The building that is referred to as the Priests' House, or House of Priests, at Dura-Europos near the village of Salhiyah in eastern present-day Syria, is one of three buildings that was excavated in block H2. It is hypothesized to be the home of priests from the Temple of Atargatis based on its proximity to the two neighboring temples and graffiti found in the third Excavation season. [1]
The House of Priests was excavated between 1929 and 1930 under French archeologist and Egyptologist Maurice Pillet, who was then Field Director of the excavation at Dura-Europos on the Syrian Euphrates, during the third expedition to the site. [2] Pillet's two assistants, André Naudy and Henry T. Rowell, took over the direction of the campaign after he fell ill and left the site in January 1930. [3] The excavations of block H2 were disturbed by heavy rains in January and February 1930, especially since the temples and the house were on a low level which left them susceptible to flooding. To remedy this, the team built an embankment southwest of the block to prevent flooding and subsequently rebuilt it three times. [4]
The house is located on the southeastern corner of block H2, which it shares with the Temple of Atargatis and the Temple of Artemis. This closeness to the two temples along with evidence of a joint upper level lead to its classification as a place of residence for the priests of the Temple of Atargatis. [1]
The house is 440.5 m2 and has a total of 15 rooms with one entrance at H2-D6. There is no evidence of when the house was constructed. [5]
At the time of discovery the four courtyards, H2-D1, H2-G1, H2-F1, and H2-D'5, provided reason to believe that the unit contained four homes, but upon further excavation, all of the houses had connecting doorways except for H2-F, which was formerly connected but was later blocked off and separated. [6] These connections, along with two separate external doors in the larger home, imply that the residents were able to convene without having to exit the home, which implies that they had relationships between households. [6]
Among the other evidence that is referenced when referring to this building as the House of Priests is the character of the building. It is large, including two stories, multiple courtyards, and a fresco that was believed to depict a funerary scene. Also, there was formerly a door connecting the house to the Temple of Atargatis that had been barricaded, and walls that are thought to have supported a passage on an upper floor. [1] The small walls between the temple and the house have also been speculated to have constructed to keep out animals, though this would be an unlikely function in a place so sacred and small. [7] The passage between the temple and the house is believed to have been constructed after an earthquake in A.D. 160, replacing some of the footprint of the house. [8] While the doors that border the external streets are on the same level, the passages within the block are 0.70 m. to 1 m. above the levels of the floors and the street. [7]
The graffiti discovered in the vestibule of the house includes animals, people, and architectural forms such as the city gate and walls. [1] Also, a fresco stele on the southeast wall of room H2-O was discovered in somewhat poor condition but is believed to depict a funerary repast scene. [1] The relief is 0.55 m. x 0.40 m. and is 0.60 m. above the floor. The stele depicts three figures, one lying on a bed, one presenting an offering, and one more barely decipherable figure as well as a possible thymiateria. [1] This imagery is seen throughout Dura-Europos and Graeco-Roman antiquity, most notably in the temple of the Palmyrene gods. [9]
The house is ornate, and similar in size to those of wealthy families, yet no precious art was found in it, further alluding to its function as a dwelling of notable, but not aristocratic, people. At the time of discovery, only one external door of the House was found, which signifies that the residents were of a class that is intentionally separated from the exterior world. [6] Also, there was an oven and a kneading trough discovered in room H2-D10, implying the existence of a bakery room within the building. [1] H2-G7 has a door from a somewhat isolated room to the street, as does H2-G6 right next to it, which poses the possibility of a shop that is connected to the house. [10]
Among the finds at the House of Priests was one of four versions of a painted plaster relief depicting the Greek goddess Aphrodite in a niche. The relief, dated from 113 B.C.–A.D. 256 and measuring 11 7/8 in. × 12 in. × 3 1/4 in., depicts the goddess standing nude under an arch and was found in two fragments, split horizontally into two halves. [11] She holds a mirror in her left hand and fixes her hair with her right, similar in form to Praxiteles' Aphrodite of Arles. [12] Other similar reliefs were found, one with nearly the same dimensions and depicting the same figure and scene, one fragment of the bottom portion of the relief with similar dimensions, and one inconclusive relief that has since been lost but maintains the clearest outline of the figure's right hip. [13] The primary evidence that these reliefs were made from the same mold is that they all depict details of the anklets around the figure's legs and the columns framing the figure. [13] Additionally, the mold was likely worn down, as all figures are somewhat indistinct. [13]
One of the other versions of this relief was found in block G5-C2 in a building that was believed to be a brothel. [14] The significance of this relief is contested, as Greek religion was not thought to be surviving at Dura-Europos, evidenced by a lack of architecturally Greek temples. [15] However, Aphrodite and Hercules were the two most depicted Greco-Roman deities and Aphrodite is hypothesized to have been worshipped domestically. [16] Further, figural nudity was rarely depicted in Parthian art and the voluptuousness of the figure alludes to Greek influence, so the relief has been classified as a depiction of Aphrodite. [17]
Thirty nine lamps were found in room O of the house as well as a stele measuring 0.55 m. x 0.40m.
