Funerary Imprecations in the Balcan Provinces

Abstract

The paper aims at collecting and analysing the inscriptions from the Balcan provinces which contain imprecations addressed to potential grave violators. One surprising result of the analysis is the fact that the inscriptions with funerary imprecations are quite an insignificant part of the total number of the funerary inscriptions found in the area. Taking into consideration the fact that the topoi contained in the attested imprecations demonstrate a clear microasiatic influence, il seems quite likely that the investigated funerary imprecations should be a phenomenon coming from the East. As far as chronology is concerned, it is possible to note a strong disproportion in the distribution of the imprecations, their peak being in the period between the fourth and the sixth century. This peak coincides with the appearance of a new type of funerary imprecation in which the Christian God is invoked to protect the tomb. On the basis of these observations the paper offers the more general conclusion that funerary imprecations in the Balcan provinces can be perceived as reflecting the ethnic and religious changes in the area during the period of the late Antiquity.

DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v4n1p469