Folia archeologica 15.

Sándor Soproni: Castellum Carporum

CASTELLUM CARPORUM The lapidarium of the Hungarian National Museum has, for some time, been in possession of a yet unpublished inscribed tombstone fragment from the excavation by Antal Hekler at Dunapentele (Intercisa) in 1913.

1 In all likelihood the stone was re-used on a Late Roman Tomb and it seems to have been cut into quarters at that time. Only the lower left fragment of the tombstone, which includes the first half of a 13-line inscription and a fragment of the picture field, has been preserved. When it was reused even the border surrounding the inscribed field was carved off and only one human foot and the fragment of a pilum remained (Fig. 16). An attempt was made to reconstruct the portrayal by the aid of tombstones with complete figures which quite frequently occurred in Pannónia. The deceased could have been depicted in military uniform with a pilum in his right hand.

2 This tombstone type was popular among the soldiers during the entire Roman reign. The height of the stone varied from 2.2 to 3 meters and the width from 0,7 to 1.2 meters.

3 In its original form this tombstone was probably also three meters in height and between 1.2 and 1.3 meters in width. The dead, as we will see later was a Praetorian. It is quite uncertain that the dead was depicted in the characteristic Praetorian dress.

4 The tombstone, on two sides and likely under the image, was surrounded by a decorative tendril frame. This part was carved off when the stone was re-used but traces of the tendril can be seen in places. Under the depiction we find the inscription in a slightly recessed field framed by grooving. Under the inscribed field there is a somewhat narrower part likely used for setting the tombstone in a stone base. The inscription is composed of 13 lines and presumably theD(iis) M(anibus) 1 Through the courtesy of Zoltán Oroszlán. The excavation notes of Antal Hekler were lost during the war. The excavation of 1913 took place in the so-called Szórád field where a cemetery of the 3rd—4th century was unearthed (Sági K., Fundzusammenhänge des Gräberfeldes. Intercisa II. АН 36. Budapest 1957. 616). Many re-used stone relics were found in the tombs. The inventory number of our tombstone is 62.63.I. The present height of the limestone gravestone is 223, its width 66 and its thickness 30 cm. 2 As close analogies we may mention the tombstone of P. Aelius P. f. Maecia Mestrius from Aquincum CIL III 3 5 30 ; Rimer F.

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Desjardins E., A Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum római feliratos emlékei. (The Inscribed Roman Relics of the Hungarian National Museum.) (Budapest 1873) no. 138; Schober

, A., Die römische Grabsteine von Noricum und Pannonién. (Wien 1923) nr. 138.; Mócsy A., Die Bevölkerung von Pannonién bis zu den Markomannenkriegen (Budapest 1959) no. 185/6. the first half of the second century, and the tombstone of M. Aurelius Avitianus from Tatabánya (Mahler E., Arch. Ért. 27 (1907) 240.; Hoffiler, V., Arch. Ért. 29 (1909) 319.; Schober, A., op. cit. no. 167. Further analogies: Schober, A., op. cit. 67 f. 3 Schober, A., op. cit. 158 f. 4 For portrayals of praetorians see Durry, M., Praetoriae Cohortes. PWRE 44 Hb. (Stuttgart 1954) 1625.; id., Les cohortes prétoriennes. (Paris 1938) 217 f. The age and form of the tombstone of L. Septimius Valerinus is similar to it. Notizie degli Scavi 1923. 391., fig. 9.