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The Sarcophagus of Sidamara : a Case Study in Object Agency and Cultural Expression within the Global Mediterranean

Rooney, Emily Grace
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Abstract
Sarcophagi function not only as a resting place for the deceased, but also as a material trace of funerary rites, conceptions of death and the afterlife. This thesis will focus on the iconographical function and cultural hybridity found in the Sidamara Sarcophagus from the third century CE in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). This elaborate object combines Roman and Asiatic motifs and themes, suggesting an active fusion of cultural expression surrounding visual representation and artistic agency. This thesis focuses on the socio-cultural implications utilized through the global visual language of the Mediterranean as seen in the iconographic and decorative motifs of the Sidamara Sarcophagus. After careful consideration of the extant critical literature on the Sidamara Sarcophagus, this thesis suggests that iconographical analyses and its implications have not been consistent thus far, and thus turns to investigate the object by combining an iconographical approach with that of the modes of cultural expressions, viewership, and object agency of the second and third centuries CE. A comparative analysis of other sarcophagi from Asia Minor and Greco-Roman sites situates the Sidamara Sarcophagus’ iconography as being the result of a proactive fusion of cultures. This thesis extends beyond original iconographical analyses to query the function of viewership, space, and collective memory as it pertains to this funerary object arguing that, here, the Asiatic tradition of high relief ornamental sculpture impacts its standardized Roman iconography, demonstrating a visual language characteristic of the global Mediterranean.
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Thesis (B.A. in Art History, Minor in Art and Design)--John Cabot University, Fall 2022.
Date
2022
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Keywords
Sarcophagi, Sepulchral monuments, Roman Sculpture
Citation
Rooney, Emily Grace. "The Sarcophagus of Sidamara: A Case Study in Object Agency and Cultural Expression Within the Global Mediterranean". BA Thesis, John Cabot University, Rome, Italy. 2022.
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