Oinoanda and the biggest inscription of the ancient world (türkçe)

Oinoanda

A new project of the Istanbul Department investigating the city of Diogenes and his famous philosophical inscription.

Location

1 The location of Oinoanda in northern Lycia

2 Map of the ruins of Oinoanda, based on the results of the British survey and the Turkish land survey

The ancient city of Oinoanda is located on the border of the Cibyratis in the remote and rugged mountain region of northern Lycia (1). The site of the actual settlement is a broad saddle-ridge between two high hills, at an altitude of approximately 1400m (2). The hill that rises to the north of the settlement, Eren Tepe (1532m), is sometimes referred to as the acropolis of Oinoanda, although it is not integrated into the urban structure. Because of the sharply undulating terrain (3), public spaces - the paved agora and the so-called Esplanade - could be accommodated only in the northern part of the city, while most of the other structural remains occupy sloping sites. At the southwestern extremity of the city is a well preserved section of wall fortified with two towers. The wall is intersected at a tangent by an aqueduct, which is equally well preserved and spans the dip between the wall and the neighbouring hill to the south. On the plain to the east of the urban area lies the present-day village of Incealiler, from which a footpath now leads up to the site.

Objectives

	3 View from the south of the wooded areas of the ancient town

The new research project at Oinoanda, commenced in 2007, involves a comprehensive, fresh documentation of the urban area, including the inscription fragments that are scattered across the site. This is to be carried out with the aid of modern technology and with the aim of more thoroughly investigating Diogenes' inscription, the urban development of Oinoanda, and the ancient community's particular material culture. A team of international researchers with different specialisations is participating in the project, which seeks to widen the basis of research - so far mainly focused on epigraphy - in order that more may be learned about the specific features of the city and about the inhabitants who set such store by public inscriptions. The state of the ruins at Oinoanda also makes professional investigation a matter of urgency since the archaeological substance of the site has been severely disturbed and is still jeopardised by illegal digging and looting.  

History of Research

The site of the city of Oinoanda was discovered and identified by British explorers in the 1840s, and the first plan of the site was published as early as 1847. But subsequently there was no thorough exploration of the site or indeed of any individual structures, some of which are in a good state of preservation. Instead, scholarly interest was focused entirely on the inscriptions, especially on the fragments of a philosophical inscription, which first came to light in 1884 and, with the discovery of 88 fragments by 1895, was revealed as a monumental enshrinement of the Epicurean teachings of the philosopher Diogenes of Oinoanda. In the process of further study and research, it became clear that the inscription was the largest known from the ancient world.

A new chapter in the history of research at Oinoanda opened in 1968 when Martin Ferguson Smith began investigations on the site, focusing on Diogenes' inscription, of which he was able to recover a further 38 new fragments. Smith was furthermore able to relocate most of the fragments found in the 19th century and to submit them to fresh analysis. From 1974 his project was accompanied by a survey undertaken over many years by the BIAA (British Institute at Ankara), initially directed by Alan Hall. This survey represented the first thoroughgoing exploration of the topography and structures of Oinoanda, and also led to the discovery of a further 86 fragments of Diogenes' inscription, which were published successively by M. F. Smith. The greatest number of inscription fragments was found in the area of the so-called Esplanade, identified as the older, Hellenistic agora of the city. In 1997, a small excavation, conducted by BIAA in collaboration with Fethiye Museum, with M. F. Smith as scientific director, brought to light several more blocks of Diogenes' inscription on the Esplanade. This was the first and only archaeological excavation at Oinoanda in the 20th century. In the framework of the BIAA survey, explorations were undertaken that opened up the territory of the ancient city. In addition to the Epicurean inscription, numerous non-philosophical texts have been discovered at Oinoanda and published. Of particular note are the genealogical inscription from the mausoleum of Licinnia Flavilla and the so-called Demostheneia inscription. Along with Diogenes' inscription, these are among the most important inscriptions recovered from the ancient Greek world and underscore the exceptional significance of Oinoanda as an "epigraphic Eldorado". The Demostheneia inscription has been discussed in detail by M. Wörrle, former director of the Commission for Ancient History and Epigraphy at the DAI, who interpreted it as evidence of the festival culture and general mentality of imperial-era élites in the cities of Asia Minor. Research activities at Oinoanda were suspended a few years ago in spite of notable results, leaving many questions unanswered. In particular, there is uncertainty about the architectural conception of Diogenes' inscription and its relationship to its urban surroundings. Little is known too about the successive phases of the development of the city and the diachronic change that took place in public spaces. The resumption of archaeological investigations at Oinoanda can moreover be expected to yield further finds of inscriptions.  

