Funerary Monuments from Western civitas Treverorum in an interregional Context

The objective of this Austrian-Luxembourgian project proposal is the scientific recording, reconstruction and holistic and interdisciplinary evaluation of visible funerary monuments or fragments from the western region of the civitas Treverorum (Gallia Belgica). At the heart of this project are the extraordinarily numerous and significant funerary monuments in the archaeological museums of Arlon (B) and Luxembourg (L), which have not yet been adequately researched or published. Funerary monuments in surrounding areas will be incorporated into this study as well, including new finds from the Roman settlement at Titelberg (L). The proposed project will benefit through international scientific exchange with a research project, proposed to the DFG, which will study the Roman funerary monuments from Augusta Treverorum/Trier (D) and its surroundings. Their contribution will augment the material basis, thereby enabling a comprehensive evaluation of this monument category for a contiguous area in antiquity (civitas Treverorum), thus overcoming current scientific boundaries caused by linguistic diverstiy inter alia. Given the importance of Augusta Treverorum as the centre of Gallia Belgica and the location of civitas Treverorum in the border area of the German provinces, the recording, reconstruction and evaluation of its exceptionally rich stock of funerary monuments is a pressing research-desideratum. This is a unique opportunity for examining transformation, assimilation and demarcation processes using a large material basis. In the compilation of data, methods stemming from the disciplines of archaeology, art history, epigraphy, architectural survey as well as geology and chemistry will be applied. This is intended to ensure the contextual survey of monuments in respect to their overall architectural form as well as their socio-cultural and economic historical background. Using innovative and interdisciplinary documentation methods, the human and technical resources of the project partners and their respective institutions can be optimally utilized. A database will be created which will enable the examination of new issues regarding the typology of funerary monuments in the north west provinces, the genesis and development of architectural ornamentation and iconography and the dating criteria of provincial Roman sculpture. Connections between workshops and the presumed interaction between the capital and its outlying rural areas will be examined. Local characteristics, cultural influences from the Mediterranean region and the representational forms used by a provincial population will be questioned in their socio-cultural context. Analyzing the provenance of rock materials will contribute to the study of economic history and transportation infrastructure in the study area and beyond. International networking, interdisciplinary and methodological approaches as well as a broad selection of issues are sought to encourage cultural and historical insights which can be disseminated and used in a variety of ways.

Funerary Monuments from Western civitas Treverorum in an Interregional Context The Inter-Connected Evaluation of a Socio-Historically Relevant Category of Finds In the course of the FunMonTrev project, a comprehensive inventory of the funeral architecture of the Roman period in the western Treveran area was carried out. Together with a parallel partner project of the DFG on the eastern Treveran region, a prominent find category of this Roman tribal and administrative area, which has a share in four present-day states, is presented in an overview and comprehensively evaluated in an interdisciplinary manner for the first time. Situated at the interface between the Limes area, strongly influenced by the military, and Central Gaul, in close exchange with the Narbonensis, the civitas Treverorum proves to be a productive cultural area from which important impulses emanated in the first three centuries AD. Especially in the rural hinterland of the capital Augusta Treverorum/Trier, the elaborately designed funerary monuments in the context of large villa complexes or in the grave roads next to the vici provide a deep insight into the socio-cultural conditions of the wealthy provincial population. The first elaborate round tombs and multi-storey mausoleums, whose architectural forms, ornaments and pictorial repertoire were based on Mediterranean models, were built in the area under investigation in the Tiberian period. The petrological investigations showed, that in addition to imported stone material from Lorraine, local stone resources were soon tapped, as for example for the funerary monuments in Bartringen, Arlon or on the Titelberg. By detailed recording of single preserved blocks, their shape, ornaments an technical details, numerous monuments of the 1st century AD have been identified, partially reconstructed by drawing or 3D modeling, and interpreted in their historical, topographical and social context. From the last third of the 1st century and at the beginning of the 2nd century, changes are noticeable in the typology, the ornamentation and execution of the monuments. New architectural and ornamental concepts can be deduced from the preserved components, which in the 2nd century developed into the typical pillar-shaped grave monuments. In addition, there are also indications of hitherto lesser-known types of monuments. Most of the funerary constructions are characterised by an extraordinary wealth of images, which allows for exciting investigations on the decoration and effect of the monuments, but also about the craft processes in the workshops and on the building site, as well as about the living conditions and spiritual ideas of the clients and grave owners. The analysis of the inscription material also yields selective information on individual members of the society of the time. For the Treveran region, a comprehensive overview can thus be gained of a type of find that has decisively shaped our idea of "Gallo-Roman" culture.