Wiseman James 1986 Archaeology and History at Stobi Macedonia In Charles B McClendon ed Rome and the Provinces (New Haven Society of the Archaeological Institute of America) 37-50

Archaeology and History at Stobi Macedonia

JAMES R WISEMAN

Professor of Archaeology Boston University

Introduction

The ancient city of Stobi lies at the confluence of the Vardar and Crna rivers the ancient Axius and Erigon in Yugoshyslavian Macedonia ca 150 km north of Thessalonica (fig 38) The identification of the site based both on topographishycal and epigraphical evidence has been certain since the 19th century whenJG von Hahn and Leon Heuzey independshyently discovered the ancient town I Subsequent activities until 1969 by antiquarians construction workers for the Orient Express railway military forces archaeologists and conservators resulted in the uncovering of a number of structures at Stobi and in its environs chiefly dating to the Late Antique period (4th-6th centuries after Christ) and in the recovery of a number of inscriptions works of art and other artifacts many of which eventually found their way to the National Museum of Beograd and the Archaeological Museum in Skopje In 1970 ajoint American-Yugoslav project was initiated that conducted excavations and research at Stobi each summer through 1981 Table 1 provides a summary of the investigations at Stobi in modern times 2

Archaeological and historical research by the project of 1970-19813 was aimed at expanding our understanding of the evolution of urban life at Stobi through a study of the changing cultural and physical environments A number of more specific aims were developed both at the inception and throughout the course of the project in order to guide the investigations along several approaches and to set intershymediate attainable goals those aims have been outlined elsewhere and the reader is referred to that presentation4

The present essay provideS a brief summary of the life and death of the ancient city of Stobi based chiefly on the results of the bi-national project 5 The study offers several examples of how archaeological research can detect and occasionally answer problems of historical and social significance that have been neglected or omitted altogether in the preserved historical records

The Hellenistic Town

The historian Livy in a discussion of events in Macedonia in 183 BC referred to Stobi of Paeonia as a vetere urbe 6 and even comments on a military engagement of Philip V near Stobi in 197 BC 7 One might have expected on the testimony ofLivy that remains at leastofearly Hellenistic or even Classical times would be abundant at Stobi Indeed prior to the beginning of the project in 1970 we suspected that the obvious strategic value of this location in the angle of the two largest rivers of Macedonia might have attracted prehistoric inhabitants The archaeological evidence to date however does not support an early date for the occupation of Stobi

No undisturbed primary deposit of prehistoric date has yet been found at Stobi although several prehistoric artifacts both of stone and of terra cotta have been found in clearly later contexts Late Bronze Age pottery was found below the theater with carbonized wood and seed that yielded a (corshyrected) radiocarbon date of 1100 plusmn 142 BC butthedeposit had been disturbed at the time of the construction of the theater and may even have been a secondary deposition eg fill brought in from elsewhere 8 Ivan MikulCic cites several artifacts from Stobi that can be dated near the end of the 7th century and the early 6th century BC but all his examples are either from secondary deposits or uncertain contexts To the latter category would belong the bronze vessel fragment found below the Civil Basilica (fig 39 no 4) and dated by Djordje Mano-Zissi to the 5th century BC Contextual evidence for such early dates is altogether lacking 9 Six joining fragments of a red-figured skyphos of the early 4th century BC were found in 1978 below the baptistery (fig 39 no 2 1) with other sherds ranging in dates as late as the 1 st century ADlo The skyphos was probably from a grave disturbed by construction work during early imperial times and may well have been an heirloom no other grave yet found at Stobi in any case can be dated so early

W I S E MAN Stobi MaCfdonia

It is only when we reach the 2nd century BC that we have fully reliable evidence for the occupation of the site Habitation remains of that date and of the 1 st century BC have been found near the northern end of the ridgetop I below the Civil Basilica 12 and below the Central Basilica (fig 39 no 6)13 The last area was ofspecial interest because of the discovery there of a hoard containing 504 silver denarii an anonymous victoriatus and an Athenian tetradachm 14 The coins range in date from 21 1 BC to 125 BC (fig 40) The latest coin therefore was issued not long before an engagement in 119 BC between Roman troops and raiding Scordisci in the vicinity of nearby Macedonian Argos and the hoard may be associated with that event 15 The structural remains of a potters establishment which continued in use into the 1st century BC were found some 10 m SW of the small pit in which the hoard had been secreted but still beneath the Central Basilica

The pitofthe coin hoard the wall foundations of the potters building the earliest structural remains and hearths below the Civil Basilica and the late Hellenistic deposits on the ridgetop all were set into or lay on the prehistoric bed of the Crna river The ridge on which the historical town was eventually built had in fact been sculpted by the Crna as it gradually slipped south-eastward to its present bed 16

Excavations closer to the present banks of the two rivers could not be carried to the earliest occupation levels because the water table is now higher than it was in antiquity but it is a reasonable assumption that the Hellenistic community extended from the top of the ridge at least to the banks of the two rivers (fig 39)

No remains of Hellenistic houses or other structures have been found south of the Central Basilica anywhere along the ridge The cemetery of the Late Hellenistic community began at least below the courtyard of the House of Peristeria (fig 39 no 11) and extended to the south and southeast for a minimum of 300 m The townsite then seems to have been situated precisely in the NW angle of the confluence of the two rivers and although houses may have continued some distance upstream along the left bank of the Crna on the middle and upper slope of the ridge the town limits lay somewhere between the later Central Basilica and House of Peristeria The industrial works of the potter then lay appropriately on the outskirts of town and the nekropolis stretched out to the southwest along the route that led to the Pelagonian plain and Heraclea Lyncestis (fig 38)

Inhumation and cremation burials have been excavated below the courtyard of the House ofPeristeria17 two inhumations below the House of the Fuller (fig 39 no 16)18 a disturbed inhumation below the orchestra of the theater and both inhumation and cremation burials in the West

Cemetery outside the later Porta Heraclea (fig 39 no 30) 19 The forms of the graves were equally varied eg arched or flat tile constructions over inhumations or cremations sim pIe grave pits and pits with covers of stone slabs sometimes with a stone peribolos marking the grave site At many of the graves especially those in the West Cemetery there was evidence of a fire in the grave pit probably in conjunction with a funeral ritual (not for the cremations) 2o

The earliest of the Hellenistic burials may go back to the 3rd century BC but most date to the 2nd and into the 1 st century BC as indicated both by the artifacts found in the graves (including pottery terracotta figurines and coins) and by a number of radiocarbon dates 21 Pottery of the late 4th or 3rd century BC is known from within the townsite chiefly from one trench below the NE end of the Central Basilica but it cannot yet be associated with a contemporary structure22

The archaeological evidence then points to the foundation of a small town on the left bank of the Crna at its confluence with the Vardar sometime in the 3rd century BC A founding date in the 4th century BC or earlier is possible but if so we must suppose an even smaller original community or one whose center lay above the (unexcavated) left bank of the Vardar The population seems to have increased during the 2nd century BC and the rather modest material culture points to trade with regions both to the north and south and with Asia Minor but with an increasing amount of imported flOe pottery from Italy especially in the late 2nd and 1st centuries BC23 There are no inscriptions of the earlier period to identify linguistic groups but both the mixture of native and imported elements in the material culture and the variety of burial customs indicate a mixed population including we may suppose Paeonians and other IIlyric natives of the region Greeks and Macedonians who followed in the wake of the incursions of Philip II and Philip V and Roman veterans especially following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BC (Stobi in 167 BC became the salt emporium for the third

meris of Macedonia24 ) and the creation of the province of Macedonia in 146 BC25

The Roman City

The late 1st century BC marks the beginning of a major expansion of the areal extent of Stobi and of the size of its population The area below the Central Basilica and Civil Basilica continued to be utilized by residential (or residential commercial) structures some with stone-paved floors or courtyards26 A midden of Augustan date covered the portion of the Hellenistic cemetery below the courtyard of

Archaeology and History at Stobi Macedonia

JAMES R WISEMAN

Professor of Archaeology Boston University

Introduction

The ancient city of Stobi lies at the confluence of the Vardar and Crna rivers the ancient Axius and Erigon in Yugoshyslavian Macedonia ca 150 km north of Thessalonica (fig 38) The identification of the site based both on topographishycal and epigraphical evidence has been certain since the 19th century whenJG von Hahn and Leon Heuzey independshyently discovered the ancient town I Subsequent activities until 1969 by antiquarians construction workers for the Orient Express railway military forces archaeologists and conservators resulted in the uncovering of a number of structures at Stobi and in its environs chiefly dating to the Late Antique period (4th-6th centuries after Christ) and in the recovery of a number of inscriptions works of art and other artifacts many of which eventually found their way to the National Museum of Beograd and the Archaeological Museum in Skopje In 1970 ajoint American-Yugoslav project was initiated that conducted excavations and research at Stobi each summer through 1981 Table 1 provides a summary of the investigations at Stobi in modern times 2

Archaeological and historical research by the project of 1970-19813 was aimed at expanding our understanding of the evolution of urban life at Stobi through a study of the changing cultural and physical environments A number of more specific aims were developed both at the inception and throughout the course of the project in order to guide the investigations along several approaches and to set intershymediate attainable goals those aims have been outlined elsewhere and the reader is referred to that presentation4

The present essay provideS a brief summary of the life and death of the ancient city of Stobi based chiefly on the results of the bi-national project 5 The study offers several examples of how archaeological research can detect and occasionally answer problems of historical and social significance that have been neglected or omitted altogether in the preserved historical records

The Hellenistic Town

The historian Livy in a discussion of events in Macedonia in 183 BC referred to Stobi of Paeonia as a vetere urbe 6 and even comments on a military engagement of Philip V near Stobi in 197 BC 7 One might have expected on the testimony ofLivy that remains at leastofearly Hellenistic or even Classical times would be abundant at Stobi Indeed prior to the beginning of the project in 1970 we suspected that the obvious strategic value of this location in the angle of the two largest rivers of Macedonia might have attracted prehistoric inhabitants The archaeological evidence to date however does not support an early date for the occupation of Stobi

No undisturbed primary deposit of prehistoric date has yet been found at Stobi although several prehistoric artifacts both of stone and of terra cotta have been found in clearly later contexts Late Bronze Age pottery was found below the theater with carbonized wood and seed that yielded a (corshyrected) radiocarbon date of 1100 plusmn 142 BC butthedeposit had been disturbed at the time of the construction of the theater and may even have been a secondary deposition eg fill brought in from elsewhere 8 Ivan MikulCic cites several artifacts from Stobi that can be dated near the end of the 7th century and the early 6th century BC but all his examples are either from secondary deposits or uncertain contexts To the latter category would belong the bronze vessel fragment found below the Civil Basilica (fig 39 no 4) and dated by Djordje Mano-Zissi to the 5th century BC Contextual evidence for such early dates is altogether lacking 9 Six joining fragments of a red-figured skyphos of the early 4th century BC were found in 1978 below the baptistery (fig 39 no 2 1) with other sherds ranging in dates as late as the 1 st century ADlo The skyphos was probably from a grave disturbed by construction work during early imperial times and may well have been an heirloom no other grave yet found at Stobi in any case can be dated so early

W I S E MAN Stobi MaCfdonia

It is only when we reach the 2nd century BC that we have fully reliable evidence for the occupation of the site Habitation remains of that date and of the 1 st century BC have been found near the northern end of the ridgetop I below the Civil Basilica 12 and below the Central Basilica (fig 39 no 6)13 The last area was ofspecial interest because of the discovery there of a hoard containing 504 silver denarii an anonymous victoriatus and an Athenian tetradachm 14 The coins range in date from 21 1 BC to 125 BC (fig 40) The latest coin therefore was issued not long before an engagement in 119 BC between Roman troops and raiding Scordisci in the vicinity of nearby Macedonian Argos and the hoard may be associated with that event 15 The structural remains of a potters establishment which continued in use into the 1st century BC were found some 10 m SW of the small pit in which the hoard had been secreted but still beneath the Central Basilica

The pitofthe coin hoard the wall foundations of the potters building the earliest structural remains and hearths below the Civil Basilica and the late Hellenistic deposits on the ridgetop all were set into or lay on the prehistoric bed of the Crna river The ridge on which the historical town was eventually built had in fact been sculpted by the Crna as it gradually slipped south-eastward to its present bed 16

Excavations closer to the present banks of the two rivers could not be carried to the earliest occupation levels because the water table is now higher than it was in antiquity but it is a reasonable assumption that the Hellenistic community extended from the top of the ridge at least to the banks of the two rivers (fig 39)