Current Work

	4 The point cloud model of the Esplanade from 2008 with the structural complexes recorded in 2009
	5 Detail of the stone plan with a section of the barrier wall and adjacent areas to the west
	6 Detail of the point cloud model of the Esplanade with the geophysical results superimposed
	7 The ruins of the Vespasian-era baths from the south-west
	8 The heavily worked rock formation south-west of the Esplanade

Research work in 2009

The main focus of the campaign in 2009 (15 July - 15 Aug.) was the documenting of building structures around the Esplanade. In addition to this, the three-dimensional documentation of fragments of the inscription of Diogenes of Oinoanda was successfully continued. The process of plotting the fragments of this unique philosophical inscription, which lie scattered across almost the entire urban area, was concluded. As a result, almost all the fragments of the inscription of Diogenes which are to be found in the complex topography of the city have now been precisely plotted with GPS coordinates. The epigraphic research programme also included investigation of the non-philosophical inscriptions of Oinoanda. In both fields spectacular new finds came to light, once again underscoring the particular epigraphic potential of the site. Geophysical prospection is being carried out at Oinoanda with the specific aim of researching the development of the city. Interest centres on the little-known Hellenistic city. Furthermore, documentation work was conducted on the water supply system at Oinoanda and its imperial-era aqueduct, a remarkable edifice in terms of the history of technology.

The detailed structural record of the vast Hellenistic Esplanade and the buildings surrounding it was completed in 2009. The area in question measures almost 25,000 m2 and it was comprehensively documented by hand on the basis of the three-dimensional point cloud model produced the previous year (4). The structural record comprises the Doric Pseudoperipteral building in the north-west corner and, proceeding clockwise from it, the North Stoa, which was severely disturbed by later installations; the public building in the north-east corner corresponding to the Doric building; the smaller-roomed building at the eastern point of entry to the Esplanade; the late classical Portico with its architectural remains, extending across the entire southern flank of the central space; and finally the massive defensive wall blocking off the Esplanade from the city (5). Also included in the structural record was the adjacent area beyond the barrier wall with large areas of collapse debris and with the east wall of the Antonine baths. Close evaluation of the finished stone plan will allow a clearer identification of the sequence of construction on the Esplanade. In order to find out more about the construction history of this remarkable central area of the city and its Hellenistic origins, the geophysical prospection which last year was conducted on a trial basis was extended to cover the entire area of the Esplanade (6). It turned out that the Esplanade space itself with its architectural structures is revealed much more clearly in the geophysical results than the subterranean remains of the surrounding architecture. All the same, it proved possible to document the building structure of the South Portico in areas not formerly known. Some of the anomalies may be attributable to the vestiges of earlier buildings; this would be highly significant for an understanding of the original appearance of the Hellenistic Esplanade.

In order to clarify how the Esplanade architecture was integrated into the city as a whole, the area being documented by means of terrestrial laser scanner was widened to include peripheral areas. This meant primarily the adjacent area west of the barrier wall, where the older bath complex from the period of Vespasian was also scanned three-dimensionally by laser (7). The resultant point cloud model will serve as the basis for an exact and detailed structural record. For the same purpose we scanned a rock formation resembling a hillock south-west of the Esplanade, whose location in the urban topography and whose traces of building work indicate that it served an important function in the ancient city, although the degree of destruction precludes any concrete interpretation at the present time (8). Finally the Byzantine church south-west of the Esplanade, for whose monumental design architectural members from the North Stoa were reused, was also documented by laser scanner.

