Evidence ID
E01219Saint Name
Mary, Mother of Christ : S00033Saint Name in Source
ΜαρίαType of Evidence
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)Evidence not before
400Evidence not after
600Activity not before
400Activity not after
600Place of Evidence - Region
Aegean islands and Cyprus
Aegean islands and CyprusPlace of Evidence - City, village, etc
Lesbos
EresosPlace of evidence - City name in other Language(s)
Lesbos
Salamis
Σαλαμίς
Salamis
Salamis
Farmagusta
Far
Κωνσταντία
Konstantia
Constantia
Eresos
Salamis
Σαλαμίς
Salamis
Salamis
Farmagusta
Far
Κωνσταντία
Konstantia
ConstantiaCult activities - Places
Cult building - independent (church)Cult activities - Non Liturgical Practices and Customs
Awarding privileges to cult centresSource
A white marble block, found near Eresos (Lesbos) in the summer of 1858 by Alexander Conze in a ruined church named Panagia Στὰ χλιαρά ('the All-holy one by the hot springs'). There is no detailed description of the stone.Discussion
The inscription marked the boundaries of the asylum site or an estate belonging to a church dedicated to the 'holy Mary'. The fact that Mary is here identified by her name and the epithet ἁγία (holy), is remarkable, as she is usually venerated as the God-Bearer/Θεοτόκος in Greek inscriptions from the Aegean Islands and Anatolia.
For a boundary stone with a similar formula, see: E00910.
Though this inscription does not say so explicitly, boundary stones were usually bestowed upon sanctuaries by emperors.
Dating: Probably late antique (based on the context of other dated boundary stones), but any reliable attempt to date the inscription would require an examination of the script; and there is no drawing or photograph of the stone.Bibliography
Edition:
Conze, A., Reise auf der Insel Lesbos (Hannover: C. Rümpler, 1865), 34, note 1.
Further reading:
Kiourtzian, G., "Pietas insulariorum", [in:] Eupsychia: mélanges offerts à Hélène Ahrweiler, vol. 2 (Série Byzantina Sorbonensia 16, Paris: Publications de la Sorbonne, 1998), 376.
Robert, L., Hellenica, Recueil d'épigraphie, de numismatique et d'antiquités grecques, vol. 10: Dédicaces et reliefs votifs, villes, cultes, monnaies et inscriptions de Lycie et de Carie. Inscriptions et topographie. Inscriptions de Phocée et des Dardanelles, Péripolarques, monnaie de Thibron (Paris: Librairie d'Amérique et d'Orient, Ed. Maisonneuve, 1955), 230, note 1.
Reference works:
Bulletin épigraphique (1956), 200.
