judaism_and_rome 2026-07-22T01:33:31+02:00 1 176 Inscription https://heurist.huma-num.fr/heurist/?recID=176&db=judaism_and_rome 2022-08-16 23:18:39 2025-07-22 16:56:40 public Nomenclature and Constitutio Antoniniana in Aphrodisias The text was inscribed on a fluted sarcophagus with a panel on the front. 0212 0212 0230 0230 4320 2243 0cdbf3a939167afe20f61e4d0253e6bfa0d3161f sarcophagus_aphrodisias_constitutio.jpg image/jpeg 461 2022-08-12 11:56:58 Nomenclature and Constitutio Antoniniana in Aphrodisias, 4320, Sarcophagus_Aphrodisias_Constitutio.jpg (461.47 KB)) https://heurist.huma-num.fr/heurist/?db=judaism_and_rome&file=0cdbf3a939167afe20f61e4d0253e6bfa0d3161f Greek 2217 2226 2543 2225 2224 2223 2222 2221 2220 2219 2218 4192 <p>This text was inscribed on one of the many sarcophagi populating the extra-urban necropoleis of Greek cities in the high Roman imperial period. Most of the funerary messages are rather formulaic and normally escape scholarly attention, which is more focused on inscriptions evidencing highlights of civic life. On this occasion, however, this material provides us with an exceptional testimony shedding light on the impact of a major historical event that affected the provincial population under the rule of Rome: the <em>Constitutio Antoniniana.<br /><br /></em>Soon after Caracalla obliterated his brother Geta and acceded uncontested to the throne, the sole emperor decided to issue an unprecedented piece of legislation. Through an imperial order, virtually all the peregrine inhabitants in the provinces were granted Roman citizenship. This privilege, particularly in the eastern Mediterranean, had previously been enjoyed by a limited number of individuals who belonged to favoured groups such as veterans, athletes or those with enough resources to achieve a personal grant from the emperor himself (e.g. Aurelia Paulina in Perge; and Lavan, “The Spread” for some possible statistics). The motivations and nature of this change of policy have been highly debated from ancient authors to modern scholars; a controversy which cannot be solved despite having a fragmentary copy of the edict available to us (see e.g. Ando, <em>Citizenship and Empire</em>). A review of the issues related to the so-labelled <em>P.Gissen </em>40is provided on our website. This commentary, however, is focused on the visible impact that Caracalla’s decision had on the epigraphic sources surviving to us.<br /><br />As mentioned above, funerary inscriptions – excluding those adding metric verses – are rather formulaic and can contain a high degree of technicalities. Regional variations existed but there was a common point in carving text on sarcophagi, namely to identify their owners, the people entitled to be buried in them, and the sanctions that were to be enforced in case the tombs were not respected. A well-preserved site such as <a href="https://pleiades.stoa.org/places/638753" style="font-size: 13.008px;">Aphrodisias</a>, in southern Anatolia, has provided us with numerous examples of this habit of inscribing sometimes very finely decorated pieces of art (see Işik, <em>Girlanden-Sarkophage</em> and Öğüş, “Rise and Fall”). Our fluted sarcophagus does not have spectacular reliefs but the Greek letters exceed the accustomed limits of the central panel and also occupy the upper and bottom moulds (see image). This length and exhaustiveness need to be connected to the content of the text. As the first lines enunciate, the plot of land in which the sarcophagus (σορός/<em>soros</em>) was placed had been purchased (ὠνήσατο/<em>ônêsato</em>). The buyer also wants to state that the place was new (καινά/<em>kaina</em>), empty (κενά/<em>kena</em>) and without graves (ἀνένταφα/<em>anentapha</em>); therefore licit for his funerary monument. As such, this text must be interpreted as a sort of legal document evidencing the transaction. This official character – despite the private ownership of the sarcophagus – is fundamental for understanding the comprehensive series of names recorded for those involved in the purchase. Marcus Aurelius Polychronios Charmides, the buyer, specifies that he was previously (πρότερον/<em>proteron</em>) named Polychronios, son of Tatianus III, son of Charmides. The latter sequence follows a complicated pattern of Greek nomenclature based on name and patronymic (i.e. the name of the father in genitive), which was traditionally used by the inhabitants of Aphrodisias (see Chaniotis, “Second Thoughts”). By contrast, the first sequence corresponds to the Roman model of nomenclature based on <em>praenomen</em>, <em>nomen, </em>and<em> cognomen </em>(see Salway, “What is in a name”). Only Roman citizens could officially use this nomenclature, so it is to be presumed that Polichronios