No remains of Hellenistic houses or other structures have been found south of the Central Basilica anywhere along the ridge The cemetery of the Late Hellenistic community began at least below the courtyard of the House of Peristeria (fig 39 no 11) and extended to the south and southeast for a minimum of 300 m The townsite then seems to have been situated precisely in the NW angle of the confluence of the two rivers and although houses may have continued some distance upstream along the left bank of the Crna on the middle and upper slope of the ridge the town limits lay somewhere between the later Central Basilica and House of Peristeria The industrial works of the potter then lay appropriately on the outskirts of town and the nekropolis stretched out to the southwest along the route that led to the Pelagonian plain and Heraclea Lyncestis (fig 38)

Inhumation and cremation burials have been excavated below the courtyard of the House ofPeristeria17 two inhumations below the House of the Fuller (fig 39 no 16)18 a disturbed inhumation below the orchestra of the theater and both inhumation and cremation burials in the West

Cemetery outside the later Porta Heraclea (fig 39 no 30) 19 The forms of the graves were equally varied eg arched or flat tile constructions over inhumations or cremations sim pIe grave pits and pits with covers of stone slabs sometimes with a stone peribolos marking the grave site At many of the graves especially those in the West Cemetery there was evidence of a fire in the grave pit probably in conjunction with a funeral ritual (not for the cremations) 2o

The earliest of the Hellenistic burials may go back to the 3rd century BC but most date to the 2nd and into the 1 st century BC as indicated both by the artifacts found in the graves (including pottery terracotta figurines and coins) and by a number of radiocarbon dates 21 Pottery of the late 4th or 3rd century BC is known from within the townsite chiefly from one trench below the NE end of the Central Basilica but it cannot yet be associated with a contemporary structure22

The archaeological evidence then points to the foundation of a small town on the left bank of the Crna at its confluence with the Vardar sometime in the 3rd century BC A founding date in the 4th century BC or earlier is possible but if so we must suppose an even smaller original community or one whose center lay above the (unexcavated) left bank of the Vardar The population seems to have increased during the 2nd century BC and the rather modest material culture points to trade with regions both to the north and south and with Asia Minor but with an increasing amount of imported flOe pottery from Italy especially in the late 2nd and 1st centuries BC23 There are no inscriptions of the earlier period to identify linguistic groups but both the mixture of native and imported elements in the material culture and the variety of burial customs indicate a mixed population including we may suppose Paeonians and other IIlyric natives of the region Greeks and Macedonians who followed in the wake of the incursions of Philip II and Philip V and Roman veterans especially following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BC (Stobi in 167 BC became the salt emporium for the third

meris of Macedonia24 ) and the creation of the province of Macedonia in 146 BC25

The Roman City

The late 1st century BC marks the beginning of a major expansion of the areal extent of Stobi and of the size of its population The area below the Central Basilica and Civil Basilica continued to be utilized by residential (or residential commercial) structures some with stone-paved floors or courtyards26 A midden of Augustan date covered the portion of the Hellenistic cemetery below the courtyard of

W I S E MAN Stobi MaCfdonia

It is only when we reach the 2nd century BC that we have fully reliable evidence for the occupation of the site Habitation remains of that date and of the 1 st century BC have been found near the northern end of the ridgetop I below the Civil Basilica 12 and below the Central Basilica (fig 39 no 6)13 The last area was ofspecial interest because of the discovery there of a hoard containing 504 silver denarii an anonymous victoriatus and an Athenian tetradachm 14 The coins range in date from 21 1 BC to 125 BC (fig 40) The latest coin therefore was issued not long before an engagement in 119 BC between Roman troops and raiding Scordisci in the vicinity of nearby Macedonian Argos and the hoard may be associated with that event 15 The structural remains of a potters establishment which continued in use into the 1st century BC were found some 10 m SW of the small pit in which the hoard had been secreted but still beneath the Central Basilica

The pitofthe coin hoard the wall foundations of the potters building the earliest structural remains and hearths below the Civil Basilica and the late Hellenistic deposits on the ridgetop all were set into or lay on the prehistoric bed of the Crna river The ridge on which the historical town was eventually built had in fact been sculpted by the Crna as it gradually slipped south-eastward to its present bed 16

Excavations closer to the present banks of the two rivers could not be carried to the earliest occupation levels because the water table is now higher than it was in antiquity but it is a reasonable assumption that the Hellenistic community extended from the top of the ridge at least to the banks of the two rivers (fig 39)

No remains of Hellenistic houses or other structures have been found south of the Central Basilica anywhere along the ridge The cemetery of the Late Hellenistic community began at least below the courtyard of the House of Peristeria (fig 39 no 11) and extended to the south and southeast for a minimum of 300 m The townsite then seems to have been situated precisely in the NW angle of the confluence of the two rivers and although houses may have continued some distance upstream along the left bank of the Crna on the middle and upper slope of the ridge the town limits lay somewhere between the later Central Basilica and House of Peristeria The industrial works of the potter then lay appropriately on the outskirts of town and the nekropolis stretched out to the southwest along the route that led to the Pelagonian plain and Heraclea Lyncestis (fig 38)

Inhumation and cremation burials have been excavated below the courtyard of the House ofPeristeria17 two inhumations below the House of the Fuller (fig 39 no 16)18 a disturbed inhumation below the orchestra of the theater and both inhumation and cremation burials in the West

Cemetery outside the later Porta Heraclea (fig 39 no 30) 19 The forms of the graves were equally varied eg arched or flat tile constructions over inhumations or cremations sim pIe grave pits and pits with covers of stone slabs sometimes with a stone peribolos marking the grave site At many of the graves especially those in the West Cemetery there was evidence of a fire in the grave pit probably in conjunction with a funeral ritual (not for the cremations) 2o

The earliest of the Hellenistic burials may go back to the 3rd century BC but most date to the 2nd and into the 1 st century BC as indicated both by the artifacts found in the graves (including pottery terracotta figurines and coins) and by a number of radiocarbon dates 21 Pottery of the late 4th or 3rd century BC is known from within the townsite chiefly from one trench below the NE end of the Central Basilica but it cannot yet be associated with a contemporary structure22

The archaeological evidence then points to the foundation of a small town on the left bank of the Crna at its confluence with the Vardar sometime in the 3rd century BC A founding date in the 4th century BC or earlier is possible but if so we must suppose an even smaller original community or one whose center lay above the (unexcavated) left bank of the Vardar The population seems to have increased during the 2nd century BC and the rather modest material culture points to trade with regions both to the north and south and with Asia Minor but with an increasing amount of imported flOe pottery from Italy especially in the late 2nd and 1st centuries BC23 There are no inscriptions of the earlier period to identify linguistic groups but both the mixture of native and imported elements in the material culture and the variety of burial customs indicate a mixed population including we may suppose Paeonians and other IIlyric natives of the region Greeks and Macedonians who followed in the wake of the incursions of Philip II and Philip V and Roman veterans especially following the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BC (Stobi in 167 BC became the salt emporium for the third

meris of Macedonia24 ) and the creation of the province of Macedonia in 146 BC25

The Roman City

The late 1st century BC marks the beginning of a major expansion of the areal extent of Stobi and of the size of its population The area below the Central Basilica and Civil Basilica continued to be utilized by residential (or residential commercial) structures some with stone-paved floors or courtyards26 A midden of Augustan date covered the portion of the Hellenistic cemetery below the courtyard of

39

the House of Peristeria and was in turn immediately built over by modest houses 27 To the SE of the Large Bath (fig 39 no 9) part of a more elaborate structure with a courtyard flanked on at least two sides by a stuccoed colonnade was succeeded in the early 1st century AD by a residence with a mural in fresco secco 28 Walls of other structures of similarly early Roman date have been found below the House of the Fuller including one wall coated with clay and lime plaster and decorated with a painted design of flowers and abstract quadrupeds (probably horses) above a dado imitating marble encrustation29

No structu res ofearly Roman date have been found between the House of the Fuller and the Porta Heraclea and none has been found in any of the several trenches dug to bedrock below the Episcopal Basilica com plex (fig 39 nos 1820-2 I) and its environs or below the theater although pottery of the 1st century AD has been found in several of the lower deposits Indeed the earliest structure so far discovered in the SW region of the city is the theater itself the construction of which began in the 1st half of the 2nd century AD30

The city wall itself may belong in its earliest form to the time of Augustus or not long thereafter Pottery of the 1 st century AD was found associated with the earliest use level of a stretch of the wall along the Crna river which must in any case antedate the later 3rd century31 It is also significant that no graves ofearly imperial times have been found within the area delimited by the city wall but the number of burials in the West Cemetery including the area immediately outside the Porta Heraclea shows a marked increase in the late 1 st century BC and the early 1st century AD32

The SW region of the city then may have been kept clear of structures during the early centuries of the empire for protected agriculture or husbandry within the urban confines or to provide a marshalling ground for defenders of the most vulnerable part of the fortifications The Vardar and Crna it should be noted would have come close to the wall on the north and east and the ridge is steep on the west access to the city was easiest on the south (fig 39)

The two most substantial structures so far discovered (other than the theater) that can be dated to early imperial times are the Casa Romana near the eastern city wall (fig 39 no 28 fig 41) and a multi-storied structure ca 75 m to the east (fig 39 no 27 fig 41) neither has been fully excavated

In the Casa Romana one large room (fig 41) was excavated to a depth of ca 2 m where a use-surface of the late 3rd and 4th centuries AD was identified at the level of the bottom of the upper tier of wall decoration The original floor (or foundation for the floor) some 2 mlower was reached only

in a test trench in the SW portion of the room inasmuch as the water table is now well above the ancient floor level The walls of this room were decorated with molded stucco in two chronological phases The earlier wall decoration consisted of molded rectangular stucco panels This layer in the upper part of the room was later covered by much larger rectangular panels separated by molded stucco imitating Ionic pilasters (fig 42) A corridor to the north was even more elaborately decorated with brightly painted frescoes in imitation of marble encrustation and Ionic pilasters part ofa scene with a human figure found in the debris may have come from an extension of the corridor Other rooms and corridors lie on the other three sides of the large room and a broad stone-flagged street separated the Casa Romana from the eastern city wall (fig 43)33

The Casa Romana despite its name is by no means definitively identified as an urban villa The sumptuous decoration and the size of the principal room suggest some public or semi-public function but extensive excavation not feasible at this time is needed to provide support for any hypothesis The date of the building has not been determined because the high water table has prevented the investigation of construction deposits The decoration of the walls however suggests a date in the 1st century AD

The multi-storied structure referred to above (fig 39 no 27 fig 41) clearly served a public function probably as a bath34

Two major phases have been identified To the earlier phase which probably dates to the 1st or 2nd century AD belongs a large room at the western end of the explored area of the complex The room had a floor pavement of varicolored marble opus sectile The walls were decorated with marble and painted plaster and there were niches containing sculpture A large arched opening (nearly 3 m wide and 45 m high) flanked by arched niches for sculpture provided access to another marble-encrusted room on the east the floor of which was probably also originally paved with opus sectile and which lay ca 037 m below the western room A stairway ascended to the sou th from an arched opening in the eastern room

In the 3rd century AD the two arched openings of the eastern room were blocked the stairway filled in and sealed and the entire room filled to a depth of ca 35 m at which level a large mosaic was laid extending over 30 m to the east with a N -S dimension ofca 19 m The mosaic constructed of relatively large stone tesserae displays chiefly geometric and floral patterns in large panels except for a single register showing a dolphin leaping into a basin (fig 44) The great size of the paved area and the scarcity of brick-and-concrete debris suggests that the mosaic was the pavement of a courtyard rather than of a room with an arcuated ceiling

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

The western room during this phase seems to have lain outside the structure and to have served as a refuse area In the upper debris three bases for bronze statues were found that may have adorned the earlier more sumptuous structure All three statues were ofC Aelius Priscus a primipilarius and evidently a member of a distinguished family of Stobi in the 2nd to early 3rd centuries AD The family even included a priestess of Artemis Lochia and the Divine Emperors 35 Other rooms extended at least to the north but have not yet been explored

Midway up the slope above the building just described more substantial buildings replaced the modest structures already mentioned below the Civil Basilica and the Central Basilica The most significant of these was the Synagogue of Polyshycharmus erected at least by the 2nd century AD and possibly even in existence before the end of the 1st century In the main hall of the synagogue which lies ca 18 m below the nave of the Central Basilica Polycharmus had the south wall decorated with painted plaster displaying the repeated legend in Greek IloAvxuPI-l0C 16 JtUtllP 1poundVXYJv Polyshycharmus the father as a votive offering The presence of a courtyard is suggested by the discovery of a marble column bearing a lengthy Greek inscription that details the munificence of Tiberius Claudius Polycharmus also called Achyrius father of the synagogue at Stobi 36

The most monumental construction of the city in imperial times was the theater built near the SW edge of the city and begun in the early 2nd century AD (fig 39 no 24 fig 45)middot37 The original construction of the scene building never progressed above the ground floor and a new design with a depth almost dou ble that of the original was imposed about the ~iddle of the century when the cavea was also built The facade of the scene building in two stories with six colonnaded porches and niches for statuary was of a fineshygrained white marble and a reddish brecciated limestone both available in the region A marble statue of a Roman emperor perhaps Lucius Verus (161-180 AD) which was found in the orchestra must once have stood in one of the niches and probably identifies the imperial sponsor of the building3s

