Stone-Relief-Inscription

An expected progress in the recording of Roman stone monuments will be made exclusively by complete investigation. This means combined analysis of pictoral images and inscriptions including the local conditions, the possibilities for stone sculpturing (workshops) and determination of the origin of the rock. The form of expression of the Provincial Roman art of Noricum in the area of today`s Austria seemed limited at first. Generally, a large variety of pictoral themes and contents can be noted, which point towards a dependence on relief forms from outside the Province of Noricum. Together with the numerical increase of monuments from the principat on, iconographic forms and varieties of relief ornaments can be observed, which indicates an independent and local production. Additionally, specific questions about the order situation and the presumed classes of society responsible for the stone monuments arise. Finally, the forms of reference of the pictoral images and ornaments - generally the degree of influence from neighbouring art - have to be investigated. In contrast to the common opinion of richly cultivated trade relations between the Province of Noricum and the south, which means the Upper Italian area, a connection with the Mosel area and generally the west of the Empire becomes visible for works of art, expressed by the used decorative elements. A major matter of concern of the project - equal to the epigraphic, iconographic and typological evaluation of Roman relief- and inscription stones in Noricum ripense - is the exact petrographical and geological determination. Geoscientific single analyses of all stone monuments described in the catalog and the attempt to assign the rocks to Roman quarries serves this purpose. The variety and distribution of "monument groups" and the reconstruction of transportation routes will be the centre of interest. The origin and possible transport routes (e.g. river transport) will be considered more thoroughly with the example of quite rare marble monuments in Noricum ripense. From these "combined" ways of looking at the stone monuments, again the question concerning production localities and a distribution map of Roman monuments in the area of Noricum has to be raised. From a combined geological respectively archaeological analysis new results regarding the start of the quarries and their abandonment as well as stone transport and distribution are expected. In combination with an art historical analysis of the stone monuments and the basics of dating won in the study, an overall view of relief groups within an area, a specific "art community", will be possible. The project plans to provide fundamental research on a broad basis by answering questions about production, deposits, evaluation of pictoral images and inscriptions. Aspects of economic and social history will be in the foreground. Additionally, the geoscientific and archaeological investigation of stone monuments serves as a basis for further, respectively necessary, conservation and restauration work. The emphasis on the natural scientific, the art historical and historical analysis offers a future aspect and should aim at an international standard of scientific documentation (e.g. cartography of stone monuments, distribution map of finds) as well as analysis of archaeological object.

The title represents the projects methodology - first time the overall information content of Roman monuments and inscription stones have been analyzed for a certain geographical area (eastern part of Northern Noricum). Regarding to the elaborated methodology and its analysis the following results are upcoming: A clear statement can be done for Roman stone monuments related by their cultural context (mainly funeral), their appearance and distribution are connected to the locality of manufacturing and a defined order situation. A monuments classification based on a socio/cultural background can be done for regional types of inscriptions and sculptures using workshop related characteristics. A clarification of the results give the connection with the materials quarries. These are for certain time periods the starting-point for a certain production of relief`s and sculptures. The connection between the materials origin, the manufacturing workshop and the distribution are demonstrated by maps. The base of the research is therefore a petrographic anaysis of the material and it`s provenience to a known or investigated Roman quarry. For the archaeological and historical analysis the monuments were classified regarding their finding location and their original specification. The results are the characteristic use of the material within the investigated roman settlements like Lauriacum (Enns), Lentia (Linz) oder Ovialvis (Wels) The first results of a monuments classification regarding their cultural context and material is already published. Essential for the final analysis of the material will be a chronological documentation of the mining periods of local quarries as well as the materials demand of workshops and commissioners. Also the routes of the material transport will be documented and discussed. For the completion of the investigation on Roman monuments within the northern part of the Roman province Noricum an application for a research project have been submitted at the Austrian Science Foundation (FWF). The results of the FWF-Project P15669 on the eastern part of Norhtern Noricum will be published together with the coming data of Noricums western part.