Evidence of local production was found in the House. A steatite mould with a similar lead patera were discovered, implying that mould was used in production. [18]
Atargatis was the chief goddess of northern Syria in Classical antiquity. Primarily she was a fertility goddess, but, as the baalat ("mistress") of her city and people she was also responsible for their protection and well-being. Her chief sanctuary was at Hierapolis, modern Manbij, northeast of Aleppo, Syria.
Dura-Europos was a Hellenistic, Parthian, and Roman border city built on an escarpment 90 metres above the southwestern bank of the Euphrates river. It is located near the village of Salhiyé, in present-day Syria. Dura-Europos was founded around 300 BC by Seleucus I Nicator, who founded the Seleucid Empire as one of the Diadochi of Alexander the Great. In 113 BC, Parthians conquered the city, and held it, with one brief Roman intermission, until 165 AD. Under Parthian rule, it became an important provincial administrative centre. The Romans decisively captured Dura-Europos in 165 AD and greatly enlarged it as their easternmost stronghold in Mesopotamia, until it was captured by the Sasanian Empire after a siege in 256–57 AD. Its population was deported, and the abandoned city eventually became covered by sand and mud and disappeared from sight.
The Dura-Europos synagogue was an ancient synagogue uncovered at Dura-Europos, Syria, in 1932. The synagogue contains a forecourt and house of assembly with painted walls depicting people and animals, and a Torah shrine in the western wall facing Jerusalem. It was built backing on to the city wall, which was important in its survival. The last phase of construction was dated by an Aramaic inscription to 244 CE, making it one of the oldest synagogues in the world. It was unique among the many ancient synagogues that have emerged from archaeological excavations as the structure was preserved virtually intact, and it had extensive figurative wall-paintings, which came as a considerable surprise to scholars. These paintings are now displayed in the National Museum of Damascus.
The Aphrodite of Knidos was an Ancient Greek sculpture of the goddess Aphrodite created by Praxiteles of Athens around the 4th century BC. It was one of the first life-sized representations of the nude female form in Greek history, displaying an alternative idea to male heroic nudity. Praxiteles' Aphrodite was shown nude, reaching for a bath towel while covering her pubis, which, in turn leaves her breasts exposed. Up until this point, Greek sculpture had been dominated by male nude figures. The original Greek sculpture is no longer in existence; however, many Roman copies survive of this influential work of art. Variants of the Venus Pudica are the Venus de' Medici and the Capitoline Venus.
Clark Hopkins was an American archaeologist. During the 1930s he led the joint French-American excavations at Dura Europos. In later years he was professor of art and archeology at the University of Michigan.
Yarhibol or Iarhibol is an Aramean god who was worshiped mainly in ancient Palmyra, a city in central Syria. He was depicted with a solar nimbus and styled "lord of the spring". He normally appears alongside Bel, who was a co-supreme god of Palmyra, and Aglibol, one of the other top Palmyrene gods.
The Temple of the Gadde is a temple in the modern-day Syrian city of Dura-Europos, located near the agora. It contained reliefs dedicated to the protective deities of Dura-Europos and the nearby city of Palmyra, after whom the temple was named by its excavators. The temple was excavated between 1934 and January 1936 by the French/American expedition of Yale University, led by Michael Rostovtzeff.
The Temple of Bel, also known as the Temple of the Palmyrene gods, was located in Dura Europos, an ancient city on the Euphrates, in modern Syria. The temple was established in the first century BC and is celebrated primarily for its wall paintings. Despite the modern names of the structure, it is uncertain which gods were worshipped in the structure. Under Roman rule, the temple was dedicated to the Emperor Alexander Severus. In that period, the temple was located within the military camp of the XXth Palmyrene cohort.
