Two inscriptions from Sagalassos in Pisidia, dating within a wide span of time, between the tetrarchical age and the reign of Constantius II, document not only the relationship of “friendship and alliance” of this city with Rome, but also, and above all, the possession of double neocorate. This prestigious title is certainly attributed to the presence in the city of two official centres of worship for the Emperor and his family, one of whom identified with the temple of Apollo Klarios, located on the hill west of the lesser agorà. The close link established by Emperor Constantine with Apollo, the solar God par excellence of the classical pantheon, is the necessary methodological premise to put into proper perspective the significance of the term νεωκόρος. The persistence of the ‘worship’ of the imperial figure in Sagalassos showed itself not only through the connection between the temple of Apollo and neocorate under the changed Christian forms of a solar deity, but took architectural ‘garments’. The temple of Apollo, in fact, ‘desecrated’ by removing statues of pagan gods and engraving crosses in order to exorcise any demonic presences, was converted, in the second half of the fifth century, in a basilica with a tripartite transept. A city like Sagalassos, still lacking – at least at the time of the Council of Nicaea – of an episcopal seat, would choose, therefore, with good reason, to allude to a sort of a heathen ‘primacy’, which, however, at least potentially, with the support of the Emperor, could have been mutate into a Christian ‘primacy’. It is as if this city was ‘suspended’ between administrative and ecclesiastical province, in a limbo that, in the years following the separation of Pisidia from Pamphylia (ca. 311-312 AD), effectively prevented Sagalassos to be fully either within the state organization or the ecclesiastical organization. Compared to other Pisidian cities as Kolbasa, so much inclined to take sides in favor of Maximinus Daia, and Termessos, sharply inclined to revisit the worship of a local deity in function of Ἥλιος Κωνσταντεῖνος honored by δῆμος, Sagalassos seems for a moment remain ‘tentative’, hovering between saints ‘patrons’ and false idols, between future and past, “friend and ally of the Romans” and yet νεωκόρος, λαμπρὰ καὶ ἔνδοξος but also ἱερά, devoted to Constantine Augustus and his sons Caesares, but however πρώτη πόλις of Pisidia. If neocorate in Sagalassos was intrinsically linked to the cult of Apollo (Talloen, Waelkens) and if the numen of Apollo-Sol seemed intimately connected to the figure of Constantine (Tantillo), then the term νεωκόρος – attributed to the entire city in the age of Constantine and his sons – could semantically allude to the 'nearest' concept of veneration of the Sun, it could approach, i.e., to a solar henotheism embodied by the imperial person and ultimately serve to declare, in a pagan form, the ‘availability’ of πόλις of Sagalassos to ‘worship’ the figure of a Christian emperor.
Due testimonianze epigrafiche, provenienti da Sagalassos in Pisidia e databili entro un ampio arco di tempo, compreso fra l’età tetrarchica e il regno di Costanzo II, documentano non solo il rapporto di “amicizia e alleanza” di questa città con Roma ma anche, e soprattutto, il possesso del doppio neocorato. Tale prestigioso titolo va certamente ricondotto alla presenza nella città di due luoghi di culto ufficiali destinati all’imperatore e alla sua famiglia, uno dei quali identificabile con il tempio di Apollo Klarios, ubicato sulla collina ad O dell’agorà inferiore. Lo stretto legame stabilito dall’imperatore Costantino con Apollo, la divinità solare per eccellenza del pantheon classico, costituisce la necessaria premessa metodologica per porre nella corretta prospettiva la valenza del termine νεωκόρος. La persistenza della ‘venerazione’ della figura imperiale non si esplicò a Sagalassos soltanto attraverso il nesso fra tempio di Apollo e neocorato, nelle mutate forme cristiane di una divinità solare, ma assunse ‘vesti’ architettoniche. Il tempio di Apollo, infatti, ‘sconsacrato’ mediante la rimozione di statue di divinità pagane e l’incisione di croci allo scopo di esorcizzare eventuali demoniache presenze, fu convertito nella seconda metà del V secolo in una basilica con transetto tripartito. Una città come Sagalassos, ancora sprovvista, almeno all’epoca del concilio di Nicea, di una sede vescovile, avrebbe scelto dunque, a ragion veduta, di alludere ad una sorta di ‘primazia’ pagana, la quale, però, almeno potenzialmente, con l’appoggio dell’imperatore, si sarebbe potuta sempre mutare in un ‘primato’ cristiano. È come se questa città si trovasse ‘sospesa’ fra provincia amministrativa e circoscrizione ecclesiastica, in un limbo che, negli anni successivi alla separazione della Pisidia dalla Panfilia (311-312 d.C. ca.), impediva di fatto a Sagalassos sia di ricadere compiutamente dentro l’organizzazione statale sia di trovarsi perfettamente ricompresa all’interno di una diocesi vescovile. Rispetto ad altre città pisidiche come Kolbasa, così decisamente incline a schierarsi a favore di Massimino Daia, e Termessos, nettamente propensa invece a rivisitare il culto di una divinità locale in funzione di Ἥλιος Κωνσταντεῖνος onorato dal δῆμος, Sagalassos sembra per un attimo rimanere ‘esitante’, in bilico fra santi ‘patroni’ e falsi idoli, tra futuro e passato, “amica e alleata dei Romani” eppure νεωκόρος, λαμπρὰ καὶ ἔνδοξος ma anche ἱερά, devota a Costantino Augustus e ai suoi figli Caesares e però πρώτη πόλις della Pisidia. Se il neocorato a Sagalassos era intrinsecamente legato al culto di Apollo (Talloen, Waelkens) e se il numen di Apollo-Sol appariva intimamente connesso alla figura di Costantino (Tantillo), allora il termine νεωκόρος – attribuito all’intera città nell’epoca di Costantino e dei Costantinidi – avrebbe potuto semanticamente alludere al concetto ‘più prossimo’ della venerazione del Sole, accostarsi, cioè, ad un enoteismo solare incarnato dalla persona imperiale e in ultima analisi servire a dichiarare, sotto una veste pagana, la ‘disponibilità’ della πόλις di Sagalassos ad ‘adorare’ la figura di un imperatore cristiano.
Né pagane né cristiane: le città di Pisidia dopo la “svolta” costantiniana
ARENA, Gaetano Maria
2016-01-01
Abstract
Two inscriptions from Sagalassos in Pisidia, dating within a wide span of time, between the tetrarchical age and the reign of Constantius II, document not only the relationship of “friendship and alliance” of this city with Rome, but also, and above all, the possession of double neocorate. This prestigious title is certainly attributed to the presence in the city of two official centres of worship for the Emperor and his family, one of whom identified with the temple of Apollo Klarios, located on the hill west of the lesser agorà. The close link established by Emperor Constantine with Apollo, the solar God par excellence of the classical pantheon, is the necessary methodological premise to put into proper perspective the significance of the term νεωκόρος. The persistence of the ‘worship’ of the imperial figure in Sagalassos showed itself not only through the connection between the temple of Apollo and neocorate under the changed Christian forms of a solar deity, but took architectural ‘garments’. The temple of Apollo, in fact, ‘desecrated’ by removing statues of pagan gods and engraving crosses in order to exorcise any demonic presences, was converted, in the second half of the fifth century, in a basilica with a tripartite transept. A city like Sagalassos, still lacking – at least at the time of the Council of Nicaea – of an episcopal seat, would choose, therefore, with good reason, to allude to a sort of a heathen ‘primacy’, which, however, at least potentially, with the support of the Emperor, could have been mutate into a Christian ‘primacy’. It is as if this city was ‘suspended’ between administrative and ecclesiastical province, in a limbo that, in the years following the separation of Pisidia from Pamphylia (ca. 311-312 AD), effectively prevented Sagalassos to be fully either within the state organization or the ecclesiastical organization. Compared to other Pisidian cities as Kolbasa, so much inclined to take sides in favor of Maximinus Daia, and Termessos, sharply inclined to revisit the worship of a local deity in function of Ἥλιος Κωνσταντεῖνος honored by δῆμος, Sagalassos seems for a moment remain ‘tentative’, hovering between saints ‘patrons’ and false idols, between future and past, “friend and ally of the Romans” and yet νεωκόρος, λαμπρὰ καὶ ἔνδοξος but also ἱερά, devoted to Constantine Augustus and his sons Caesares, but however πρώτη πόλις of Pisidia. If neocorate in Sagalassos was intrinsically linked to the cult of Apollo (Talloen, Waelkens) and if the numen of Apollo-Sol seemed intimately connected to the figure of Constantine (Tantillo), then the term νεωκόρος – attributed to the entire city in the age of Constantine and his sons – could semantically allude to the 'nearest' concept of veneration of the Sun, it could approach, i.e., to a solar henotheism embodied by the imperial person and ultimately serve to declare, in a pagan form, the ‘availability’ of πόλις of Sagalassos to ‘worship’ the figure of a Christian emperor.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.