevalentemente chiusi dei cimiteri e delle chiese del suburbio e l’invasione degli spazi aperti della città, insieme con l’allentamento delle antiche leggi protettive dei sepolcri, possano aver accentuato il bisogno di rivendicare il rispetto per la tomba. Su questo aspetto, ancora poco indagato, e su tali documenti si svilupperà prevalentemente il contributo che si presenta. Daniela Rossi (già Funzionario Direttore Archeologo Soprintendenza Speciale Archeologia Belle arti e Paesaggio di Roma), Rossella Zaccagnini (Soprintendenza ABAP per la provincia di Viterbo e per l›Etruria Meridionale SABAP-VT-EM), Pia Federica Chiocci (archeologo), Laura Gasseau (architetto). «Spoliazione e decostruzione delle tombe monumentali sulla via Flaminia: il caso del mausoleo di M. Nonio Macrino» L’intervento illustra le testimonianze del cantiere di “decostruzione” medievale in un’area sepolcrale al V miglio da Roma tra l’antica via Flaminia ed il corso del fiume Tevere. Il tratto di necropoli rimesso in luce comprende diversi recinti sepolcrali e una tomba ad altare databili alla prima età imperiale, quattro mausolei monumentali con rivestimento in marmo e travertino, di cui due a tamburo cilindrico, uno ad edicola ed uno, appartenente al senatore bresciano M. Nonio Macrino, del tipo a tempio. I grandi blocchi pertinenti al crollo di questi edifici emergono ancora oggi in gruppi monumentali scomposti, ma di facile connessione e offrono indicazioni utili per la comprensione dei vari processi di spoliazione. Processo che cominciò presumibilmente a partire dal IV secolo d.C. quando, l’impianto di una fullonica, cominciò a riutilizzare elementi presenti nella necropoli. La spoliazione più sistematica prese avvio, invece, nel VI secolo d.C. e si svolse in fasi successive e con modalità e finalità diverse. L’area è rimasta cristallizzata da un’ultima, definitiva alluvione del Tevere databile verso la fine del XVI secolo che portò all’abbandono anche della strada. Dr. Peter Henrich, Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier «Destruction and Reuse of the Roman Funerary Monuments in Northern Gallia Belgica in Roman Times» The analysis of archaeological sites in northern Gaul shows that the demolition or reuse of funerary monuments already started at the end of the 1st century and in the 2nd century. Apart from the danger of destroying monuments, grave robbery was already a threat in the 1st century and in the 2nd century, as the protections against looters or even the historical record impressively show. In the late 3rd and 4th centuries, the destruction of funerary monuments throughout Gaul, especially for the construction of fortifications, reached unprecedented dimensions. At the same time, however, the tombs were treated with respect and were generally not destroyed. Destruction only affects the above-ground elements of the necropolises. Even when the funerary monuments are completely converted, for example as fortifications, the actual tomb is not destroyed.
Session IV: Tomb Plundering beyond Ancient Greece and Rome Dr. V. Gasperini, Institut français d’archéologie orientale du Caire «Ancient Egyptian Tomb Robberies: The Gurob Burnt Groups Case» This paper will analyse a specific tomb robberies case study in Ancient Egypt. The main focus will be dedicated to the site of Gurob (Fayyum), a settlement particularly important during the New Kingdom (1500 – 1000 BC ca.) which accommodated, at that time, a royal palace, domestic and industrial sectors along with a vast necropolis area, comprehensive of several elite burials. During the excavation campaigns led by the British archaeologist W.M.F. Petrie at the end of the 19th century, a series of very peculiar and unparalled assemblages (known in the Egyptology literature as “Burnt Groups”) were identified underneath the floor of some structures in the royal palace area. Thanks to the analysis of a roughly contemporary corpus of papyri (“the Great Tomb Robberies Papyri”), it is possible to shed new light and propose a new interpretation of the Gurob “Burnt Groups”. Dr. Alison Klevnäs, Stockholm University «Reopening Graves in the Early Middle Ages» Across Europe early medieval archaeologists have long recognised significant numbers of graves displaying evidence for the intentional post-burial disturbance of skeletons and artefacts. The practice of reopening and manipulating graves soon after burial, traditionally described—and dismissed—as ‘robbing’, is documented at cemeteries from Transylvania to southern England. This paper will present recent research investigating evidence and motivations for the reopening of early medieval graves. Examples will illustrate how disturbed burials can be recognized and understood. It will be argued that from the later sixth century AD, the reopening of individual graves and removal of selected artefact types rapidly became part of the shared treatment of the dead across this wide area. Keynote Lectures I & II Prof. Dr. Eric Rebillard, Cornell University «Tomb Violation and a New ‘Body World’ in Late Antiquity» A brief survey of late antique literary sources on tomb violation reveals a new concern for the body itself and the damage caused to it by tomb violation. This concern is also reflected not only in important changes in the law, but both in discourses about disposal of the body and resurrection and in funerary and commemorative practices that materialize new attitudes towards the dead body. The new emphasis on the corporeal relevance of the dead body is a first step towards the definition of the ‘body world’ of late antiquity. Prof. Dr. Barbara Borg, University of Exeter «Tomb Raiders – Methodological Challenges in Assessing the Extent of Tomb Violation in Ancient Rome» This paper will raise the question of the plundering and re-use of tombs from a general and methodological point of view. While there can be no doubt that plundering and illegal re-use of tombs did occur, based on legal sources, it has often been assumed that any disruption in the use of a tomb must be illegitimate. I intend to discuss examples and circumstances in which the re-use of tombs is likely to have been legitimate, and to explore what methodological means we have to evaluate the situation in any given case.
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