Προβάλλοντας τους κρατίστους. Πρακτικές τίμησης και η δύναμη της εικόνας και του λόγου στην ελληνική πόλη της Αυτοκρατορικής περιόδου

Abstract

Displaying the elite. Honorific practices and the power of image and speech in the Greek city during the imperial period.

The political culture of the imperial-period Greek cities gave rise to a sophisticated system of civic honors. Such honors were bestowed upon both Roman officials and local worthies who acted as pillars of their communities. Within the context of imperial period honorific culture, we observe the intensification of the honorific statue habit. Under this framework, the various institutions and executive bodies of the Greek cities developed a rich honorific vocabulary so as to buttress conduits of power and privilege. This article investigates public, eponymous, marble portraits, and their inscribed bases, from the Greek mainland. It focuses on the incorporation of mythological metaphors into the standard repertoire of public honorific language, as evinced by inscriptions engraved on statue bases. By looking closely at the relationship between specific statuary types and the claims of honorific language, I am examining the nuanced ways in which publicly decreed portraits complemented, embodied even, the impression conveyed by honorific inscriptions.