The cavea was in two tiers and had a seating capacity of ca 7600 The marble seats were for the most part removed and reused in Late Antique structures the only seats found in place are in the first three kerkides (wedges) and part of the fourth numbering from the SW parodos of the lower tier (fig 46) An interesting feature of the seats is that almost all ofthose found in place and many of the others found reused in other buildings bear inscriptions in Greek The inscripshytions provide the names of many of the citizens ofStobi of the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD (and possibly of the 4th century)

and it is clear from the seats still in situ that they mark seating areas according to membership in the phylai that is the voting tribes ofStobi The tribes are arranged three to a kerkis

in the lower tier the tribal divisions presumably extended into the upper tier We may postulate a total of 21 city tribes the names ofsix ofwhich are preserved (in Greek) among the inscriptions C[laudiJa Martia Valeria (Merc)uria Vibia and Terentia39 The proedria of the cavea on a podium raised high above the level of the unpaved orchestra originally looked out over a low railing which was soon replaced by a post-and-net barrier that must have been intended to provide the spectators with some protection from the more violent forms of entertainment in the orchestra4o

On the basis of the architectural and epigraphical evidence and supported by archaeological parallels and historical references we may envision three classes of activities in the theater 1) purely theatrical performances whether plays mimes or musical compositions 2) combat and possibly executions both conceivably including the occasional use of wild animals and 3) gatherings of the citizens ofStobi for official functions 41 We may be certain that only on the latter occasions when a vote might be taken members of the audience were expected to seat themselves according to the demarcations of the tribal units and individual seat assignshyments The same may have been the case on all other occasions except that women would presumably have also found seats within spaces allotted to their family

The expansion of the town that has been characterized here albeit briefly by the archaeological remains seems to have begun early in the reign of Augustus The expansion indeed may have coincided with the granting of the ius

Italicum to the citizens ofStobi during that emperors reign for we know from ancient literature that at that time Stobi was an oppidum civium Romanorum (town of Roman citizens)42 It is likely that at the same time the town was raised to the rank ofmunicipium it certainly was a municipium

by 69 BC from which date coins were minted at Stobi bearing the legend MUN(icipium) STOB(ensium)43

It is unclear how early the irregular grid pattern of the later Roman town (fig 39) was imposed on the community The earliest ofeleven street surfaces exposed in the Via Sacra that leads to the Porta Heraclea was in use by the 2nd or early 3rd century AD44 It might also be noted that the Casa Romana and the large building to its SW (the probable bath described above) have an identical orientation but one that is at variance with the other buildings of the city south of the synagogue (fig 39) The main forum of imperial times has not yet been located I suspect it lay in the lower city perhaps somewhere in the area of fig 39 no 27

4

The expansion and general prosperity of Stobi continued through the 2nd century as the architectural developments material culture and epigraphic evidence suggest Within the course of the 3rd century however there were a number of changes and at least one earthquake The latter is represhysented most clearly in the cavea of the theater where the orthostates of the podium were moved centimeters out of line and other enormous blocks were displaced 45 The scene building was also severely damaged

The earthquake may have been responsible for some of the other destructions of the 3rd century that have been noted in various parts of the city Synagogue I was destroyed in the late 3rd century 46 and Building C below the Civil Basilica may also have been destroyed then 47 The Casa Romana was extensively damaged and flooded at the same time What is more the street between it and the city wall was covered by more than a meter of deposits that were at least partly riverine and the deposit was topped by a layer ofdestruction debris (fig 43)48 Similar deposits covered the mosaic courtyard (or hall) of the large public building SW of the Casa Romana 49 This area of the city along the Crna never fully recovered from the devastation of the late 3rd century

The destructions however are not necessarily precisely contemporary The archaeological record is not yet so detailed that we can discern in it whether the earthquake that damaged the theater occu rred at the same time as the flood that ravaged the structures near the Crna or several years earlier or later Other destructions too may have been local and only nearly contemporary Indeed some have speculated that part of the late 3rd century destruction might have come at the hands of the Goths50 who made frequent incursions to the south in the second half of the 3rd century

In any case a number of new structures succeeded older buildings at the end of the 3rd and early in the 4th century Synagogue II with mosaic floor pavements (fig 47) and frescoed inner walls rose above the Synagogue of Polycharmus lt was directly connected with a predecessor of the House of Psalms the residence of the clergy associated with the later Central Basilica51 To the north below the Civil Basilica the apsidal Building B was constructed52 The Large Bath (fig 39 no 9) separated from the synagogue complex by the Via Axia succeeded a 3rd century bath but at a somewhat higher level 53 Such elegant 5th-century residences as the Theodosian Palace the House ofPeristeria and the House of Parthenius all seem to have had 4thshycentury phases (fig 39 nos 14 11 and 13 respectively)54

The theater itself underwent a rough remodelling two refuges were added in the cavea wall facing the orchestra a stone-and-concrete wall was raised on the edge of the

podium of the cavea blocking the view from the first five rows (but protecting the spectators)55 a barricade of identical construction was placed across the parodoi so that the orchestraarena was completely enclosed (see fig 45)56 The central room of the scene building became a sanctuary of Ultrix Augusta an especially appropriate deity for the often violent activities that took place in the theater 57

The area south and west of the theater seems to have been developed for the first time during the course of the 4th century The partially restored plan in figure 48 shows the principal early structures in this district Building D has been restored as a square with a peristyle court on the basis of the northern corridor the only part excavated but it probably had a series of rooms opening off one or more of the other corridors A flagstone pavement north of Building D would have led on the west to a ramp or stairway ascending to a predecessor of the Via Sacra which lay some 3 m above the use level of this area To the east was Building E a bath of some elegance that was decorated in part with wall mosaics and Building B a two-storied structure of undetermined function both built close to the outer wall of the theater 58

During the last quarter of the century the citys major ecclesiastical complex was built in this area The construction of the chu rch itself (Building A in fig 48) however may be associated with other important developments not only at Stobi but also in Macedonia and throughout the empire It will be convenient therefore to take up the rise of Chrisshytianity at Stobi in the context of a discussion of the city in Late Antiquity

The Provincial Capital in Late Antiquity

Sometime before the early 5th century the province of Macedonia was partitioned and the smaller region to the north was given the name Macedonia Salutaris59 A date ca AD 386 is likely for the partition inasmuch as other districts of a similar name were created at that time in the eastern provinces 6o The date is also attractive because the partition might have provided Theodosius I the occasion to visit the new province in AD 388 during which year he issued two edicts from Stobi 61 Later in the 4th century or during the course of the 5th century Macedonia Salutaris was renamed Macedonia Secunda and its region more clearly delineated by our ancient sources through the listing ofeight cities of the province with Stobi in the prime position 62 The province continued to exist until probably sometime in tle decade after AD 535 when the prefecture of Illyricum in which Macedonia lay was evidently once again reorganized 63

There is no explicit mention in the ancient sources ofStobi as the capital either of Macedonia Salutaris or Macedonia

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

Secunda but there is strong circumstantial evidence that it

was the capital of both The prominence of Stobi from 167 BC through the 3rd century has already been demonstrated in the previous sections of this study It remained the most prominent of all the cities listed as belonging to the latter province (the others were Argos Eustraion Pelagonia Bargala Kelainidion Armonia and Zapara) Its Christian

community clearly attained a position of early importance for bishops of Stobi attended several major ecclesiastical congresses from the Council of Nicaea in AD 325 to the Trullanum Synod in AD 693 (see Table 2)64 The visit to Stobi by the Em peror Theodosius in 388 is also suggestive that by that time Stobi had become the provincial capital Other evidence may be found in the architectural changes of the city in the late 4th and early 5th centuries as discussed below

One of the most important of these architectural events was the erection in the late 4th century of a large Christian church virtually in the shadow of the theater (fig 48 Building A) The church was a three-qisled basilica with colorful frescoes on at least the north and south walls (fig 49) and on the ceilings of the side aisles The side aisles themselves were paved with a red plaster and the nave with a mosaic of stone tesserae The floor of the presbyterium combined mosaics with slate-and-marble opus sectile (fig 50)65

The church may have been completed only shortly before the visit ofTheodosius who might even have been present for its dedication 66 The church is built above an earlier smaller structure whose precise form has not yet been determined It is likely in view of its location and the fact that Stobi had a bishop as early as 325 that the earlier structure also served an ecclesiastical or semi-ecclesiastical function

A piscina to the south of the church has also been dated to the late 4th century it presumably was used for baptism67 North of the church the earliest part of a residence (formerly thought to be the Episcopal Residence) so far excavated is the apsidal structure at the eastern end of the complex which was built in the 4th century AD It may have served as an oratorium before the construction of the larger church 68

Another major architectural and institutional change that occurred near the end of the 4th century was the closing of the theater A hoard of69 debased silver coins and four gold coins hidden just below the floor of the Nemeseum was recovered in 1974 The coins were minted during the reigns of the emperors Gratian Valens and Valentinian 1 The theater may already have been officially closed when the hoard was deposited the non recovery of the hoard may have resulted from the owners unexpected death through some

natural agency (eg the flood described in the following paragraph) or at the hands of the Visigoths who must at least have passed near Stobi in AD 395 when they invaded Greece 69

The cavea of the theater soon became a major source of building material for structures throughout the city and the untended parodoi and orchestra began to fill up with dumped refuse and earth washed in by rain By the turn of the century houses were being constructed on the new fill of the abandoned theater It is clear that ifthe theater was still in use at the time of the visit ofTheodosius it did not long survive his departure 7o

Yet another dramatic change in the urban design was the construction early in the 5th century of a new city wall on the east The construction followed another destructive flood by the Crna that inundat~d the Casa Romana and other structures in the vicinity The flood was followed perhaps immediately by a catastrophic landslide from the ridge opposite the Cas a Romana so that the top of the buildingwas swept away and the riverine deposits were sealed within the structure by ajumbled mass ofclay with flysch sandstone and round cobbles of clay shale The scar left by the landslide is still visible on the slope of the ridge Orlova Cuka The landslide was of such size that it must have completely blocked for a time the flow of the river thereby causing even more extensive flooding of the lower city7l

The new city wall then was set ca 100 m back from the river and was probably intended to serve both as a fortification and as a flood dike The palatial structures near the river were finally abandoned the new wall in fact crosses the large structure with the mosaic courtyard and is actually bedded on the mosaic 72 This new wall seems to have been one of the first structures in the city to make extensive use of the marble seats from the cavea of the theater they appear as string courses in both faces of the wall and as a threshold for an inner tower (fig 41)

By the third quarter of the 5th century the palatial residences along the mid-slope of the ridge all contained courtyards with fountains and their interiors were decorated with mosaic pavements opus sectile frescoes and occasionally wall mosaics 73 Residences for the less prosperous have been found higher on the ridge above and around the ruins ofthe theater and in the vicinity of the city wall Some modest structures were even erected above the West Cemetery near the Porta Heraclea

Two baths and a public fountain (fig 39 nos 5 8 9) and all the numerous fountains within the residences were supplied with water by an extensive network of cond uits laid beneath

43

the streets that follow the line of the ridge The conduits then were tapped for fresh water by the residents situated downslope and were paralleled by sewage lines that received waste and runoff from the structures upslope74

The principal streets and even some of the minor ones were paved with a variety of materials including in one instance the ubiquitous theater seats (fig 51)75 The Via Sacra was lined with arcades and like all the main streets was articulated by jogs and angles (fig 45) This interruption of otherwise possible long vistas seems to be a characteristic of Late Antique urban design as Professor William MacDonald has pointed OUt 76

There were at least 5 and possibly 6 churches in Stobi and its suburban areas all were apsidal three-aisled basilicas Of the extramural churches one basilica lay ca 2 km to the SW near the present village of Palikura and a second near the Porta Heraclea 77 The latter built over a portion of the West Cemetery became the Cemetery Basilica for the city about the middle of the 5th century 78 That part of the cemetery closer to the city wall (fig 39 no 30) ceased to be used for burials before the middle of the 4th century and modest structures (residences or small shops) were erected there in the course of the next century 79 This circumstance suggests that the area later occupied by the Cemetery Basilica and the immediate vicinity may have been designated hallowed ground for the Christian dead even in the second quarter of the century

The North Basilica (fig 39 no 2) was one of two churches within the city that possessed a baptistery the one here b~ing a small cruciform construction Further to the south the upper part of the synagogue was dismantled and the area filled in after the middle of the 5th century to provide a higher base for a Christian church the Central Basilica (fig 39 no 6) The contiguous structure on the south also previously connected to the synagogue was remodelled and used as a residence for clergy8o The conversion of a place sacred to the Jews for over three centuries into a Christian ecclesiastical complex clearly marks a major change in the fortunes of the Jewish community of Stobi No other synagogue has been found at Stobi

