Opramoas

Opramoas
Born	Rhodiapolis, Lycia
Died	Rhodiapolis, Lycia
Nationality	Lycian (Roman subject)
Occupations	Civic benefactor (Euergetes) Magnate High priest Lyciarch (likely)
Era	Roman Empire
Known for	Longest Greek inscription in Anatolia
Notable work	Mausoleum of Opramoas (built by him)

Opramoas was an important civic benefactor in the 2nd century CE. He is the best known ancient euergete. He was a magnate from the small Lycian town of Rhodiapolis (southern Anatolia, in modern Turkey). His activities are recorded in extensive Greek inscriptions on the walls of his mausoleum at Rhodiapolis. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

"...apart from his gifts of games and a mass of civic buildings, we have recently found him offering to pay for the primary schooling of all the citizen-children at Xanthus, boys and girls alike"..."he gave funds for burial to people in need and paid the dowries of poor families' daughters" ^[4]

He is mentioned in the French author Marguerite Yourcenar's novel Memoirs of Hadrian .

References

1. C. Kokkinia, Opramoas, in: R. Bagnal et al. (ads), The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, Malden M.A. 2012 and online at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/book/10.1002/9781444338386, sv.
2. A. Balland, Fouilles de Xanthos vol. 7, Paris 1981, pp. 173-224
3. E. Kalinka, Tituli Asiae Minoris vol. 2,3, Vienna 1944, no. 905; better edition by C. Kokkinia, Die Opramoas-Inschrift von Rhodiapolis. Euergetismus und Sociale Elite in Lykien, Bonn 2000 (with German translation); see a review of this book, in English, by A. D'Hautcourt, Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2002.09.06
4. R. Lane Fox, Pagans and Christians, London, 1986, p. 60