The Temple of Zeus Cyrius stood in the city of Dura-Europos (Syria) and The construction of the original temenos is dated by the inscriptions above its altar and on its cult reliefs to the end of the second decade of the first century after Christ. It was excavated in 1934 by a joint French-American expedition.
The Temple of Zeus Theos at Dura Europos was built in the second century AD and was among the most important sanctuaries of the city. The structure was located in the centre of the settlement. It had an area of around 37 m2 and took up half an insula. It was excavated by an American-French team between December 1933 and March 1939.
The Temple of Adonis in Dura-Europos was discovered by a French-American expedition of Yale University led by Michael Rostovtzeff and was excavated between 1931 and 1934.
The Statue of Hercules was discovered in the Temple of Zeus Megistos in Dura-Europos during the 1935–1937 excavations undertaken by Yale University and the French Academy. The statue dates from the period of Roman rule at Dura-Europos. It is now in the possession of the Yale Art Gallery.
The Mithraeum of Dura Europos was found during excavations in the city in 1934. It is considered to be one of the best-preserved and best-documented cult buildings of Mithraism.
The Temple of Aphlad was an ancient temple located in the southwestern corner of Dura Europos, and dedicated to the god Aphlad. Aphlad was originally a Semitic Mesopotamian god from the city of Anath, and presence of his cult in Dura is revealing of its religious and cultural diversity. The temple itself consists of an open courtyard with multiple scattered rooms and altars, similar to the Temple of Bel, which was located in an analogous position in the northwestern corner of Dura.
The temple of Artemis Azzanathkona is located in Dura Europos in the east of present-day Syria, and was dedicated to a syncretic belief of Artemis and Azzanathkona.
The Temple of Atargatis in Dura-Europos was one of the main temples of the city. The temple was built in the first century AD, when the city was under Parthian rule, and excavated in 1928–1929 under the direction of Maurice Pillet. The temple is located south of the center of the city and occupies the northeastern part of the H2 block. The cult building is close to the temple of Artemis Azzanathkona. A relief from the sanctuary of the temple shows the goddess Atargatis, with lions by both sides, accompanied by her husband Hadad. A cult standard is depicted between the two deities, above the lion on the left. It is perhaps the main cult image in the temple. The temple has a courtyard with a monumental entrance and three sanctuaries on the back wall as well as a pronaos in front of it. Atargatis was the mother of Adonis. Hadad and Adonis could also be worshipped here. There were also remains of wall paintings. There are various rooms around the courtyard, some of them with benches along the walls. Some of these rooms could have served as chapels for other deities, while other rooms were dining rooms for the cult community.
The Temple of Zeus Megistos is in Dura-Europos in the east of the city in a part of the city that is modernly referred to as the Acropolis. It was one of the main temples of the city, the oldest construction phases of which perhaps go back to the time when the city was under Greek rule. The temple is not well preserved and the results of its excavations are not fully published. Several times the temple has been the target of excavations. The first excavations took place in 1928–37. The ceramics have hardly been recorded, which makes dating the older layers more difficult. The excavators presented some reconstructions of the oldest Greek temple. In particular, the more recent excavations from 1992 and 2002 raise doubts about older reconstructions and interpretations.
The Homeric shield is one of three figural painted shields found together in an embankment within a Roman garrison during the excavations of Dura-Europos. Dura-Europos was a border city of various empires throughout antiquity, and in modern archaeology is noteworthy for its large amount of well-preserved artifacts. Having been virtually untouched for centuries, and with favorable soil, an unusual amount of organic material has been preserved at Dura-Europos. This shield and those found alongside it date from the middle of the 3rd century CE, a period in which a large portion of the city was co-opted as a Roman military base. The shields were deliberately discarded unfinished during the Sassanian siege of Dura Europos. It is widely believed to depict two scenes from the Trojan war: the admission of the Trojan horse into Troy, and the subsequent sack of the city. It is one of few examples of Roman painting on wood, and one of very few Roman painted wooden shields to have survived from antiquity. The shield has now deteriorated beyond most detail being discernible to the naked eye. This is due to the unintended adverse effects of a binding agent applied to the shield in the 1930s in the hopes of preserving the pigmentation.
The house that is known as Dura-Europos' brothel is a part of the Block G5 agora of Dura-Europos, and specifically refers to the house G5-C. It was the workplace of a guild of entertainers, which likely encompassed the surrounding buildings as well.
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