A Typological and Iconographic Analysis of Macedonian Burials in the Classical and Early Hellenistic Period (5th-mid 3rd Centuries BCE)

Much of what we know of ancient cultures comes from burials, and this is also true in Macedonia. Yet, little is known about Classical Macedonian culture outside of the nobility, and even less is known about what they thought of death. This project analyzes funerary images from Macedonia during the Classical and early Hellenistic periods (5th- mid 3rd century BCE) with three questions in mind. First, are there specific motifs that are more prevalent? Second, is there a change in motifs over time? Third, how are these images similar to and different from images in Greece and Thrace? This study will also shed light on regional similarities and differences within Macedonia. There is a huge corpus of archaeological material from Macedonia, but much of it remains unpublished or is available only in museum catalogues. As a result, this presentation will focus on figured tombstones. A brief secondary discussion of female goddess figurines found in graves will also be presented