Jane DeRose Evans - Böcker

Sardis, capital city of the Lydian and Persian kings, stronghold of the Seleukid kings, metropolis of Roman Asia, and episcopal see in the Byzantine period, has been the focus of archaeological research since the early 1900s. This monograph focuses on the over 8,000 coins minted in the Lydian, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods that were excavated between 1973 and 2013 in the Harvard-Cornell Expedition.The book places coins within eastern Mediterranean historical, cultural, and economic contexts, in order to better understand the monetized economy of Sardis. It adds important archaeological context to shed light on the uses of coins and the nature of the deposits, with attention paid to the problems of monetary circulation and chronological development of the deposits, especially in the Late Roman period. Statistical analyses, including a new method of analyzing the deposits, help define the nature and chronological horizons of the strata. A catalog of the coins concludes the main body of the study, followed by appendices on countermarks, monograms, and statistical analyses.

Includes 25 figures, 8 plates and 11 tables, some in colour. This volume presents the numismatic results from nineteen seasons of fieldwork by the Joint Expedition to Caesarea Maritima (1971-1987 and 1993-1993). The expedition recovered just over 8,000 coins, of which about 2,700 were datable between 350 BC and AD 640. The volume provides a complete descriptive catalogue of the datable coins along with a separate section illustrated with colour photographs of a spectacular hoard of 99 gold Byzantine solidi of Valens and ValentinianI discovered in 1993.

Robert J. Bull began the excavation of a vault on the south side of the Inner Harbour of Caesarea Maritima, Israel. The vault was one of a row of warehouses built to store goods unloaded from the harbour built by Herod the Great.Begins with an introduction to the excavation process; the study of the stratigraphy (analysis of the order and position of layers of archaeological remains) considers the later excavations of the adjoining vault, and includes new photographs, plans, and section drawings. The original construction phase, the vault's transformation into a Mithraeum (a sanctuary or temple of the god Mithras), abandonment, and final use as a "charnel house" are discussed in detail.Also, includes detailed studies of the fragmentary wall paintings depicting Mithraic iconography, and of the medallion found inside the vault, in the context of the practices of Mithraism in the ancient world. The reconstruction of the ceiling splay and the interpretation in terms of astrological symbolism important to Mithraism are also detailed.A second volume describing the structure of the vault and the material culture found is planned.

A forthcoming volume in a series devoted to the publication of final excavation reports, surveys and ethnoarchaeological fieldwork.