L'eau dans les espaces et les pratiques funéraires d'Alexandrie aux époques grecque et romaine (IVe siècle av. J.-C. – IIIe siècle ap. J.-C.)

Description

In the cemeteries of Graeco-Roman Alexandria in Egypt, archaeological investigations initiated more than a century ago discovered various water systems adapted for specific funerary purposes. From the foundation of the city in 332 B.C. to the third century A.C., over fifty hydraulic installations have been noted within the records of Alexandria itself and its vicinity. From a corpus that inventories the hydraulic structures identified to this day in the archaeological literature, the different water management systems are described and reasons put forward to explain the presence of these devices (wells, cisterns, basins, etc.). The results show that the cemeteries should not just be considered as a 'cities for the dead' but also as places of rebirth and life. Some of the devices discovered within the funerary context have echoes in the libation systems already known in the Mediterranean and lead towards an evaluation, from textual and iconographical documents, of the role of water in the offerings to the Alexandrian dead. Front Cover Title Page Copyright Dedication ABSTRACT AVANT-PROPOS TABLE DES MATIÈRES INTRODUCTION CHAPITRE 1. LA GESTION DE L'EAU DANS LES ESPACES FUNÉRAIRES D'ALEXANDRIE CHAPITRE 2. LES BESOINS EN EAU DANS LA NÉCROPOLE CHAPITRE 3. L'EAU ET LA SOIF DU MORT CONCLUSION CATALOGUE DES AMÉNAGEMENTS HYDRAULIQUES DANS LES NÉCROPOLES ANTIQUES D'ALEXANDRIE ET ES ENVIRONS BIBLIOGRAPHIE TABLE DES FIGURES