The most monumental of the churches ofStobi was the Episcopal Basilica built about the middle of the 5th century on an artificial terrace raised some 4 m above the floor of its predecessor (fig 52) The floors of the narthex and south aisle were paved with mosaics while opus sectile of slate and marble was used in the north aisle and the presbyterium a combination of the two served as the original pavement of the nave The walls were covered with frescoes and perhaps in the apse with wall mosaics The apse itself had a sunken crypt for a martyrium and a colonnaded ambulatory (fig 53)middot81

The residence on the north side of the basilica was enlarged bu t remained at the lower level A new baptistery (fig 54) was constructed not long after the basilica but it too retained its position on the level of the now buried 4th-century church A well preserved mosaic floor surrounded the large baptismal pool and the walls were adorned with scenes from the life of Christ and portraits of the four evangelists all in fresco (fig 55)82

The Huns under Attila may have raided Stobi in AD 447 and the Ostrogoths under the leadership of Theodoric captured the city in AD 47983 Evidence of the destruction that may be associated with the Gothic raid may be seen in the House of the Fuller84 possibly in the Episcopal Basilica85 and

elsewhere 86

In the Episcopal Basilica an extensive remodelling late in the 5th or early in the 6th century transformed the appearance of the damaged church The side aisles were narrowed by the addition ofscreen-and-post barriers the bases ofwhich were marble seats taken from the theater New mosaics were laid in the narthex and south aisle while in the nave the severely damaged south side was repaired with large sandstone slabs Near the east end of the south aisle a vaulted tomb was built for a high dignitary perhaps the Bishop Philip who was called OLK0c56fA0~ of the church in an inscription on the lintel of the entrance to the nave from the narthex 87 And in the baptistery a thin layer of lime plaster was laid over the fresco and was painted in simple geometric designs and a few figured compositions (e g a cross flanked by torches covered the crowded figured composition of the NE conch)88

An earthquake in AD 518 which brought destruction to many parts of the Empire may also have struck Stobi Destruction levels in the House of the Fuller and other parts

89of the city may be associated with that natural disaster

The mid-to-late 6th century appears to have been a time of steady decline in the fortunes of Stobi Repairs to floors in the Episcopal Basilica and baptistery show a lack of concern for their appearance mosaics were repaired with bricks stone slabs or merely cement 90 There is no evidence of new monumental construction nor any hint of general

prosperity

At some time in the second half of the 6th century the inhabitants of Stobi withdrew and the city lay largely abandoned The populace may have retired to more remote mountainous areas as the Slavic peoples advanced southshyward Stobi after all lay within what is still the principal natural corridor connecting the middle Danubian region with the Aegean lands Either this new ethnic group or the remnants of the local population or (perhaps most likely) a

44 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

sequential combination of the two ransacked the deserted town A burial crypt in the south terrace wall of the Episcopal Basilica was broken into and its contents removed and the mosaic floor of the baptistery was crudely hacked open so that the lead pipe that had brought water to the piscina could be ripped OUt

91 Windblown dust then accumulated in the crypt in the trench of the pipeline and inside structures throughout the city Dust reached a depth of ca 40 cm over the floor of the baptistery before the baptistery itself the basilica and other buildings collapsed probably shaken down by yet another earthquake Only a few people were caught in the final catastrophe they may have been squatters or merely nearby residents still seeking valuables in the abandoned buildings92 The latest coins found in the dust and below or within the destruction debris date to the

reign ofJustin II AD 565- 578 the terminus post quem for the end of Stobi as an urban center 93

There is some evidence for post-destruction occupation of Stobi Crude residences or huts were reported by early excavators as having been found above the debris or in the ruins of the Episcopal Basilica the Central Basilica and elsewhere A wall ofstones and earth mortar perhaps partof a sheepfold has been found SE ofthe baptistery and a Slavic cemetery covered part of the Civil and North Basilicas94 But the occupation was partial and sporadic there was no revival of the urban community in medieval or modern times

Basil II defeated a military garrison at Stobi in AD 10 14 by which time the ancient Erigon river had already acquired its Slavic name Crna (black or dark)95 Evidence of some activity at that time has been found in the theater and in the area of the inner city wall96 but no trace of actual settlement exists unless the burials cited above can be dated so late The garrison to which Cedrenus refers was probably as temposhyrary as those of the First World War which left traces as well ranging from slit trenches and rifle cartridges to buttons from military uniforms Finally we may mention the bridge across the Crna piers ofwhich may still be seen The bridge is probably contemporary with the kalderma roadway that crossed the deserted site during the Turkish domination 97

Stobi even by that time may have earned the name Pusto Gradsko Deserted Town by which the area was known when it was visited by Leon Heuzey in the late 19th century98

The strategic im portance of this land at the confluence of the Varder and Crna for military purposes seems to have remained high over the millennia and one might have supposed that it would retain a similar importance for commerce And yet after its abandonment late in the 6th century there was first only temporary partial reoccupation followed for more than a millennium only by occasional military encampments or more ephemeral visitors We might

well wonder why a site with such obvious advantagesshyindeed advantages that had been exploited in the past for nearly a millennium - should have come to be so neglected

Environmental changes I believe were a major contributing factor to the decision on the part of the earlier inhabitants not to rebuild Stobi after the late 6th-century earthquake The region as Robert L Folk has demonstrated became increasshyingly xeric during the first six centuries of our era 99 The deteriorating climatic conditions are reflected in the erosion of the banks the landslides and the devastating inundations along the Crna river that proved to be so catastrophic in the late 3rd and 4th centuries We may note incidentally that abandoning the strip along the Crna and the construction of the new inner city wall did not stop the floods After the abandonment of the city riverine deposits of sand silt and clay built up against and eventually covered the inner city wall The Crna indeed continued to flood almost annually until a dam was constructed upstream in 1969100

The former inhabitants of Stobi then would have had several negative factors to consider before rebuilding Stobi after its destruction in the late 6th century The unsettled times must have made the strategically situated town especially vulnerable to marauding forces At the same time its importance in the prefecture of Illyricum had been diminished since the creation ofJustiniana Prima (modem CariCin Grad) in the 53os101 In the late 6th and 7th centuries the region was at its dryest and agriculture would have required extensive irrigation 102 What is more the Crna was still an uncontrollable and destructive river The earthquake that we suggest destroyed the city in the late 6th century may have been the last straw for the populace 103 It certainly was not an isolated occurrence for we know that the region of Stobi has been tectonically active throughout historical times

The demise of Stobi thus may be seen as resulting from a combination of social conflict and environmental changes The interaction of the inhabitants ofStobi with other peoples and with their environment as they changed over the years may be discerned throughout the archaeological record It is in that record with the aid of the few written documents that have been preserved that we may hope eventually to read and perhaps even understand the social history of this ancient land and people

45

J G von Hahn Reise von Beograd nach Salonik DenkschrWeinphil-hist Kl II pt 2 (1861) 175231-236 Leon Huezey Decouverte des Ruines de Stobi RA ns 26 pt II (1873) 25-42 On publications dealing with investigations at Stobi published before 1973 see Zika Radosevie The Stobi Bibliography inJames Wiseman ed Studies in the Antiquities ofStobi I (University of Texas at Austin and the National Museum ofTiwv Veles Beograd 1973) 233-268 A history of the excavations and other investigations at Swbi with additions to the bibliography justcited will be published byJames Wiseman in volume I

of the series entitled Stobi (forthcoming Princeton University Press) Preliminary reports on results of the bi-national Project are by James Wiseman and Djordje Mano-Zissi Excavations at Stobi 1970 AJA 75 (1971) 395-4 I I Excavations at Stobi 197 1 AJA 76 (1972) 40 7-424 Excavations atStobi 1972 AJA 77 (1973) 391-403 ExcavationsatStobi 1973-1974jFA I

(1974) 117- 148 Stobi A City of Ancient Macedonia JFA 3 (1976) 269-302 and by James Wiseman Stobi in Yugoslavian Macedonia Archaeological Excavations and Research I 977-78jFA 5 (1978) 391-429 These reports will be referred to hereafter as W-MZ (1971) (1972) (1973) (1974) (1976) and Wiseman (1978) respectively Studies in the Antiquities ofStobi I (cited at the beginning of this footnote) IIJames Wiseman ed (Boston University and the National Museum ofTitov Veles Beograd 1975) and III Blaga Aleksova and James Wiseman eds (Macedon ian Academy ofArts and Sciences and the National Museum ofTitov Veles Skopje 1981)will be cited hereafter as Studies I I I and I II (the series is distributed by Princeton University Press)

3 The American-Yugoslav Project of 1970- 198 I will hereafter be referred to as the Project The Project was directed by James Wiseman (1970- 1981) jointly with Djordje Mano-Zissi (1970-1975) National Museum of Beograd and the University of Beograd and Blaga Aleksova (1976- 1981) University of Cyril and Methodius in Skopje The principal funding came from the Foreign Cu rrency Program of the Smithsonian Institution the National Endowment for the Humanities the Ford Foundation the Kress Foundation and the Socialist Republic of Macedonia to all of whom we are sincerely grateful The Project was sponsored by the National Museum ofTitov Veles the University of Texas at Austin (1970- 1973) and Boston University (1974- 1981)

4 W-MZ (1974) 120 5 An earlier very brief overview of the results of the Project

by the author of this article is Stobi 1970- 197T A Review in Studies III 133-146

6 Livy xxxix 53 16 7 Livy xxxiii19middot3middot 8 The prehistoric material at Stobi has been studied by V

Sanev who will publish a report on his work in the forthcoming final publications (supra n 2) On the deposit from the theater see W-MZ (1976) 278 and S ValastroJr E Mott Davis and Alejandra G Varela University of Texas at Austin Radiocarbon Dates XI Radiocarbon 19 (1977) 323 (sampleTx-23 18 = Stobi 57X 75)middot

9 Ivan Mikulcic Some New Facwrs in the HistoryofStobi Studies III 216-2 7 Djordje Mano-Zissi K pitanju stratigrafije u Stobima Zbornik Narodnog Muzeja u Beogradu (1958-1959) 355-357 idem Stratigraphic Problems and the Urban Development ofSwbi Studies I 187-188

10 Wiseman (1978)412-413 11 W-MZ(1972)411-412 12 Ibid 412 W-MZ (1973) 391 Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in

Studies I 191-200

13 W-MZ (1971) 408 W-MZ (1972) 408-411 14 Michael H Crawford The Stobi Hoard of Roman

Republican Denarii Studies I 1-21 15 Ibid 8 W-MZ (1972) 41 I SIG3

700 and 710 16 Roben L Folk The Geologic Framework of Stobi

Studies I 15middot 17 I van MikulCic Swbi - (Peristerija) - Kasnohelenisticki

grobovi Archeoloski Pregled 8 (1966) I 13- 114 Viktorija Sokolovska Investigations in the House of Peristerias Studies II 135-136

18 W-MZ(1976)281-282 19 Reports on excavations in the West Cemetery appeared in

each of the first five preliminary reports (supra n 2) and the final publication of the cemetery is now being prepared by Al B Wesolowsky who supervised those excavations On the Hellenistic burials see especially W-MZ (1976) 278shy281 I van MikulCic The West Cemetery Excavations in 1965 Studies I 61-95 (especially Graves 12 and 35) and the study by Wesolowsky (infra n 20) The Hellenistic burial in the theater is cited in Elizabeth Gebhard The Theater at Swbi A Summary Studies III 13

20 AI B Wesolowsky Burial Customs in the West Cemetery Studies 198-142 (on the grave fire see p 135)

21 Salvatore ValastroJr and Al B Wesolowsky The Carbon-14 Dating Program of the West Cemetery Studies III 301 -3 10middot

22 W-MZ (1971) 408 Hoth imported wares and Macedonian gray wares are present see Virginia Anderson-Swjanovic Cultural Implications of Pottery at Swbi Studies III 48 and references cited there

23 Ibid 49 24 LivYXv29middot 13- 14middot 25 On Roman soldiers in Macedonia at this time and on the

formation of the province see Fanoula Papazoglou Quelques aspects de lhistoire de la province de Macedoine ANRW II 71 pp 301-308

26 W-MZ (1973) 391 - 393 Mano-Zissi (supra n 8) in Studies I

197- 201 Wiseman (1978) 393-394 27 W-MZ(1973)402 28 W-MZ (1974) 148 James Wiseman and Djordje

Georgievski Wall Decoration at Stobi Studies II 167shy169

29 W-MZ (1973) 397 Wiseman and Georgievski (supra n 28) in Studies 11169-170

30 Gebhard (supra n 19) 3 I The terminus ante quem is provided by the date of deposits

overlying a paved street on the city side of the wall W-MZ (1972) 413 W-MZ (1974) 127- 128 and Fig 8

