Gerulata: The Lamps. Roman Lamps in a Provincial Context (original) (raw)

What should a catalogue of archaeological material contain? This book is a comprehensive index of 210 lamps from the Roman fort at Gerulata and its adjoining civilian settlement. The lighting devices were excavated during the last 50 years from the houses, cemeteries, barracks and fortifications of this Roman outpost on the Danube Limes and span almost three centuries from AD 80 to AD 350. For the first time, they are published in full and in color with detailed analysis of lamp types, workshop marks and discus scenes. Roman lamps were a characteristic form of interior lighting that burned liquid fuel seeped through a wick to create a controlled flame. Relief decorations have made them appealing objects of minor art in modern collections, but lamps were far more than that – with a distribution network spanning three continents, made by a multitude of producers and brands, with their religious imagery used in worship and death, and as symbols of study and learning, Roman lamps are an effective tool that can be used to discover the ancient economy, culture, craft organization and Roman provincial life. The first chapter describes the history of Roman Pannonia and the archaeological record of Gerulata. Three successive catalogues – of the lamps, of the stamps, and of the iconography – illustrate the material thoroughly. An inquiry into the lamps’ function as grave goods is presented, followed by four studies focused on the statistical analysis of types, the organization of the lamp industry, signs of personal ownership, and the cultural significance of lamplight in a provincial milieu, respectively. Together, they paint a picture of a community on the edge of the Empire and its use of artificial light in both life and death.