A central task of the work on the inscription of Diogenes of Oinoanda was the localisation of known fragments not yet plotted with GPS coordinates. Last year, the over 30 new fragments discovered in 2007 and 2008 were plotted and in addition 130 of the over 220 pieces published before 2007 were located and plotted. Of the remaining fragments nearly 40 are buried or were reburied after the excavations of 1997. A further 27 fragments discovered in the 19th century could not be relocated by the British survey of the 20th century. Yet it also proved difficult to relocate the other fragments observed during the British survey in the 20th century because the mapping was conducted in 2008 in the course of thorough field-walking on the site. Nevertheless, 15 more fragments from the British survey were rediscovered thanks to systematic evaluation of the results of previous research and to the use of GPS. Remarkably, the field-walking also led to the rediscovery of two fragments which were first found by the French expedition (G. Cousin and Ch. Diehl) of 1885 and were re-sighted by the Austrian expedition (R. Heberdey and E. Kalinka) in 1895 but were never seen again since then (9). And finally a series of new finds were made, which was scarcely to be reckoned with after the successes of the previous year's campaign (10). Among these 15 fragments from the Diogenes Stoa, complete inscription blocks were once more to be found. One of these blocks fits the longest coherent sequence of text, extending the inscription of Diogenes now to nearly 16 columns. In terms of content, the most significant new find allows the completion of a maxim of Diogenes only partly visible last year and containing highly unconventional reflections on the sorrows of love. The number of new Diogenes fragments found since the start of the project in 2007 has thus risen to 50.

While it was possible to conclude the work connected with plotting the fragments of Diogenes' inscription, the three-dimensional documentation of the fragments by means of laser line scanner is still far from being finished. Still, more than 40 fragments were scanned, added to the 30 from the previous year.

The 2009 campaign proved to be very productive also in terms of non-philosophical inscriptions, which contribute greatly to the epigraphic significance of Oinoanda. Among the finds were several tomb inscriptions, one small rock relief dedicated to Poseidon, and a statue base whose inscription refers to the goddess Nemesis in a remarkable form of language not easy to interpret.

Oinoanda's water supply and distribution system was investigated thoroughly by E. C. Stanton and J. Coulton and placed in context with the city's bath complexes (see bibliography). Yet some questions remained open, relating to the architectural form of the unusual aqueduct of Oinoanda and to the technical features of the water supply system. Therefore documentation work was commenced on the structural remains still standing today (11). In addition, a detailed surface survey was carried out along the course of the aqueduct from its source, which lies some 3.5 km (linear distance) to the south of the urban area (12). About 500m from the source, two different parallel channels can be made out with a difference in elevation of about 5m. This observation is consistent with the already established multi-phase utilisation of the aqueduct and could be the result of a natural change in the place where the water issued from the limestone massif. GPS coordinates were taken in order to map the course of the two channels and the location of the spring (13); this mapping work will be continued next year in order to determine the exact route of the aqueduct and the various phases of construction.

	10 One of the new fragments of Diogenes' inscription discovered in 2009	11 One of the piers of the aqueduct in the distorted structural record
9 One of two fragments of Diogenes' inscription lost since 1895 and recovered in 2009 (YF 229)	12 The hilltop site of Oinoanda seen from the water source for the aqueduct	13 The course of the aqueduct across the terrain

Cooperation

Cooperation partners and others involved in the project

Martin Bachmann - DAI Istanbul Department (project direction, architectural research)
Veli Köse - Hacettepe University of Ankara (classical archaeology)
Jürgen Hammerstaedt - University of Cologne (epigraphy)
Martin Ferguson Smith - formerly of University of Durham (epigraphy)
Nicholas Milner - BIAA (epigraphy)
Tilmann Müller - University of Applied Sciences, Karlsruhe, Institute of Geomatics (laser line scanning)
Harald Stümpel - University of Kiel (geophysics)

Involved in the project

Terrestrial laser scanning of the Esplanade and surrounding areas
Ertan Ilter, Vildan Inan

Structural record of the Esplanade
Eric Laufer (University of Cologne), Dorothea Roos (University of Karlsruhe), Niko Koch (University of Karlsruhe), Ozan Ayaz (Akdeniz Üniversitesi Antalya), Annika Zeitler (FH Regensburg), Ulrike Herrmann (TU Wien)

Geophysical prospection on the Esplanade
Christina Klein, Karolin Dünnbier, Martin Proksch