32 Valastro and Wesolowsky (supra n 21) in Studies III 304 and Fig 3

33 W-MZ (1973) 394-397 W-MZ (1974) 126-128 Wiseman and Georgievski (supra n 28) in Studies II 169-174 Carolyn S Snively who supervised much ofthe excavation of the building is preparing a detailed study of the results of the excavation for publication in the forthcoming Stobi series She presented a summary ofthe results ofher study at the Annual Meeting of the Archaeological I nstitute of America in Washington DC in December 1985 see the abstract The Casa Romana The Final Report AjA 90 (1986)

34 As in the case of the Casa Romana it has not yet been possible to investigate the original construction deposits and the building has been only partially explored The principal preliminary reports of the building are W-MZ (1974) 122- 126 and Vojislav Sanev and Sario Sariovski Excavations of the Inner City Wall at Stobi 1972- 1974 Studies III 232-234

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

35 The possible relationship of C Aelius Priscus to Claudia 43 Prisca the priestess and her family is discussed by the present author in Gods War and Plague in the Time of the Antonines Studies I 142 - 183 All three statue bases were inscribed but only the first found (inv no [-72-9) has heretofore been published (ibid 145- 148) The other two bases found two years later in 1974 read as follows 44 1-74-5 f(aLOe) AtALOe [LEKOUV] bEivoe

Tov nat~pa npELOKOV

B 1-74-6 f(aLov) AtAOv npEioKov

nppoundL~LnpoundLAapLov 45 The three letters above the name in I -74-6 refer to the authorization for setting up the statue qJ(T]ltIgtL~atL 46 uno tf]e) B(OUAf]e Kat tou) ~(T]~OU) For

examples of similar expressions on inscriptions from Stobi 47 see Wiseman A Distinguished Macedonian Family of the 48 Roman imperial Period AJA 88 (1984)57deg and note 8 inscription 1 (=Stobi inv no 1-70- 39 and 1-77-4 I [Ka-r]a to M1av tfi KpatLo-rn ~ouAfi Kat to LE[p]wtanp bT]~ltp Wiseman opcit above in this note in Studies I p 49 153 inscription 3 (=Stobi inv no 1-70-20 = SEC 17 50 [1960]319) line 5 tl poundyyovoe Aa~ouoa tonov My~atL 5 I ~OuAite and in a dedication to Olympian Zeus Hera and Savior Apollo in N Vulic Spomenik 7 1 (1931) 47 no 109 lines 2 -4 Iou~EYtLa La~LVL I [avTj jrr]ltIgtLo]~atL KaeLEpO~fvr]

uno tfje I [~OuAfje poundjmlT]OEY ta aya-ILata The three inscriptions cited date to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD 52

36 The column had been reused in the atrium of the Central 53 Basilica and was discovered in the excavations of 1931 The 54 inscription has been discussed by a number of scholars and the bibliography is too lengthy to repeat here see Martin Hengel Die Synagogeinschrift von Stobi Zeitschriftfur

die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft 57 (1966) 145- 183 and William Poehlman The Polycharmos Inscription and Synagogue I at Stobi Studies II 1235-246 On the excavation of the structure which we may refer to as Synagogue I see W-MZ (197 I) 406-410 W-MZ (1972) 4 10-4 11 W-MZ (1974) 146-148 Wiseman (197 8) 393shy395 Dean L Moe The Cross and the Menorah Archaeology 30 (1977) 148- 157 and the article by Poehlman cited in this note 55

37 The excavations in the theater have been directed since the 56 inception of the Pr~ject by Professor Elizabeth R Gebhard 57 of the University of Illinois at Chicago whose final study of 58 the building will appear as a volume in the forthcoming Stom series Accounts of the excavations have appeared in each of the preliminary reports cited in note 2 see also the review by Gebhard already cited (supra n 19) in Studies III 13-27 Earlier publications on the theater are listed by Radosevic (supra n 2) 59

38 Elizabeth Gebhard The cenae Frons in the Theater at Stobi Studies Ill 197-203 Viktorija Sokolovska Stobi in the Light of Ancient Sculpture Studies III 97-98 Suggested identification of statue E Gebhard

39 The inscriptions have been studied by the present author who will publish them in full in the forthcoming Stobi

volume on the theater (supra n 37) A reading of the seat inscriptions uncovered by Balduin Saria primarily in kerkides I -2 were published by him Die Inschriften des Theaters von StobiJOAl32 (1940) 5-34 I have recently discussed some of the seat inscriptions (supra n 35) (1984) 567-582

40 Elizabeth Gebhard Protective Devices in Roman Theaters Studies II 43-63

41 See also Gebhard (supran 19) in Studies III 15-17 42 Pliny Ncu Hist iv 10middot34 Citizens ofStobi were registered in

the Roman voting tribes Aemilia and Tromentina as several inscriptions attest

For a recent discussion of the date by which Stobi became a municipium see Papazoglou (supra n 25) 360- 361 Stobi min ted its own coins at least from AD 69 until the reign of Caracalla or Elagabalus Siobodan Dusanic A Foundation Type on theCoinageofthe Municipium Stobi Revue beige

de numismatique 113 (1967) 11-29 In trench EB79-7a dug across the street west of the Episcopal Basilica (fig 39 no 20) pottery of the 2nd and 3rd centuries was found between surfaces 10 and I I other contextual material included coin 79- 169 an issue ofAD 198-217 above street surface 10 (StobiArchives 1979 Seasons Report by Carolyn S Snively) Gebha rd (supra n 19) in Studies I I I 17 - 18 (quote on p

17)middot W-MZ (1972)410 cf Poehlman (supra n 36) inSudies III

237middot Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in Studies 1195-197208-209 On both theCasa Romanaand the streetsee W-MZ (1974) 128 A terminus post quem is provided by coin 74 -444 found in the deposit below the destruction debris it is an issue of Vibius Trebonianus Gallus 251-253 AD Sanev and SarZovski (supra n 34) in Studies II 1234middot Ibid Mano-Zissi (supra n 47) On Synagogue I I see especially Moe (supra n 36) and Wiseman (1978) 392 - 395 and the reference cited in those works The mosaic is discussed in detail in Ruth Kolarik and MomCilo Petrovski Technical Observations on Mosaics at Stobi Studies 1166-75 Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in Studies I 194-195209 Ibid 203-205 The Project conducted only minor excavations in these complexes which were uncovered for the most part by excavators in the 1920S and 1930s see James Wiseman Stobi a Cuide to the Excavations (University of Texas and National Museum ofTitov Veles Beograd 1973) 40-49 and the bibliography cited there See also Sokolovska (supra n 17) in Studies II 123- 137 The buildings have been recently restudied as part ofa doctoral dissertation by Frederick P Hemans Late Antique Residences at Stobi Boston University January 1986 An expanded version of that study will form pa rt of a volu me in the Stobi series referred to in note 2 Gebhard (supra n 19) in Studies III 17middot Ibid 18

Ibid W-MZ (1976) 274- 277 Building B W-MZ (1976) 285-287 Wiseman (197 8) 398 Building D Wiseman (1978) 408-411 Building E Wiseman (1978) 425-426 Stobi Archives Seasons Report for 1979 by Z Beldedovski The construction date is unknown except that it preceded the mid-5th century construction of the baptistery The province is named only in the Notitia Dignitatum Or I

5 14middot Evidence for the positions taken in the first two paragraphs of this section is discussed in greater detail by the present author in The City in Macedonia Secunda Villes et peulement dans llllyricum protollyzantin (Ecole franltaise de Rome Rome 1984) 289-294 Cf Fanula Papazoglu La Macedoine Salutaire et la Macedoine Seconde Bulletin de la Classedes Lettres et des Sciencesmorales

etpolitiquesde lAcadbnieroyalede Belgique 42 (1956) 15- 124 and idem Makedonski Cradovi u Rimsko Doba (Skopje 1957) 235- 2 38 Papazoglu places Stobi in Macedonia Prima and not in Macedonia Salutaris Angeliki Konstantakopoulou in a recent article H EnapXLa MaKE)ovLa SaIutaris LW~OAT] o-rT] MEAnT] tf]e ~lOLKT]tLKfte OpyavWOT)e -rou IAAupLKou in ~wbwVT] 1 (Iwavvlva 1981) 85- 100 offers persuasive evidence that Macedonia Salutaris extended further to the northeast than Papazoglu believed and that it included not only Stobi but Bargala as well

47

60 Th Mommsen Verzeichniss der romischen Provinzen aufgesetzt um 297 in his Cesammelte Schri[ten V (Berlin 19(8) Ro Konstantakopoulou (supra n 59) 88-9 1 suggests that the province was formed primarily for military purposes in 379380 when Goths were making incursions into the region and when Theodosius may have made one or twO visits to Stobi The hypothesis that Theodosius visited Stobi in 379380 is based on trips of Theodosius between Sirmium and Thessaloniki as recorded in the Codex Theodosianus and is integral to a now discredited argument by Rudolf Egger that an inscription found in Drenovo ca 20 km south ofStobi belongs to the base of a horse-and-rider statue of the father ofTheodosius I dedicated at Stobi by the emperor himself Egger Der Erste Theodosius Byzantion 5

(19 29- 1930) 9- 32 (the visits with references are mentioned on p 28) The inscription like the reused architectural pieces found in the same building (a church) at Drenovo are not from Stobi but from Euristos the ancient town that lies on the outskirts of Ore novo see Ivan MikulCic Topograf~a na Eud(da)rist Macedoniae Acta

Archaeologica I (1975) 173- 197 and Ivanka Nikolajevic Stobi and Fifth Century Architectural Sculpture in Macedonia in Studies III 186- 191 Although Theodosius may have visited Stobi in 379 or 380 or in both years we may be certain only of the visit in 388 see the next note

61 Codex Theodosianus 16+2 16515 62 Hierocles Synecdemus 7-8 (ed Wesseling p 391) For a

different view of the founding of Macedonia Secunda see Fanula Papazoglu Makedonski Gradovi u Rimsko Doba

(Skopje 1957) 91 -92 who argues that Macedonia Salutaris ceased to exist and that Macedonia Secunda came into existence only late in the 5th century A Konstantakopoulou in recent publications agrees with the early abolishment of Macedonia Salutaris on the grounds that after the Gothic threat had passed it was no longer needed (supra n 59 pp 95-96) but suggests 449-451 as a terminus ante quem for the creation of Macedonia Secunda see her dissertation IOtoPUltll ffWYPUltP(U tiil MUKfllOV(UI (401-601) (flUVVfVU 1984)74-8 1

63 See the discussion by Wiseman (supra n 59) 64 Sources for the bishops named in Table 2 are collected in

Wiseman (supra n 35) in Studies I 143-144 65 Wiseman (1978) 397407 and references cited there

There are two layers of fresco on the south wall and two layers of mosaic pavement in the nave Excavation of this early church by a Yugoslav team has continued under the direction of Blaga Aleksova who is the author of two reports that appeared in 1985 The Old Episcopal Basilica at Stobi - Archaeological Excavations and Researches 19R 1- 19R4 ZbomikJilozoJski Jakultet na univerzitetotshySkopje (Skopje 19R5) 43-72 (in Macedonian and English) and The Old Episcopal Basilica at Stobi Archaeologia

lugoslalica 22-23 (1982-1983 published in Beograd 19R5) 50 - 62

66 The latest coin (79- 127) associated with the construction of a part of this building is dated to AD 383- 395 (a salus rei publicae issue) the coin was found within the mortarofa collapsed wall The latest coin (78-632) below the floor of the south aisle however dates to the 360s or 370S AD which may provide a terminus post quem for the earlier mosaics and fresco

67 Wiseman (1978)408-413 68 The earliest floor a pavement of baked bricks set in a white

lime mortar seems to have been laid no later than the mid-4th century AD see now Hemans (supra n 54) On the oratorium see Djordje Mano-Zissi Stukatura u Stobima Zbornik Narodnog Muzeja u Beogradu 3 (1962) 101- 107 cf Wiseman (1978) 426-427

69 W-MZ (1974) 132 - 133middot 70 Gebhard (supra n 19) in Studies II I 18-19

7 I W-MZ (1974) 12 I - 128 The catastrophic landslide was first recognized by Robert L Folk and is discussed in detail in Geologic Urban Hindplanning AnExample from a Hellenistic-Byzantine City Stobi Yugoslavian Macedonia Environmental Geology I (1975) 14 - 17middot

72 W-J1Z (J 974) 12 I - 126 Sanev and Sarzovski (supra n 34) in Studies I II 232 - 2 34

73 The mosaics at Stobi were studied by Ruth Kolarik for her PhD dissertation The Floor Mosaics from Stobi which was accepted by Harvard University in 1981 and forms the basis for several sections to be published in the forthcoming Stobi series See also Kolarik and Petrovski (supra n 5 I) in Studies II 65- 106 and Ruth E Kolarik The Floor Mosaics of Eastern IIIyricum Rapportspresmtes

au Xe congres international darcheologie chretienne

(Thessalonica 1980) 173-203 On the chronology and the architecture see now the dissertation by F P Hemans (supra n 54)

