Blattkapitelle in Konya

Lykaonien zwischen Sidamaria und Binbirkilise

Abstract

Two dozen Roman and Byzantine leaf capitals in the archaeological museum and the Alaeddin Mosque in Konya originate from Sidamaria, Iconium and Pappa Tiberiupolis. One may be connected with the Sidamaria sarcophagus, others with Docimium and the genesis of the narrow- and broad-pointed acanthus. The capitals show that stonemasonry in the Lycaonian capital Iconium was up-to-date and following the leading Anatolian workshop of Docimium. The capitals demonstrate that Lycaonian architecture was not generally as primitive as Binbirkilise, the province’s best preserved and most famous ruins that – seen in isolation – appeared to reflect innate originality. On the evidence of the capitals, architecture elsewhere in Lycaonia was up-to-date, in close contact with neighbouring provinces, and followed transregional trends.