was enfranchised soon before he purchased the plot of land for his sarcophagus. Those receiving Roman citizenship adopted as a general rule the <em>praenomen</em> and <em>nomen </em>of the granting emperor. The issue with <em>Marcus Aurelius </em>is that this sequence was not only borne by the homonymous Roman ruler, but also by his son Commodus, and Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius Severus Antoninus Augustus). Consequently, Polychronios’s change of status could theoretically have taken place under any of these three reigns. The connection with Caracalla’s <em>Constitutio Antoniniana </em>therefore needs to be based on the occurrence of similar onomastic patterns in the names of Polychronios’ wife and the women appearing in lines 11-13.  Both Aurelia Meltine and Aurelia Zosime are also referred to with their Greek nomenclatures before (πρότερον/<em>proteron</em>) obtaining Roman citizenship. Such a concentration of new Roman citizens in Aphrodisias is extremely unlikely in the late 2^nd century CE. Likewise, they all adopted the name Aurelius/a that can perfectly derived from Caracalla. In other regions of Anatolia where inscriptions can more securely be dated such as north-eastern Lydia, analogous changes of nomenclature appeared as soon as 213 (<em>TAM</em> V 1.122; see Herrmann, “Überlegungen”), and the adoption of Marcus Aurelius instead of just Aurelius by males as a result of the <em>Constitutio Antoniniana </em>was particularly high in south-western Asia Minor (see Blanco-Pérez, “Nomenclature and Dating”). In fact, not only Polychronios displays this new Roman sequence of names but also the non-family related Marcus Aurelius Karpos Peritas from which he purchased the plot of land (l. 2).<br /><br />Once the connection between this inscription and the effects of the <em>Constitutio Antoniniana </em>has been firmly established, some relevant notes must ensue. First, one can observe the immediate impact that Caracalla’s unprecedented decision had on the population of a city such as Aphrodisias which prided herself as free, autonomous and detached from the control of the Asian governor. Second, this text shows that some people had doubts as to whether their new names would be immediately recognisable and, for this reason, they decided to state their former denominations in order to provide certainty. This hesitation following the <em>Constitutio Antoniniana </em>is particularly evident in Egypt because papyri preserve more legal documents which needed unequivocal personal identifications (e.g. <em>SB</em> 18.13858; see Buraselis, <em>ΘΕΙΑ ΔΩΡΕΑ</em>, p. 108–120). Third, it is undisputable that the provincial population – regardless of their individual doubts – adopted and displayed the changes resulting by the new imperial regulation. The huge number of surviving inscriptions and papyri recording <em>Aurelii</em> is the best proof of this phenomenon regardless of the exact circumstances motivating Caracalla’s grant. A final point that the text from Aphrodisias allows us to explore is concerned with the continuity and transformation of local life after 212 CE. Thus, while personal names were clearly altered, the procedure recorded in the inscription mostly resembles other funerary texts predating the<em> Constitutio Antoniniana </em>(see Harter-Uibopuu and Wiedergut, “Kein anderer soll”)<em>. </em>Polychronios still prepared in advance the sarcophagus both for himself, his wife and other members of the family that may come, probably hoping for a desired male descendant (ἀρρενικὸν τέκνον/<em>arrenikon teknon</em>). Most importantly, the preservation of the sarcophagus still relied on a fine that was to be split between the funds of the goddess Aphrodite and the imperial treasury (ἱερώτατον ταμεῖον/<em>hierôtaton tameion</em>). The first recipient naturally refers to the temple of the divine patroness of Aphrodisias, which had asylum status and secured a kinship relationship with the Romans. As for the second, the appearance of the emperor’s <em>fiscus </em>was common in the funerary inscriptions before 212 (cf. Ritti, <em>“Iura Sepulcrorum</em>”, p. 543), so its appearance cannot be interpreted as a direct result of the new Roman citizenship of the sarcophagus’s owner.