Evidence ID
E01391Saint Name
Mary, Mother of Christ : S00033Saint Name in Source
ΘεοτόκοςType of Evidence
Inscriptions - Inscribed objects
Images and objects - Other portable objects (metalwork, ivory, etc.)Evidence not before
600Evidence not after
700Activity not before
600Activity not after
700Place of Evidence - Region
Aegean islands and Cyprus
Aegean islands and CyprusPlace of Evidence - City, village, etc
Crete
KnossosPlace of evidence - City name in other Language(s)
Crete
Salamis
Σαλαμίς
Salamis
Salamis
Farmagusta
Far
Κωνσταντία
Konstantia
Constantia
Knossos
Salamis
Σαλαμίς
Salamis
Salamis
Farmagusta
Far
Κωνσταντία
Konstantia
ConstantiaCult activities - Non Liturgical Practices and Customs
Prayer/supplication/invocationSource
The inscription is on a 'bronze buckle', found in a tomb at the south end of the narthex of the cemetery church in Knossos, under the remains of a skeleton. There is no published description or image of the object. The cemetery is sited on the road to Heraklion. It was excavated in 1978 by Arthur Megaw, under the auspices of the Greek Archaeological Service and the British School at Athens, before the construction of a hospital. The excavations revealed the existence of c. 300 tombs and the Christian basilica. The basilica had three aisles, a trefoil sanctuary, a narthex, and a small atrium with a brick-build cistern. Megaw dated the church to the 5th c., based on a coin found at the bottom of the foundation trench, datable to c. 400. According to him, it was a well-built sanctuary of considerable importance.Discussion
The inscription is a common invocation of Mary as the God-Bearer. Megaw notes that only its first part was deciphered (the one which we offer above). We can suppose that the other part contained the name of the person, for whom the help was requested.
The buckle was stylistically dated by Megaw as belonging to a 'late type'. At the site of the cemetery a coin (follis) of Hercalius was found, proving that burials were conducted there even in the mid-7th c.Bibliography
Edition:
Megaw, A.H.S., “A cemetery church with trefoil sanctuary in Crete”, in: Actes du Xe Congrès international d'archéologie chrétienne, Thessalonique, 28 septembre-4 octobre 1980, vol. 2 (Studi di antichità cristiana 37, Hellenika, Parartema 26, Città del Vaticano: Pontificio Istituto di archeologia cristiana, 1984), 326.
