The Bouleuterion Court of Aphrodisias in Caria

A Case Study of the Adaptation of Urban Space in Asia Minor from the Roman Imperial Period to Late Antiquity and Beyond

Resumo

The so-called »Bouleuerion Court« is located in the city center of Aphrodisias immediately to the south of the Temple of Aphrodite. It encloses the city’s Bouleuterion which was built around A. D. 200. This article covers the history of this area from the late Hellenistic and early Imperial periods to the Middle Byzantine era, based on the most recent research on its architecture, archaeology, and inscriptions. It becomes evident that a thorough evaluation of archival materials from the 1960s would yield new valuable insight into the stratigraphy and the finds of this important area of the site.
From the early Imperial period to the second half of the 2nd century, the »Bouleuterion Court« served as the urban center and the meeting place of the boule. During the late Antonine or Severan period, the senator Attalos erected a new Bouleuterion for the city council within its confines. Following the decline of traditional urban institutions, the north stoa of the »Bouleuterion Court« housed a sculptor’s workshop. According to an inscription from around A. D. 500, the Bouleuterion was repurposed as a palaistra, and was probably used for sporting events such as wrestling and boxing. Probably due to the rising water table in the city in Late Antiquity, the ground level of the entire court was raised. From the second half of the 6th century onwards, archaeological evidence implies that the area fell into decline. Graves in the area can be dated to the Middle Byzantine period followed by the installation of an olive press. The latter are connected to the conversion of the Temple of Aphrodite into a church. In all, the history of the Bouleuterion Court does not only provide new knowledge on the development of the city center of Aphrodisias, but it is also a valuable mirror in tracing the political and cultural development of Asia Minor.