74 Konstantin Petrov Istrazuvanja na Vodovodniot Sistem vo Ranovizantiskiot Stobi GodiJen Zbomik na FilozoJskiot

Fakultet Skopje 19 (1967) 269- 306 75 The street was partially cleared in 1979 by FP Hemans 76 I n his paper presented at this symposium 77 A structure that may be a third extra mural basilica has been

partially excavated not far to the east of Stobi beyond the Crna That building known as the Basilica Trans-frigon the Palikura Basilica and the Cemetery Basilica have been studied by Carolyn S Snively see her The Early Christian Basilicas ofStobi a Study of their Form Function and Location unpublished PhD dissertation (University of Texas at Austin 1979) 182- 249 which wil form the basis for her publication in the forthcoming Stoui series

78 The date of the Cemetery Basilica which was uncovered du ring World War I is based in part on the fact that a mosaic in the church was virtually identical with the first mosaic in the south aisle of the Episcopal Basilica which was laid about the middle of the 5th century see Kolarik 1980 (supra n 73) 185 Some burials in the immediate proximity of the Cemetery Basilica date to the late 4th or early 5th century AD see W-MZ (1974) 134

79 Wesolowsky (supra n 20) in Studies I 104129 80 See especially Moe (supra n 36) and Wiseman (1978)

39 2-395 81 See Wiseman (1978) 413-42 I and the references cited

there See also the studies of particular aspects of the basilica in Studies I I I by Blaga Aleksova Vera BitrakovashyGrozdanova Ruth Kolarik and Carolyn S Snively

82 On the baptistery see W-MZ (1972) 422-424 W-MZ (1973) 398-399 William B Dinsmoorjr The Baptistery Its Roofing and Related Problems Studies II 15-27 Wiseman (1978) 424-426 Caroline Hemans and D Georgievski with the aid of their assistants have pieced together several compositions of the original fresco in the baptistery they will be published in the forthcoming Stoui

series 83 Ostrogoths Malcus frag 18 Muller FHG IV 125 On the

Huns (supra n 84) 84 Ivan MikulCic postulates a raid by Attila and the Huns in

447 as the occasion for the destruction (supra n 9) in Studies III 2 17- 22 I Hemans (supra n 54) suggests that a H unnic raid in 447 resulted in widespread destruction and was followed by the principal 5th-century phase of construction throughout the city

85 The second major phase of the Episcopal Basilica and the Baptistery discussed below followed severe damage to both structures New mosaic floors were laid in the narthex and south aisle but the contextual evidence is too meager to provide a date more refined than the late 5th or early 6th century see Ruth Kolarik The Episcopal BasilicaatStobi The Phases of Mosaic Decoration Studies II 167-68 who more recently has suggested that the remodelling followed damage in an earthquake of 518 (discussed below and infra n 89)

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

86 Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in Studies I 2 12 - 224 87 The inscription is Stobi inv no I -70-41 and was

originally published by Balduin Saria Novi Nalasci u Episkopskoj Crkvi u Stobima Glasnik Skopskog Naucnog

Drustva (1933) 25- 26 On the later phaseofthe basilicasee Wiseman (1978) 413-424 (restored plan in fig 4) There is some disagreement among the Stobi staff regarding the date of the inscription Since the lintel was broken and repaired in antiquity it is conceivable that it was a part of the original construction on the terrace In that case Bishop Philip would belong to the 3rd quarter of the 5tl1 century The break and repair might also have occurred during the course of Phase I l The evidence will be discussed in detail in the final publication

88 W-MZ(1974) 145- 146 89 Marcellinus Comes 100 the fragment makes no specific

mention of Stobi MikulCic who originally considered tl1e earthquake in 5 18 the likely cause of a destruction level in the House of Fuller (see afrud W-MZ [1974] J 39) has more recently argued for a somewhat later unrecorded and minor local earthquake MikulCic (supra n 9) 221-223 Kolarik (supra n 73) (1980) 194 has recently suggested that the new mosaics in the south aisle and the narthex of the Episcopal Basilica may have been laid after the earthquake of 518 The new technique for obtaining radiocarbon dates from lime mortar will be applied to mortar from the basilica and may provide some assistance in refining the actual ch ronology of the phases of the basilica The radiocarbon dating technique was successfully developed for analysis of materia l from Stobi see Robert L Folk and S Valastro]r Radiocarbon Dating of Mortar at Stobi Studies II 29- 39middot

90 See Kolarik (supra n 85) in Studies 111 69 9 1 W-MZ (1973) 398-399 92 Windblown dust eventually covered even buildings and

streets on the top of the ridge see the discussion by Folk (supra n 71) 20- 2 I The dead found in the debris are discussed by Wiseman (supra n 59)

93 Coins 7 1-7087 1-47 1 and 72-63 see W-MZ (1973) 398 note 26

94 Blaga Aleksova Medieval Craves in the North Basilica Studies I II 253 - 261 Professor Aleksova dates the burials to the 9th- I Ith centuries

95 Cedrenus CSHB 2 709A 96 W-MZ (1972) 417 W-MZ (1973) 394 97 W-MZ (1972) 4 12 An uncorrected radiocarbon date of

1820 AD plusmn 40 was obtained from a wooden crosstie in tl1e pavement S Valastro] r E Mott Davis and Alejandra C Varela University of Texas at Austin Radiocarbon Dates X Radiocarbon 17 (1975) 98 sample TX-1349 (Stobi R-7 1 - 2 3)middot

98 Heuzey (supra n I) 34 99 Folk (supra n 71) 17- 2 1 100 W-MZ (1972) 412 101 See the discussion in Wiseman (supra n 59) with sources

and secondary works there in notes 7-9 102 Folk (supra n 99) 103 The survivors of Stobi along with the bishop may not have

travelled far to resettle in the late 6th and 7th centuries eg they may have settled just several kilometers upstream near the modern village ofRosoman where Late Antique remains have been noted Such a circumstance might explain why two bishops of Stobi are known from the 7th century (see Table 2) after the abandonment and destruction of the city itself ie the community still existed but in a different location

49

1861

3rd century BC

197 BC 183 BC

167 BC

119 BC

Late 1St century BCshyEarly 1St century AD

Table 1 A summary of investigations at Stobi

J G von Hahn visits the site

Leon Heuzey visits the site

Reconnaissance by Axel von Premerstein and N Vulic

French and Serbian soldiers dig defensive trenches

German soldiers uncover parts of three basilicas

Excavations by the National Museum of Beograd directed by Balduin Saria and VR Petrovic

Excavations by the Museum of Prince Paul directed by Jozo Petrovic and Djordje Mano-Zissi

Conservation activities directed by Krum Tomovski

Minor excavation and conservation by the Archaeological Museum of Skopje

Conservation and reconstruction by the Conservation Institute of Macedonia with minor excavation jointly with the Archaeogical Museum of Skopje

American-Yugoslav joint project sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin (until 1973) Boston University and the National Museum ofTitov Veles and directed by Djordje Mano-Zissi Blaga Aleksova and James Wiseman

Excavations by the National Museum of Titov Veles directed by Blaga Aleksova

Table 2

Selected dates and historical events at Stobi

Stobi in existence

Philip V operating in region known as an old city

Stobi becomes salt emporium for third mens of Macedonia

Roman province of Macedonia created

Roman troops battle Scordisci near Stobi

Stobi expands greatly in area becomes a municipium enjoys the ius Italicum

Stobi begins to mint its own coins 69

50

2nd century

Early 3rd century

Late 3rd century

ca 386

Late 4th century

447

Mid-5th century

479

Late 5thshyEarly 6th century

Early 6th century

535-545

569-570

(terminus post quem)

Late 6thshy7th centuries

680

101 4

W I S EM A N Stobi Macedonia

Jewish community in existence theater built

Stobi ceases to mint coins

Stobi struck by at least one earthquake lower city flooded Goths operating in the region

Budius Bishop of Stobi attends Council of Nicaea

Stobi becomes capital () ofnew province of Macedonia Salutaris (later Macedonia Secunda)

Theodosius issues decrees at Stobi

Theater closed large church built catastrophic landslide and flood Alaric and the

Visigoths in region (395)

Possible H unnic raid

Nicolaus Bishop of Stobi attends Council ofChalcedon

New Episcopal Basilica built above earlier church Christian church replaces synagogue Cemetery Basilica built

Theodoric captures Stobi

Philip is Bishop at Stobi ()

Earthquake strikes Stobi (5 18)

Province of Macedonia Secunda dissolved ()

Stobi abandoned vandalized struck by earthquake Slavs arrive

Sporadic partial reoccupation

loannes Bishop of Stobi attends Sixth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

Magarites Bishop of Stobi attends Second Trullanum Synod

Basil II destroys a military garrison at Stobi

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

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50 KILOMETERS I

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OSOFIA Serdica

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r _Jr ( ) - - ----- (r - v)

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-- (

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3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

47

60 Th Mommsen Verzeichniss der romischen Provinzen aufgesetzt um 297 in his Cesammelte Schri[ten V (Berlin 19(8) Ro Konstantakopoulou (supra n 59) 88-9 1 suggests that the province was formed primarily for military purposes in 379380 when Goths were making incursions into the region and when Theodosius may have made one or twO visits to Stobi The hypothesis that Theodosius visited Stobi in 379380 is based on trips of Theodosius between Sirmium and Thessaloniki as recorded in the Codex Theodosianus and is integral to a now discredited argument by Rudolf Egger that an inscription found in Drenovo ca 20 km south ofStobi belongs to the base of a horse-and-rider statue of the father ofTheodosius I dedicated at Stobi by the emperor himself Egger Der Erste Theodosius Byzantion 5

(19 29- 1930) 9- 32 (the visits with references are mentioned on p 28) The inscription like the reused architectural pieces found in the same building (a church) at Drenovo are not from Stobi but from Euristos the ancient town that lies on the outskirts of Ore novo see Ivan MikulCic Topograf~a na Eud(da)rist Macedoniae Acta

Archaeologica I (1975) 173- 197 and Ivanka Nikolajevic Stobi and Fifth Century Architectural Sculpture in Macedonia in Studies III 186- 191 Although Theodosius may have visited Stobi in 379 or 380 or in both years we may be certain only of the visit in 388 see the next note

61 Codex Theodosianus 16+2 16515 62 Hierocles Synecdemus 7-8 (ed Wesseling p 391) For a

different view of the founding of Macedonia Secunda see Fanula Papazoglu Makedonski Gradovi u Rimsko Doba

(Skopje 1957) 91 -92 who argues that Macedonia Salutaris ceased to exist and that Macedonia Secunda came into existence only late in the 5th century A Konstantakopoulou in recent publications agrees with the early abolishment of Macedonia Salutaris on the grounds that after the Gothic threat had passed it was no longer needed (supra n 59 pp 95-96) but suggests 449-451 as a terminus ante quem for the creation of Macedonia Secunda see her dissertation IOtoPUltll ffWYPUltP(U tiil MUKfllOV(UI (401-601) (flUVVfVU 1984)74-8 1

63 See the discussion by Wiseman (supra n 59) 64 Sources for the bishops named in Table 2 are collected in

Wiseman (supra n 35) in Studies I 143-144 65 Wiseman (1978) 397407 and references cited there

There are two layers of fresco on the south wall and two layers of mosaic pavement in the nave Excavation of this early church by a Yugoslav team has continued under the direction of Blaga Aleksova who is the author of two reports that appeared in 1985 The Old Episcopal Basilica at Stobi - Archaeological Excavations and Researches 19R 1- 19R4 ZbomikJilozoJski Jakultet na univerzitetotshySkopje (Skopje 19R5) 43-72 (in Macedonian and English) and The Old Episcopal Basilica at Stobi Archaeologia

lugoslalica 22-23 (1982-1983 published in Beograd 19R5) 50 - 62

66 The latest coin (79- 127) associated with the construction of a part of this building is dated to AD 383- 395 (a salus rei publicae issue) the coin was found within the mortarofa collapsed wall The latest coin (78-632) below the floor of the south aisle however dates to the 360s or 370S AD which may provide a terminus post quem for the earlier mosaics and fresco

67 Wiseman (1978)408-413 68 The earliest floor a pavement of baked bricks set in a white

lime mortar seems to have been laid no later than the mid-4th century AD see now Hemans (supra n 54) On the oratorium see Djordje Mano-Zissi Stukatura u Stobima Zbornik Narodnog Muzeja u Beogradu 3 (1962) 101- 107 cf Wiseman (1978) 426-427

69 W-MZ (1974) 132 - 133middot 70 Gebhard (supra n 19) in Studies II I 18-19

7 I W-MZ (1974) 12 I - 128 The catastrophic landslide was first recognized by Robert L Folk and is discussed in detail in Geologic Urban Hindplanning AnExample from a Hellenistic-Byzantine City Stobi Yugoslavian Macedonia Environmental Geology I (1975) 14 - 17middot

