Original scientific paper

THE SARCOPHAGUS DEPICTING ACHILLES FROM TROGIR

Vanja Kovačić ; Regionalni zavod za zaštitu spomenika kulture, Split

Abstract

The research works conducted on the occasion of the renewal of the Benedictine church of St. Nicholas at Trogir, brought to light a portion of a Classical rampart and the remnants of the early medieval chapel of St. Doimus recorded already in the charter concerning the foundation of the monastery in 1064.
Among the spolia built into the rampart, particularly interesting are the fragments of a marble sarcophagus later used for the building of a conduit carrying off water and waste matter from the town towards the sea. From the fragments, it is still possible to reconstruct the scene of the ransom of Hector’s body customarily appearing along the longer sides of the sarcophagi depicting the episodes from the life of the achean hero Achilles. One of the fragments contains Achilles seated beneath an arcade, while the other one bears the central part of the composition with chariots.
Sarchopagi displaying the episodes from Achilles’ life were carved in the Attic workshops at the close of the 2nd and in the former half of the 3rd centuries and their products spread over the whole of Mediterranean. In the tectonics of the sarcophagus from Trogir particularly interesting is the corner colonnette which represents the starting point of the arcade on the longitudinal and lateral sides of the sarcophagus and under which is depicted the figure. The motif of the »figure beneath the arcade« appears also on the fragments with the same scene found at other sites in the eastern Adriatic. However, the sarcophagus, from Trogir find its closest kin in the scene of ransom of Hektor’s body carved on the sarchopagus no 3951 from Tyre with Achilles beneath an arcade.
Doubtless, the newly found relief with Achilles from Trogir belongs to the group of later sarcophagi where the scene with Priam and Achilles is always located on the back side. Also this would explain the absence of decorative elements on the terminal moulding and on the arches. The figure of the hero is outstanding for its exquisitely shaped body, skilfully solved the problems of volume achieved by means of a twisted posture of the figure and simple and calm rhythms of the drapery. Therefore, we may link it with the activity of one of the Atic workshops which, around 250, worked in the tradition of the classic Greek sculpture.
It is worth mentioning that this is the second time a sarcophagus with the scenes from Achilles life has been excavated at Trogir. The relief containing Achilles at Skyros from the end of the 2nd century and the newly found relief depicting Achilles from the mid-3rd century show that Trogir, founded as a Greek emporium, retained under the Empire strong commercial as well as artistic connections with the center of the classical culture.

Keywords

Hrčak ID:

152310

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/152310

Publication date:

22.12.1988.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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