Pierres Errantes: Two Latin Inscriptions transported from the Docimium Quarries to Istanbul

Abstract

This study presents two Latin inscriptions currently exhibited in Sanatçılar Parkı in Ataköy, Istanbul, which originally belonged to the Roman Imperial marble quarries of Docimium (modern Iscehisar, Afyon). One of the inscriptions was previously discovered in the Bacakale sector of the Docimium quarries and was published in 1991. Although the other inscription remains unpublished, it was most likely brought to Istanbul together with the former piece. After situating these fragments within the broader corpus of quarry inscriptions, they are re-examined here in light of the earlier studies by J. C. Fant, M. Christol, and Th. Drew-Bear, with particular attention to their epigraphic and historical contexts. The inscriptions illustrate the use of standard abbreviations designating quarry sections (bracchium, locus), the workshop engineer (officina), and the quarry engineer (caesura), thereby providing evidence for the complex bureaucratic system that regulated production and transport. The paper also addresses the transfer of these inscriptions to Istanbul, while expressing concerns about the ongoing threats that modern quarrying activities pose to archaeological evidence.