A New Suggestion on the Dating of the Piramidal Roofed Tower Tomb in Olba/Diocaesarea

Authors : Murat DURUKAN

Pages : 214-243

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Publication Date : 2003-05-01

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :In the earlier studies the dating of the piramidal roofed tower tomb in Diocaesarea was suggested as the first quarter of the 1st century B.C. but with a new study the dating is offered to be between the begining of the 2nd century and middle of the 1 century B.C. The first suggestion was based on the following question: “Who was the owner of the tomb?”. But it was a very relative criterion. At the latest study, dating was made by the form of the architectural dekorative elements. Especially the muttulus was used for the dating. From the muttlus’ form, the tomb was dated between the middle and end of the Hellenistic period. With some more relative clues, the suggestion was supported and the tomb was not to be dated to the Roman imperial times. But, we can see in both of the suggestions that the tomb was studied in itself and that the architectural characteristics of Olba, which seriously differs from the rest of the Hellenistic and Roman world, was not taken into consideration. But, surveys show us that different architectural characters, which can be seperated from one another with definite lines, had been used at these two periods in the Olba region. This situation is more diagnostic and more important from other criterions which have been used till now for the dating of the tomb. This article is considering different architectural characters with their general outlines and new finds. Further similar examples in the region are used for analogy. As a result we see that the dating of the piramidal roofed tower tomb, can also be 1st century A.D.
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