72 W-J1Z (J 974) 12 I - 126 Sanev and Sarzovski (supra n 34) in Studies I II 232 - 2 34

73 The mosaics at Stobi were studied by Ruth Kolarik for her PhD dissertation The Floor Mosaics from Stobi which was accepted by Harvard University in 1981 and forms the basis for several sections to be published in the forthcoming Stobi series See also Kolarik and Petrovski (supra n 5 I) in Studies II 65- 106 and Ruth E Kolarik The Floor Mosaics of Eastern IIIyricum Rapportspresmtes

au Xe congres international darcheologie chretienne

(Thessalonica 1980) 173-203 On the chronology and the architecture see now the dissertation by F P Hemans (supra n 54)

74 Konstantin Petrov Istrazuvanja na Vodovodniot Sistem vo Ranovizantiskiot Stobi GodiJen Zbomik na FilozoJskiot

Fakultet Skopje 19 (1967) 269- 306 75 The street was partially cleared in 1979 by FP Hemans 76 I n his paper presented at this symposium 77 A structure that may be a third extra mural basilica has been

partially excavated not far to the east of Stobi beyond the Crna That building known as the Basilica Trans-frigon the Palikura Basilica and the Cemetery Basilica have been studied by Carolyn S Snively see her The Early Christian Basilicas ofStobi a Study of their Form Function and Location unpublished PhD dissertation (University of Texas at Austin 1979) 182- 249 which wil form the basis for her publication in the forthcoming Stoui series

78 The date of the Cemetery Basilica which was uncovered du ring World War I is based in part on the fact that a mosaic in the church was virtually identical with the first mosaic in the south aisle of the Episcopal Basilica which was laid about the middle of the 5th century see Kolarik 1980 (supra n 73) 185 Some burials in the immediate proximity of the Cemetery Basilica date to the late 4th or early 5th century AD see W-MZ (1974) 134

79 Wesolowsky (supra n 20) in Studies I 104129 80 See especially Moe (supra n 36) and Wiseman (1978)

39 2-395 81 See Wiseman (1978) 413-42 I and the references cited

there See also the studies of particular aspects of the basilica in Studies I I I by Blaga Aleksova Vera BitrakovashyGrozdanova Ruth Kolarik and Carolyn S Snively

82 On the baptistery see W-MZ (1972) 422-424 W-MZ (1973) 398-399 William B Dinsmoorjr The Baptistery Its Roofing and Related Problems Studies II 15-27 Wiseman (1978) 424-426 Caroline Hemans and D Georgievski with the aid of their assistants have pieced together several compositions of the original fresco in the baptistery they will be published in the forthcoming Stoui

series 83 Ostrogoths Malcus frag 18 Muller FHG IV 125 On the

Huns (supra n 84) 84 Ivan MikulCic postulates a raid by Attila and the Huns in

447 as the occasion for the destruction (supra n 9) in Studies III 2 17- 22 I Hemans (supra n 54) suggests that a H unnic raid in 447 resulted in widespread destruction and was followed by the principal 5th-century phase of construction throughout the city

85 The second major phase of the Episcopal Basilica and the Baptistery discussed below followed severe damage to both structures New mosaic floors were laid in the narthex and south aisle but the contextual evidence is too meager to provide a date more refined than the late 5th or early 6th century see Ruth Kolarik The Episcopal BasilicaatStobi The Phases of Mosaic Decoration Studies II 167-68 who more recently has suggested that the remodelling followed damage in an earthquake of 518 (discussed below and infra n 89)

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

86 Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in Studies I 2 12 - 224 87 The inscription is Stobi inv no I -70-41 and was

originally published by Balduin Saria Novi Nalasci u Episkopskoj Crkvi u Stobima Glasnik Skopskog Naucnog

Drustva (1933) 25- 26 On the later phaseofthe basilicasee Wiseman (1978) 413-424 (restored plan in fig 4) There is some disagreement among the Stobi staff regarding the date of the inscription Since the lintel was broken and repaired in antiquity it is conceivable that it was a part of the original construction on the terrace In that case Bishop Philip would belong to the 3rd quarter of the 5tl1 century The break and repair might also have occurred during the course of Phase I l The evidence will be discussed in detail in the final publication

88 W-MZ(1974) 145- 146 89 Marcellinus Comes 100 the fragment makes no specific

mention of Stobi MikulCic who originally considered tl1e earthquake in 5 18 the likely cause of a destruction level in the House of Fuller (see afrud W-MZ [1974] J 39) has more recently argued for a somewhat later unrecorded and minor local earthquake MikulCic (supra n 9) 221-223 Kolarik (supra n 73) (1980) 194 has recently suggested that the new mosaics in the south aisle and the narthex of the Episcopal Basilica may have been laid after the earthquake of 518 The new technique for obtaining radiocarbon dates from lime mortar will be applied to mortar from the basilica and may provide some assistance in refining the actual ch ronology of the phases of the basilica The radiocarbon dating technique was successfully developed for analysis of materia l from Stobi see Robert L Folk and S Valastro]r Radiocarbon Dating of Mortar at Stobi Studies II 29- 39middot

90 See Kolarik (supra n 85) in Studies 111 69 9 1 W-MZ (1973) 398-399 92 Windblown dust eventually covered even buildings and

streets on the top of the ridge see the discussion by Folk (supra n 71) 20- 2 I The dead found in the debris are discussed by Wiseman (supra n 59)

93 Coins 7 1-7087 1-47 1 and 72-63 see W-MZ (1973) 398 note 26

94 Blaga Aleksova Medieval Craves in the North Basilica Studies I II 253 - 261 Professor Aleksova dates the burials to the 9th- I Ith centuries

95 Cedrenus CSHB 2 709A 96 W-MZ (1972) 417 W-MZ (1973) 394 97 W-MZ (1972) 4 12 An uncorrected radiocarbon date of

1820 AD plusmn 40 was obtained from a wooden crosstie in tl1e pavement S Valastro] r E Mott Davis and Alejandra C Varela University of Texas at Austin Radiocarbon Dates X Radiocarbon 17 (1975) 98 sample TX-1349 (Stobi R-7 1 - 2 3)middot

98 Heuzey (supra n I) 34 99 Folk (supra n 71) 17- 2 1 100 W-MZ (1972) 412 101 See the discussion in Wiseman (supra n 59) with sources

and secondary works there in notes 7-9 102 Folk (supra n 99) 103 The survivors of Stobi along with the bishop may not have

travelled far to resettle in the late 6th and 7th centuries eg they may have settled just several kilometers upstream near the modern village ofRosoman where Late Antique remains have been noted Such a circumstance might explain why two bishops of Stobi are known from the 7th century (see Table 2) after the abandonment and destruction of the city itself ie the community still existed but in a different location

49

1861

3rd century BC

197 BC 183 BC

167 BC

119 BC

Late 1St century BCshyEarly 1St century AD

Table 1 A summary of investigations at Stobi

J G von Hahn visits the site

Leon Heuzey visits the site

Reconnaissance by Axel von Premerstein and N Vulic

French and Serbian soldiers dig defensive trenches

German soldiers uncover parts of three basilicas

Excavations by the National Museum of Beograd directed by Balduin Saria and VR Petrovic

Excavations by the Museum of Prince Paul directed by Jozo Petrovic and Djordje Mano-Zissi

Conservation activities directed by Krum Tomovski

Minor excavation and conservation by the Archaeological Museum of Skopje

Conservation and reconstruction by the Conservation Institute of Macedonia with minor excavation jointly with the Archaeogical Museum of Skopje

American-Yugoslav joint project sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin (until 1973) Boston University and the National Museum ofTitov Veles and directed by Djordje Mano-Zissi Blaga Aleksova and James Wiseman

Excavations by the National Museum of Titov Veles directed by Blaga Aleksova

Table 2

Selected dates and historical events at Stobi

Stobi in existence

Philip V operating in region known as an old city

Stobi becomes salt emporium for third mens of Macedonia

Roman province of Macedonia created

Roman troops battle Scordisci near Stobi

Stobi expands greatly in area becomes a municipium enjoys the ius Italicum

Stobi begins to mint its own coins 69

50

2nd century

Early 3rd century

Late 3rd century

ca 386

Late 4th century

447

Mid-5th century

479

Late 5thshyEarly 6th century

Early 6th century

535-545

569-570

(terminus post quem)

Late 6thshy7th centuries

680

101 4

W I S EM A N Stobi Macedonia

Jewish community in existence theater built

Stobi ceases to mint coins

Stobi struck by at least one earthquake lower city flooded Goths operating in the region

Budius Bishop of Stobi attends Council of Nicaea

Stobi becomes capital () ofnew province of Macedonia Salutaris (later Macedonia Secunda)

Theodosius issues decrees at Stobi

Theater closed large church built catastrophic landslide and flood Alaric and the

Visigoths in region (395)

Possible H unnic raid

Nicolaus Bishop of Stobi attends Council ofChalcedon

New Episcopal Basilica built above earlier church Christian church replaces synagogue Cemetery Basilica built

Theodoric captures Stobi

Philip is Bishop at Stobi ()

Earthquake strikes Stobi (5 18)

Province of Macedonia Secunda dissolved ()

Stobi abandoned vandalized struck by earthquake Slavs arrive

Sporadic partial reoccupation

loannes Bishop of Stobi attends Sixth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

Magarites Bishop of Stobi attends Second Trullanum Synod

Basil II destroys a military garrison at Stobi

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

shy------shy

---shy

ONIS Naissus

------

--- i

o I o

50 KILOMETERS I

I 50 MILES

r i

_

OSOFIA Serdica

u L G A R A

r _Jr ( ) - - ----- (r - v)

( -

OJ ~-_ DEMIR (-I-~ ----j )

~ ~ f Ilt __ ~__ j tJ Dwan

( OH~ID l) ~ z L Ohnd OBITOLA 0

to ~ Of ) o

-- (

-~

)

I )

(

( ~ MT OLYMPUS

---r BOD I975

3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

86 Mano-Zissi (supra n 9) in Studies I 2 12 - 224 87 The inscription is Stobi inv no I -70-41 and was

originally published by Balduin Saria Novi Nalasci u Episkopskoj Crkvi u Stobima Glasnik Skopskog Naucnog

Drustva (1933) 25- 26 On the later phaseofthe basilicasee Wiseman (1978) 413-424 (restored plan in fig 4) There is some disagreement among the Stobi staff regarding the date of the inscription Since the lintel was broken and repaired in antiquity it is conceivable that it was a part of the original construction on the terrace In that case Bishop Philip would belong to the 3rd quarter of the 5tl1 century The break and repair might also have occurred during the course of Phase I l The evidence will be discussed in detail in the final publication

88 W-MZ(1974) 145- 146 89 Marcellinus Comes 100 the fragment makes no specific

mention of Stobi MikulCic who originally considered tl1e earthquake in 5 18 the likely cause of a destruction level in the House of Fuller (see afrud W-MZ [1974] J 39) has more recently argued for a somewhat later unrecorded and minor local earthquake MikulCic (supra n 9) 221-223 Kolarik (supra n 73) (1980) 194 has recently suggested that the new mosaics in the south aisle and the narthex of the Episcopal Basilica may have been laid after the earthquake of 518 The new technique for obtaining radiocarbon dates from lime mortar will be applied to mortar from the basilica and may provide some assistance in refining the actual ch ronology of the phases of the basilica The radiocarbon dating technique was successfully developed for analysis of materia l from Stobi see Robert L Folk and S Valastro]r Radiocarbon Dating of Mortar at Stobi Studies II 29- 39middot

90 See Kolarik (supra n 85) in Studies 111 69 9 1 W-MZ (1973) 398-399 92 Windblown dust eventually covered even buildings and

streets on the top of the ridge see the discussion by Folk (supra n 71) 20- 2 I The dead found in the debris are discussed by Wiseman (supra n 59)

93 Coins 7 1-7087 1-47 1 and 72-63 see W-MZ (1973) 398 note 26

94 Blaga Aleksova Medieval Craves in the North Basilica Studies I II 253 - 261 Professor Aleksova dates the burials to the 9th- I Ith centuries

95 Cedrenus CSHB 2 709A 96 W-MZ (1972) 417 W-MZ (1973) 394 97 W-MZ (1972) 4 12 An uncorrected radiocarbon date of

1820 AD plusmn 40 was obtained from a wooden crosstie in tl1e pavement S Valastro] r E Mott Davis and Alejandra C Varela University of Texas at Austin Radiocarbon Dates X Radiocarbon 17 (1975) 98 sample TX-1349 (Stobi R-7 1 - 2 3)middot

