IGII34 636 Dedication by the Heraeis

Dedication by the Heraeis

IG II³ 4 636 Date: Mid-4th cent. BC

The Heraeis^[2] dedicated (this) to Dionysos.^[1] Relief

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References:

IG II³ 4 636 (Translated text) (IG Online)

IG XIV 605 (PHI)

IG II³ 4 636 Add. p. 686

Translation by: Salvatore Tufano

Monument type: Relief

Inscription type: Dedication (Heraieis), Dedication (Dionysos)

Findspot: Cagliari, Sardinia, on the shore built into paving of the Basilica di Bonaria (Museo Cagliari inv. 10918)

Transliterations on Places on

[1] The inscription is on the upper moulding of a relief depicting (upper left) three tragic masks, above a krater (wine mixer), with a naked boy standing by; to the right a seated woman holding a mask and a man reclining on a couch. It is possible that the right half of the relief, not preserved, displayed a representation of Dionysos. The dating of the inscription is based on lettering and morphology (cf. D. Summa in Munus Laetitiae II, 2018, 208). The style of the relief suggests an Athenian origin, and it is not known how it reached Sardinia. A connection with a town Heraion, variously located in Sardinia, in the Argolid, or in the Megarid, seems unlikely (in that case one would expect an ethnic in the form Heraioi). A transcription on a manuscript (codex Matritensis 5781) belonging to Antonio Augustin, archbishop of Tarragona (1517-1586), shows the relief had reached Cagliari by the 16th century, perhaps as a consequence of trade, or shipwreck in antiquity or in the Middle Ages (for an overview of the possible scenarios see G. Marginesu, in L’Africa romana 14, 2002, 1810-11, and Summa, 214-15). It was turned over and used as a tombstone of Francisco Arca, who died in Sardinia in 1603. [2] The significance of Heraeis, most commonly interpreted as a masculine plural name, is uncertain. Once we exclude a city-ethnic (see n. 1) two possibilities might be considered: a group of worshippers of Hera (T. B. L. Webster, Monuments Illustrating Tragedy, 1967, AS 6, but the connection with drama would be obscure); or an association of artists, first suggested by Furtwängler and now generally followed (cf. Summa for an overview and endorsement of this reading). The association may have been named after its founder, a Heraios, and have dedicated this relief after a victory in a dramatic contest.

Added: 1 Jul 2019
Updated: 2 Jul 2021
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ID: AIO_1804