The marble quarries of the metropolis of Eph esos and some examples of the use for marbles in Ephesian architecture and sculpturing

Prochaska W;GRILLO, SILVANA MARIA

2009-01-01

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Abstract

This paper presents first results of ongoing investigations on the origin of marbles used in different periods in the architecture of the ancient city of Ephesos in Asia Minor. Different types of marbles that had been mined in the area of Ephesus were of appreciable importance for the whole province (e.g. also for the city of Pergamon). Geologically some of these marbles belong to the Menderes massif, others to the Attic-Cycladic Complex. The results of the investigations of several important ancient quarries in the area during the last years were used as a database for these studies. The methods applied were petrographic investigations, chemical and isotopical analyses and especially chemical analyses of inclusion fluids and extractable salts (crush-leach analyses) of the marbles. Analyzing the inclusion fluid chemistry was applied for the first time at the mausoleum of Belevi in order to investigate the provenance of the white marbles used there. Different examples of architecture of Ephesos from early Hellenistic to Imperial Roman times presented in this paper show that the city developed very early autarchic quarry industry without any need of marble imports. In the early 2nd century AD one example from the Serapeion proves the import of Prokonnesian marble into the city. On the other hand the export of Ephesian marble into the empire is documented by the evidence of greco scritto, a special type of Ephesian marblein Roman Xanten (Germany) and Sirmium (Serbia).