DiscussionConsole for bust of Eutropius, probably governor of Asia. Ephesus (Asia). Fifth century INSCRIPTIONVerse inscription of three hexameters laid out in six lines: ☩ τήνδε φιλαγρύπνων / ὀλίγην χάριν εὕραο μόχθω(ν) / Εὐτρόπιε, ζαθέης Ἐφέσου / θάλος, οὕνεκα πάτρην / (5) μαρμαρέαις κοσμήσας / ἐυστρώτοισιν ἀγυιαῖς. ' (cross) On account of your sleepless toil, Eutropius, progeny of sacred Ephesus, you have obtained this modest thanks because you adorned your fatherland with twisting marble streets.' (Trans J. Lenaghan) Letter height 2.5 - 3 cm. DESCRIPTION White marble console, H 32, W 39, D 89 cm. The block is generally well preserved, but the rear left and (recently) front upper left corners are missing. The top of the back portion of the console, which was set into a wall or other structure, is slightly lowered and only roughly finished. The front portion of the upper face is smoothly finished, with a rectangular sunken section, a pouring channel, and a dowel hole, all to support the image of Eutropius above. The limited size of the console suggests that this image was a bust (Heberdey 1907). Indeed an under-lifesize head, now in Vienna (LSA-690), was found closeby, attached to shoulders which are hollowed out behind (and therefore certainly from a bust). PROVENANCE AND CURRENT LOCATION The inscription was found in 1906 in the debris at the east side of the Marble Street, south of the entrance to the Neronian Hall. It is today set on the marble street, close to its findspot. HONORAND, AWARDER AND DATE Eutropius, the honorand, is celebrated for his 'sleepless toils' (line 2) and for having streets of Ephesus paved with marble (lines 4-6,) presumably a reference to the so-called 'Marble Street' in the centre of Ephesus beside which the inscription was set up. Supervision of building activities was one of the main official obligations of late antique governors (Robert 1948, 60 et passim); like the 'sleepless toils', they are a core motif in honorific inscriptions to high ranking office holders at that time (on toils, Robert 1948, 21 n. 3). It is therefore likely that our honorand was a governor (proconsul) of Asia (of which Ephesus was the provincial capital), although his rank and status are not made explicit in our inscription. He was a native of Ephesus (ζαθέης Ἐφέσου θάλος, 'progeny of sacred Ephesus', lines 2-3). The cross at the beginning of our inscription suggests he was a Christian. A man of this name is known to have been proconsul of Asia in 371/2 (PLRE I, 317 Eutropius 2); but there are serious problems in associating him with our honorand. The proconsul of 371/2 is identical with the historian commissioned by the emperor Valens to write a Breviarium (abstract) of Roman history, who is known to have been a pagan (Haehling 1978, 216-20; PLRE l, 317 Eutropius 2), and, according to the Suda I, 2, 475 (a Byzantine encyclopedia of the 10th century), of western origin (Ἰταλός). This makes it very unlikely that the proconsul of 371/2 (and author) is the same man as our Eutropius, who was certainly a native of Ephesus, and probably a Christian, as several scholars have recognised (Malcus 1967, 112-13, implicitly; explicitly, Foss 1979, 5, and Engelmann, Knibbe & Merkelbach 1980). There is no explicit statement as to who set up this monument, but it likely to have been awarded by the city. Our inscription is impossible to date with precision on the basis of internal evidence alone, if, as we must, we reject the association with the governor of 371/2. In the inscription the only dating evidence is the presence of the initial cross, which suggests a date not before the later 4th century. Heberdey 1907, our inscription's first editor, dated it with deliberate vagueness to around 400; Gregoire 1922 proposed a date in the late 4th/early 5th century (without discussion of the evidence); while Foss 1979, 5. 27. 61 presumed a second proconsul, with the same name as the earlier Eutropius, in the late 5th century (choosing this date probably because of the dating of the nearby bust - see below). External evidence for dating the console is, however, provided by the bust found closeby, which is very likely to have stood on our console (see above, 'Description'). This is widely dated stylistically to the 5th century (see LSA-690). FURTHER DISCUSSION The console was found in the debris of the Marble Street, and unquestionably formed part of its decoration. The standing structure into which the console was inserted was probably a wall, but could also have been a column or a pillar. There is no record of what the debris, in which the console was found, consisted. Consoles often faced streets, bearing statues or busts of benefactors, see for instance the famous examples from Palmyra (of the mid to later 3rd century; Hartmann 2001, 201 with further references). Consoles, here decorated with statuettes, are also known from 2nd-century Sagalassos (http://www.sagalassos.be/node/1455 <Ine Jacobs>) Main ReferenceEngelmann, H. Knibbe, D. & R. Merkelbach, Die Inschriften von Ephesos Teil IV. Inschriften griechischer Städte aus Kleinasien, vol. 14, Bonn 1980, no. 1304Grégoire, H., Recueil des inscriptions grecques chrétiennes d'Asie Mineure. Fasc. I, Paris 1922, no. 99 Merkelbach, R. and J. Stauber (eds.), Steinepigramme aus dem griechischen Osten. Bd. 1. Die Westküste Kleinasiens von Knidos bis Ilion , Stuttgart 1998, p. 303 no. 03/02/10 Discussion ReferencesAlzinger, W., Nachträge: Ephesus B. Archäologischer Teil, Paulys Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft, Supplementband XII,1588-1704, Stuttgart 1970, col. 1598 Foss, C., Ephesus after Antiquity, Cambridge 1979, Haehling, R. v., Die Religionszugehörigkeit der hohen Amtsträger des Römischen Reiches seit Constantins I. Alleinherrschaft bis zum Ende der Theodosianischen Dynastie, Bonn 1978, Heberdey, R., Vorläufiger Bericht über die Grabungen in Ephesus 1905/06, Jahreshefte des Österreichischen Archäologischen Instituts 10, 1907, Beiblatt col. 61-78, col. 72-3 Jones, A. H. M. et al., The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. I 260-395, Cambridge et al. 1971 (1975), Malcus, B. 'Die Prokonsuln von Asien von Diokletian bis Theodosius II', Opuscula Atheniensa, 7 (1967) 91-154, Robert, L., Epigrammes du Bas-Empire (Hellenica IV), Paris 1948, Wankel, H. (ed.), Die Inschriftn von Ephesos. Teil Ia. Nr. 1-47 (Texte), Bonn 1979, |
[Sleeker_special_clear]