DOI article:
Skoczylas, Janusz; Grala, Katarzyna: The ancient marble of Proconnesos
DOI Page / Citation link: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.41865#0207
Janusz Skoczylas
Katarzyna Grala
Poznań
THE ANCIENT MARBLE OF PROCONNESOS*
Scientists and scholars worldwide, among them archeologists, use many names
of the varieties of marble which have been ąuarried, applied for practical pur-
poses and transported sińce the antiąuity, as numerous morę or less reliable studies
have established. These varieties of marble include a materiał called “Proconne-
sian. ” However, although much information is available on the sites where oth-
er varieties of this stone were excavated, relatively little was known of this type
of marble until recently. Even in Turkey, where it is ąuarried at present, the term
“Proconnesian marble” was not used before 1971. In fact, it is still exported un-
der the trade name “Marmara White.”
We know that marble ąuarries existed on this island sińce as early as the 8th
century BC, but all the available information on such activity comes from in-
scriptions and other archeological finds located outside the island. It was only in
contemporary times that the very thick layer of debris covering the ancient facil-
ities was removed during the construction of two breakwaters.
This discovery not only aroused an interest in the ąuarries on the island, but
also launched investigations into the relationships between the ąuarries and the
sites of the located ruins of stonemasons’ workshops in northern Turkey. As a
result, the Ancient Department of Ankara was established, and systematic re-
search started, originally directed by Dr. N. Firathli and now continued by
N. Asgari. A debate on the tecłmiąues of the excavation and distribution of mar-
ble from other ancient ąuarries began among scientists from various countries.
The authors of the numerous studies of this subject include W. Deichmann [1969,
291-307], J.B. Ward-Perkins [1972, 138-158], W.F. Betsch [1977, 287-289],
D. Mona, P. Pensabene [1977, 147-173], J.P. Sodini [1977, 423-450] and C. Bar-
santi [1989, 91-221].
1 The work was carried out under the research programs of the Archeological Expedi-
tion of the Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza “Novae, Moesia Inferior” and “Chersone-
sus Taurica, Crimea, Ukrainę,” financed hy the Govemment’s Research Committee (KBN)
and the Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza, Poznań.
Katarzyna Grala
Poznań
THE ANCIENT MARBLE OF PROCONNESOS*
Scientists and scholars worldwide, among them archeologists, use many names
of the varieties of marble which have been ąuarried, applied for practical pur-
poses and transported sińce the antiąuity, as numerous morę or less reliable studies
have established. These varieties of marble include a materiał called “Proconne-
sian. ” However, although much information is available on the sites where oth-
er varieties of this stone were excavated, relatively little was known of this type
of marble until recently. Even in Turkey, where it is ąuarried at present, the term
“Proconnesian marble” was not used before 1971. In fact, it is still exported un-
der the trade name “Marmara White.”
We know that marble ąuarries existed on this island sińce as early as the 8th
century BC, but all the available information on such activity comes from in-
scriptions and other archeological finds located outside the island. It was only in
contemporary times that the very thick layer of debris covering the ancient facil-
ities was removed during the construction of two breakwaters.
This discovery not only aroused an interest in the ąuarries on the island, but
also launched investigations into the relationships between the ąuarries and the
sites of the located ruins of stonemasons’ workshops in northern Turkey. As a
result, the Ancient Department of Ankara was established, and systematic re-
search started, originally directed by Dr. N. Firathli and now continued by
N. Asgari. A debate on the tecłmiąues of the excavation and distribution of mar-
ble from other ancient ąuarries began among scientists from various countries.
The authors of the numerous studies of this subject include W. Deichmann [1969,
291-307], J.B. Ward-Perkins [1972, 138-158], W.F. Betsch [1977, 287-289],
D. Mona, P. Pensabene [1977, 147-173], J.P. Sodini [1977, 423-450] and C. Bar-
santi [1989, 91-221].
1 The work was carried out under the research programs of the Archeological Expedi-
tion of the Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza “Novae, Moesia Inferior” and “Chersone-
sus Taurica, Crimea, Ukrainę,” financed hy the Govemment’s Research Committee (KBN)
and the Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza, Poznań.