98 Heuzey (supra n I) 34 99 Folk (supra n 71) 17- 2 1 100 W-MZ (1972) 412 101 See the discussion in Wiseman (supra n 59) with sources

and secondary works there in notes 7-9 102 Folk (supra n 99) 103 The survivors of Stobi along with the bishop may not have

travelled far to resettle in the late 6th and 7th centuries eg they may have settled just several kilometers upstream near the modern village ofRosoman where Late Antique remains have been noted Such a circumstance might explain why two bishops of Stobi are known from the 7th century (see Table 2) after the abandonment and destruction of the city itself ie the community still existed but in a different location

49

1861

3rd century BC

197 BC 183 BC

167 BC

119 BC

Late 1St century BCshyEarly 1St century AD

Table 1 A summary of investigations at Stobi

J G von Hahn visits the site

Leon Heuzey visits the site

Reconnaissance by Axel von Premerstein and N Vulic

French and Serbian soldiers dig defensive trenches

German soldiers uncover parts of three basilicas

Excavations by the National Museum of Beograd directed by Balduin Saria and VR Petrovic

Excavations by the Museum of Prince Paul directed by Jozo Petrovic and Djordje Mano-Zissi

Conservation activities directed by Krum Tomovski

Minor excavation and conservation by the Archaeological Museum of Skopje

Conservation and reconstruction by the Conservation Institute of Macedonia with minor excavation jointly with the Archaeogical Museum of Skopje

American-Yugoslav joint project sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin (until 1973) Boston University and the National Museum ofTitov Veles and directed by Djordje Mano-Zissi Blaga Aleksova and James Wiseman

Excavations by the National Museum of Titov Veles directed by Blaga Aleksova

Table 2

Selected dates and historical events at Stobi

Stobi in existence

Philip V operating in region known as an old city

Stobi becomes salt emporium for third mens of Macedonia

Roman province of Macedonia created

Roman troops battle Scordisci near Stobi

Stobi expands greatly in area becomes a municipium enjoys the ius Italicum

Stobi begins to mint its own coins 69

50

2nd century

Early 3rd century

Late 3rd century

ca 386

Late 4th century

447

Mid-5th century

479

Late 5thshyEarly 6th century

Early 6th century

535-545

569-570

(terminus post quem)

Late 6thshy7th centuries

680

101 4

W I S EM A N Stobi Macedonia

Jewish community in existence theater built

Stobi ceases to mint coins

Stobi struck by at least one earthquake lower city flooded Goths operating in the region

Budius Bishop of Stobi attends Council of Nicaea

Stobi becomes capital () ofnew province of Macedonia Salutaris (later Macedonia Secunda)

Theodosius issues decrees at Stobi

Theater closed large church built catastrophic landslide and flood Alaric and the

Visigoths in region (395)

Possible H unnic raid

Nicolaus Bishop of Stobi attends Council ofChalcedon

New Episcopal Basilica built above earlier church Christian church replaces synagogue Cemetery Basilica built

Theodoric captures Stobi

Philip is Bishop at Stobi ()

Earthquake strikes Stobi (5 18)

Province of Macedonia Secunda dissolved ()

Stobi abandoned vandalized struck by earthquake Slavs arrive

Sporadic partial reoccupation

loannes Bishop of Stobi attends Sixth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

Magarites Bishop of Stobi attends Second Trullanum Synod

Basil II destroys a military garrison at Stobi

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

shy------shy

---shy

ONIS Naissus

------

--- i

o I o

50 KILOMETERS I

I 50 MILES

r i

_

OSOFIA Serdica

u L G A R A

r _Jr ( ) - - ----- (r - v)

( -

OJ ~-_ DEMIR (-I-~ ----j )

~ ~ f Ilt __ ~__ j tJ Dwan

( OH~ID l) ~ z L Ohnd OBITOLA 0

to ~ Of ) o

-- (

-~

)

I )

(

( ~ MT OLYMPUS

---r BOD I975

3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

49

1861

3rd century BC

197 BC 183 BC

167 BC

119 BC

Late 1St century BCshyEarly 1St century AD

Table 1 A summary of investigations at Stobi

J G von Hahn visits the site

Leon Heuzey visits the site

Reconnaissance by Axel von Premerstein and N Vulic

French and Serbian soldiers dig defensive trenches

German soldiers uncover parts of three basilicas

Excavations by the National Museum of Beograd directed by Balduin Saria and VR Petrovic

Excavations by the Museum of Prince Paul directed by Jozo Petrovic and Djordje Mano-Zissi

Conservation activities directed by Krum Tomovski

Minor excavation and conservation by the Archaeological Museum of Skopje

Conservation and reconstruction by the Conservation Institute of Macedonia with minor excavation jointly with the Archaeogical Museum of Skopje

American-Yugoslav joint project sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin (until 1973) Boston University and the National Museum ofTitov Veles and directed by Djordje Mano-Zissi Blaga Aleksova and James Wiseman

Excavations by the National Museum of Titov Veles directed by Blaga Aleksova

Table 2

Selected dates and historical events at Stobi

Stobi in existence

Philip V operating in region known as an old city

Stobi becomes salt emporium for third mens of Macedonia

Roman province of Macedonia created

Roman troops battle Scordisci near Stobi

Stobi expands greatly in area becomes a municipium enjoys the ius Italicum

Stobi begins to mint its own coins 69

50

2nd century

Early 3rd century

Late 3rd century

ca 386

Late 4th century

447

Mid-5th century

479

Late 5thshyEarly 6th century

Early 6th century

535-545

569-570

(terminus post quem)

Late 6thshy7th centuries

680

101 4

W I S EM A N Stobi Macedonia

Jewish community in existence theater built

Stobi ceases to mint coins

Stobi struck by at least one earthquake lower city flooded Goths operating in the region

Budius Bishop of Stobi attends Council of Nicaea

Stobi becomes capital () ofnew province of Macedonia Salutaris (later Macedonia Secunda)

Theodosius issues decrees at Stobi

Theater closed large church built catastrophic landslide and flood Alaric and the

Visigoths in region (395)

Possible H unnic raid

Nicolaus Bishop of Stobi attends Council ofChalcedon

New Episcopal Basilica built above earlier church Christian church replaces synagogue Cemetery Basilica built

Theodoric captures Stobi

Philip is Bishop at Stobi ()

Earthquake strikes Stobi (5 18)

Province of Macedonia Secunda dissolved ()

Stobi abandoned vandalized struck by earthquake Slavs arrive

Sporadic partial reoccupation

loannes Bishop of Stobi attends Sixth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

Magarites Bishop of Stobi attends Second Trullanum Synod

Basil II destroys a military garrison at Stobi

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

shy------shy

---shy

ONIS Naissus

------

--- i

o I o

50 KILOMETERS I

I 50 MILES

r i

_

OSOFIA Serdica

u L G A R A

r _Jr ( ) - - ----- (r - v)

( -

OJ ~-_ DEMIR (-I-~ ----j )

~ ~ f Ilt __ ~__ j tJ Dwan

( OH~ID l) ~ z L Ohnd OBITOLA 0

to ~ Of ) o

-- (

-~

)

I )

(

( ~ MT OLYMPUS

---r BOD I975

3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

50

2nd century

Early 3rd century

Late 3rd century

ca 386

Late 4th century

447

Mid-5th century

479

Late 5thshyEarly 6th century

Early 6th century

535-545

569-570

(terminus post quem)

Late 6thshy7th centuries

680

101 4

W I S EM A N Stobi Macedonia

Jewish community in existence theater built

Stobi ceases to mint coins

Stobi struck by at least one earthquake lower city flooded Goths operating in the region

Budius Bishop of Stobi attends Council of Nicaea

Stobi becomes capital () ofnew province of Macedonia Salutaris (later Macedonia Secunda)

Theodosius issues decrees at Stobi

Theater closed large church built catastrophic landslide and flood Alaric and the

Visigoths in region (395)

Possible H unnic raid

Nicolaus Bishop of Stobi attends Council ofChalcedon

New Episcopal Basilica built above earlier church Christian church replaces synagogue Cemetery Basilica built

Theodoric captures Stobi

Philip is Bishop at Stobi ()

Earthquake strikes Stobi (5 18)

Province of Macedonia Secunda dissolved ()

Stobi abandoned vandalized struck by earthquake Slavs arrive

Sporadic partial reoccupation

loannes Bishop of Stobi attends Sixth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

Magarites Bishop of Stobi attends Second Trullanum Synod

Basil II destroys a military garrison at Stobi

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

shy------shy

---shy

ONIS Naissus

------

--- i

o I o

50 KILOMETERS I

I 50 MILES

r i

_

OSOFIA Serdica

u L G A R A

r _Jr ( ) - - ----- (r - v)

( -

OJ ~-_ DEMIR (-I-~ ----j )

~ ~ f Ilt __ ~__ j tJ Dwan

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---r BOD I975

3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

75 W I S E MAN Slohl Mo(pdnnia

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ONIS Naissus

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--- i

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50 KILOMETERS I

I 50 MILES

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OSOFIA Serdica

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OJ ~-_ DEMIR (-I-~ ----j )

~ ~ f Ilt __ ~__ j tJ Dwan

( OH~ID l) ~ z L Ohnd OBITOLA 0

to ~ Of ) o

-- (

-~

)

I )

(

( ~ MT OLYMPUS

---r BOD I975

3R Map showing the localion of Slobi (Drawing by BO Davis)

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

+ + + + +

+

i

32

~ ~ - -shy

+

+ + + CONTOUR IN1ERVAL 050 m EB 39 Map of Stobi

I Museum 2 North Basilica

3 Small Residences 4 Civil Basilica

5 Little Bath 6 Central Basilica and Synagogues

7 House of Psalms 8 Central Fountain

9 10

IL

12

13 14 15 16

Large Bath Via Principalis Inferior House of Peristeria Via Theodosia House of Parthenius Theodosian Palace Via Principalis Superior House of the Fuller

17 Prison Area 18 Episcopal Residence 19 Semicircular Court 2() Episcopal Basilica 21 Baptistery 22 Via Sacra 23 Porta Heraclea 24 Theater

25 Casino 26 Via Axia 27 Inner City Wall 28 Casa Romana 29 East City wall and Turkish Bridge 30 West Cemetery 31 Cemetery Basilica 32 Palikura Basilica

The map was drawn by C Salit FP Hemans and E Scull and is based on an earliersurveyanddrawingby Paul Huffman (1971 land David B Peck (1972) with additions by Charles Ehrhorn (1973) and Hemans (1974)

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

-------

77

o 35 m

40 Stobi two silver denarii from the coin hoard found below the synagogue 4 I Stobi schematic drawing of structures near the Crna River (Drawing by The coin on the left in no 74-948 is one of several issued by C Cassius FP Hemans) the coin on the right 74-916 an issue of M Porcius Laeca dates to 125

BC and is the latest coin in the hoard

42 Stobi molded stucco panels and pilasters in the Casa Romana View of the upper part of the south wall

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

W I S E MAN Stobi Macedonia

43 Stobi street paved with flagstones between the Cas a Romana (left) and the East City Wall (right) view to north The lower deposits (first step in center) of the late 3rd century were capped by a stratum of debris then riverine deposits visible in the scarp of the trench The catastrophic mudslide is represented by the stratum that crosses the wall of the Casa Romana

44middot Stobi the Inner City Wall crossing the large building SW of the Casa Romana North is at the topofthe photo The large mosaic floor is visible in trenches to the right of the wall (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

45middot Stobi theater Episcopal Basilica complex and environs North is at the top of the photo The House of the Fuller is located in the upper left (Photo from a tethered balloon by J Wilson Myers)

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

79

46 Stobi theater part of the c1vea from the orchestra view to SW

47middot Stobi mosaic floor pavement (partial) of the 4th-century synagogue found below the Central Basilica North is at the top of the photo

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

80 W I S E MAN Slobi Macedonia

0 j 1

i1

~l lC= ~==~~~~~~

20m --~----~------

48 SLObi plan or early structures in the area of the Episcopal Basilica (Drawing FP Hemans)

49 SLObi part of mural on the north wall of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica (The photo is of a water color rendering by OJ Georgievski)

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

81

gt0 Stobi part of the 4th-century church below the Episcopal Basilica The north aisle is in the foreground Immediately beyond the meter stick is the stvlobate for an Ionic column base (part of the north colonnade) The presbyterium mosaics and beddings for ~ seclile are left center to the right is the mosaic of the nave

51 Stobi street paved with theater seats near the Episcopal Residence View to the SW The street is visible in the aerial photo published in Figure 45

(

0

52 Stobi restored plan of the Episcopal Basilica complex Phase I I (early 6th century) (Drawing by FP Hemans)

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

82 W I S E MAN Stobi Mocedonin

53 SLObi sunken apse of the Episcopal Basilica from the presbyterium The standing column was re-erected incorrectly before the Second World War

54middot Stobi baptistery south of the Episcopal Basilica view from the SE

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl

55 SLObi part of fresco from the NE conch of the baptistery The figure in the center may be a representation of Matthew the Evangelisl