ISic000621: Fragment of a monumental Latin inscription

I.Sicily with the permission of the Assessorato Regionale dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana - Dipartimento dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana; photo J. Prag 2015-01-15
ID
ISic000621
Language
Latin
Text type
building
Object type
plaque
Status
No data
Links
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Edition

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Apparatus criticus

  • Text from autopsy;
  • 1: Wilson: X TP
  • 2: Fallico, Wilson: [V]ETUST[ATE

Physical description

Support

Description
Two rejoined fragments of a large plaque of a grey-white marble with blue veining. The surface is dark due to exposue and surface accretions, and presents a grey-brown appearance. The stone is broken on all sides in an irregular shape. The reverse is smooth. The measurements recorded in NSA are notably under the reality.
Object type
plaque
Material
marble
Condition
fragments, contiguous
Dimensions
height: 28.8 cm, width: 33.1 cm, depth: 3.3-2.8 (top to bottom) cm

Inscription

Layout
Remains of two lines of monumental letters; the gap below line 2 is greater (up to 7.5 cm) than the gap between lines 1 and 2 (5.5 cm), which could suggest that this is the last line of the text.
Text condition
incomplete
Lettering

Letter heights
Line 1: 80 (preserved; probably c.82 originally)mm
Line 2: 70mm
Interlinear heights
Interlineation line 1 to 2: 55mm

Provenance

Place of origin
Syracusae
Provenance found
From excavation in 1964 of a series of cisterns in Villa Maria, specifically cistern N, flanking viale Luigi Cadorna
Map

Current location

Place
Siracusa, Italy
Repository
Museo Archeologico Regionale Paolo Orsi , 69613
Autopsy
Prag 2015-01-15, Magazzino B, cassette 10
Map

Date

Augustan or Julio-Claudian (12 BC – AD 66)
Evidence
lettering, office

Text type

building

commentary

As noted already by Fallico, the surviving letters in line 2 are almost certainly part of a phrase such as 'vetustate conlapsam... restituit' ('falling down through old age, he restored...') or similar, recording therefore a work of restoration or reconstruction of an existing building. Fallico further observes (NSA 1971, p.635 n.1) that the letters X·TR in line 1 are probably part of imperial titulature, either along the lines of [PONT·MA]X·TR[IB·POTEST] or [COS]·X·TR[IB·POTEST] or IMP]·X·TR[IB·POTEST]. Various such permutations are possible, fitting to Augustus after 12 BC, but also to Claudius (45 AD) or Nero (66 AD).

Bibliography

Digital editions
Printed editions

Citation and editorial status

Editor
Jonathan Prag
Principal contributor
Jonathan Prag
Contributors
Last revision
6/29/2024