A NEW TERRACOTTA TESSERA FROM THE EXCAVATIONS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MILAN AT PALMYRA (TADMOR, SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC) (2010)

Abstract

Between 2007 and 2010 the University of Milan and the General Directorate of Antiquities
and Museums in Damascus carried out archaeological excavations in the southwest
area of ancient Palmyra (Tadmor - Syrian Arab Republic)1. One of the most significant
results of this field research, directed by Professor Maria Teresa Grassi and Dr.
Waleed Al-As’Ad, has been the discovery of a vast (probably private) Roman building
containing a large peristyle and a series of rooms (Fig. 1)2.
In November 2010, the last month of excavation before the beginning of Arab uprisings
in March 2011, some local workers found a terracotta token, one of the so-called
“Palmyrene banquet tesserae”. This article presents this remarkable find and its archaeological
context. The token offers new data on the use of terracotta tesserae in Palmyra, a
subject of interest amongst past and current scholars3. Moreover, the tessera comes from a well-documented stratigraphic context, which reveals information about its potential purpose, and its final disposal or loss in a private housing area of the ancient city.

The article contains three main sections. The first is a concise overview of the Roman
building and archaeological context where the token was found in 2010. The second part
offers a description and assessment of the tessera, analysing its iconography. The third
section focuses on the token potential uses in relationship with the context where the artifact
was finally deposited.