Reflections on White Marble at Labraunda

Résumé 0

The aim of this paper is to discuss white marble used for architectonic elements and statuary in the Labraunda Sanctuary.1 The buildings on the site date from three main periods: Hekatomnid, Roman Imperial, and Late Antiquity. White marble pieces with widely different characteristics were identified during examination and conservation. Some were coarse or medium-grained of a warm white hue; others were fine-grained of a cold white hue, grey-veined or in a variety of greyish nuances. One area of interest was the marbles’ provenance and how marble trade in the region was conducted, especially during the Hekatomnid period. Another area of interest was whether distinctive types could be associated with the respective periods or whether the choice of marble was related to types of object, in this case architectural elements and statuary. A set of scientific methods were applied on a number of samples. The results showed that marbles quarried during the Hekatomnid period mainly came from Herakleia on Latmos; that marble quarried during the Roman Imperial period was brought from quarries at Mylasa and elsewhere; and that marbles found on the site were reused during Late Antiquity. Subsequent tests indicated that the type of marble used related to a specific period rather than to a specific type of artefact.