<br /><br />This inscription accordingly shows a period of transition in which some personal elements were transformed but other traditional norms continued. This lack of an absolute rupture after the <em>Constitutio Antoniniana </em>complicates the assessment of the impact that Caracalla’s decision had on the provincial population. Gradual and non-homogenous processes are always more difficult to track and, consequently, one needs to be cautious before either denying or excessively exacerbating the effects of what – theoretically – was a major historical event, which may have taken time to fully unfold. Some legal aspects such as the manumission of new Roman citizens in Macedonia needed to be regulated by the provincial governor as soon as 212 CE. By contrast, the local funerary practices of Aphrodisias were not radically altered, probably because they did not affect an imperial administration which still relied heavily on the civic structures of the Greek east, some of which still boasted about centennial traditions that a single imperial edict was not going to dissolve immediately. </p> Roman citizenship Roman name funerary practice purchase sarcophagus descendants wife fines treasury Aphrodite Museum of Aphrodisias, Geyre (Turkey) Marble The sarcophagus is 94 centimetres high, 212 wide, and 94 thick. Letters are 2 centimetres tall on average. 3rd CE 5832 North-East necropolis, south of Eymir in the territory of Aphrodisias. 922 241 182 161 295 248 256 952 Roman Greek I.Aph.2007 13.112 [Monumenta Asiae Minoris Antiqua 8.576, McCabe PHI Aphrodisias 461] No <p align="left">This edition is taken from <em>I.Aph.2007</em> 13.112 under a creative commons license. <a href="http://insaph.kcl.ac.uk/iaph2007/iAph130112.html">http://insaph.kcl.ac.uk/iaph2007/iAph130112.html</a></p> <table style="width: 641px; height: 493px;" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">[οἰν]οπέ̣δην ὠνήσ̣α̣τ̣ο̣ και̣νὰ κε̣ν̣ὰ ἀνέ̣ν̣τ̣αφα Μᾶρ(κος) Αὐρ(ήλιος) Πολυχρόνιος Χαρμίδης</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">πρότερον Πολυχρόνιος Τατιανοῦ τρὶς τοῦ Χαρμίδου παρὰ Μάρ(κου) Αὐρ(ηλίου) Κάρπου Περείτου</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">ἐπὶ Ἀριστοκλέους τοῦ Χαιρέου εἰς ἣν σορὸν</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">κηδευθήσονται αὐτός τε Πο-</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left">5</div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">λυχρόνιος καὶ Αὐρ(ηλία) Μελτίνη ἡ</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">γυνὴ αὐτοῦ ἡ πρότερον Μελ-</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">τίνη Ἀντιόχου τοῦ Ζήνωνος</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">ἐὰν μείνῃ γυνὴ τοῦ Πολυχρο-</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">νίου καὶ ἐὰν γένηται τῷ Πο-</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left">10</div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">λυχρονίῳ ἀρρενικὸν τέκνον</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">καὶ Αὐρ(ηλία) Ζωσίμη ἡ πρότερον</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">Ζωσίμη Ἀπολλωνίου τοῦ Ἀρ-</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">χελάου οὐδεὶς δὲ ἕτερος</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">ἐνταφήσεται τῇ σορῷ ἐὰν</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left">15</div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">δέ τις ἕτερον σωμάτειον ἐπιχειρήσῃ</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">ἐνθάψαι ἐν τῇ σορῷ ἀποτείσει θεᾷ Ἀφροδείτῃ καὶ εἰς τὸ ἱερώτατον ταμεῖον ἀργυρίου (δηνάρια) ͵Ϛ ἐν</div> </td> </tr><tr><td valign="top" width="27"> <div align="left"> </div> </td> <td valign="top" width="991"> <div align="left">δὲ ταῖς [εἰσώ]σταις ταφήσονται οὓς ἂν βου[λη]θῇ ἢ διατάξεται Πολυχρόνιος ἢ κληρονόμος ἢ vac.</div> </td> </tr></tbody></table> <div style="text-align: justify;">The translation is my own. </div> <div style="text-align: justify;"><br />New, empty and unburied, Marcus Aurelius Polychronios Charmides, previously Polichronios, son of Tatianus III, son of Charmides, bought the vineyard plot from Marcus Aurelius Karpos Peritas, upon Aristokles, son of Chares. In this sarcophagus will be buried Polychronios and Aurelia Meltine, his wife, previously Meltine, daughter of Antiochos, son of Zenon, as long as she remains wife of Polychronios, and any male descendant that Polychronios may have, and Aurelia Zosime, previously Zosime, daughter of Apollonios, son of Archelaos. But no one else shall be buried in the sarcophagus. And if anyone else may attempt to bury his body, he will pay to the goddess Aphrodite and to the very sacred (imperial) treasury 6000 silver (denarii). And, in the niches will be buried those whom Polychronios or the heir wish or will order (by will).</div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> </div> Translation by author of the database record Yes A funerary text inscribed on a sarcophagus of Aphrodisias records the change of nomenclature caused by the Constitutio Antoniniana. ὠνέομαι πρότερος Αὐρήλιος σορός ἀρρενικός τέκνον σωμάτειον ἐνθάπτω θέα Ἀφροδίτη ταμεῖον κληρονόμος ἀποτίνω διατάσσω Aitor Blanco Pérez English Funerary Yes 127 161 166 182 189 231 236 238 241 262 265 922 1