Recording of fragments of Diogenes' inscription
Jürgen Hammerstaedt, Matylda Obryk, In Yong Song, Oliver Thiessen, Anke Rasselnberg (University of Cologne), Martin Ferguson Smith, Konrad Berner (University of Applied Sciences Karlsruhe)

Laser line scanning of the Diogenes fragments
Konrad Berner, Benjamin Fischer, Matthias Güldenpfennig (all from the University of Applied Sciences, Karlsruhe)

Epigraphic survey
Nicholas Milner (BIAA), Veli Köse (Hacettepe Üniversitesi Ankara), Gregor Staab (University of Cologne), Matylda Obryk (University of Cologne)

Aquaeduct and water supply
Konrad Berner (University of Applied Sciences Karlsruhe), Martin Bachmann 

Contact

Dr.-Ing. Martin Bachmann

Bauforschung
Telefon: + 90-(0)212-393 76 11
Telefax: + 90 - (0)212-393 76 14
Email: bachmann@istanbul.dainst.org

Sponsors

Fritz Thyssen Stiftung

Gesellschaft der Freunde und Förderer der Nordrhein-Westfälischen Akademie der Wissenschaften  

Bibliography

Inscriptions

G. Cousin, Inscriptions d'Oenoanda, Bulletin de Correspondance Hellenique 16 (1892), 1-70.
R. Heberdey - E. Kalinka, Die philosophische Inschrift von Oinoanda, Bulletin de Correspondance Hellenique 21 (1897), 346-443.
M. F. Smith, Diogenes of Oinoanda. The Epicurean inscription. Edited with introduction, translation and notes, La scuola di Epicuro, Supplemento 1 (Napoli 1993).
M. F. Smith, The philosophical inscription of Diogenes of Oinoanda, Ergänzungsbände zu den Tituli Asiae Minoris Nr. 20 (Wien 1996).
M. F. Smith, Supplement to Diogenes of Oinoanda. The Epicurean inscription, La scuola di Epicuro Supplemento 3 (Napoli 2003).
M. F. Smith, Excavations at Oinoanda 1997. The new Epicurean texts, Anatolian Studies 48 (1998), 125-170.
J. J. Coulton - N. P. Milner - A. S. Hall, The mausoleum of Licinnia Flavilla and Flavius Diogenes of Oinoanda. Epigraphy and architecture, Anatolian Studies 46 (1996), 111-144.
N. P. Milner, Ancient inscriptions and monuments from the territory of Oinoanda, Anatolian Studies 54 (2004), 47-77.
N. P. Milner, A hellenistic statue base in the upper agora at Oinoanda, Anatolian Studies 48 (1998), 113-116.
M. Wörrle, Stadt und Fest im kaiserzeitlichen Kleinasien. Studien zu einer agonistischen Stiftung aus Oinoanda, Vestigia 39 (München 1988).
M. F. Smith / J. Hammerstaedt, The Inscription of Diogenes of Oinoanda. New Investigations and Discoveries (NF 137-141), Epigraphica Anatolica 40 (2007) 1-11.
J. Hammerstaedt / M. F. Smith, Diogenes of Oinoanda: The discoveries of 2008 (NF 142-167), Epigraphica Anatolica 41 (2008) 1-37.

The city and its buildings

A. Hall, The Oenoanda survey 1974-76, Anatolian Studies 26 (1976), 1991-197.
A. Hall, A sanctuary of Leto at Oenoanda, Anatolian Studies 27 (1977), 193-197.
A. Hall - R. Ling, Building Mk 1 at Oenoanda, Anatolian Studies 31 (1981), 31-53.
J. J. Coulton, Oinoanda. The Doric building (Mk 2), Anatolian Studies 32 (1982), 45-59.
J. J. Coulton, The buildings of Oinoanda. Proceedings of the Cambridge Philological Society, New series 29 (1983), 1-20.
J. J. Coulton, Oinoanda. The Agora, Anatolian Studies 36 (1986), 61-90.
J. J. Coulton - E. Stenton, Oinoanda. The water supply and aqueduct, Anatolian Studies 36 (1986), 15-59.
N. P. Milner, A Roman bridge at Oinoanda, Anatolian Studies 48 (1998), 117-123.