Individual Signs on Bricks from an Early Byzantine Temple in Gienos
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24852/2587-6112.2025.5.152.163Keywords:
archaeology, Abkhazia, early Byzantine temple, Gienos, building ceramics, individual signs on bricksAbstract
The paper discusses a summary of the results of studying building ceramics from an early Christian temple of the Byzantine era, located at Gienos fortified settlement (Republic of Abkhazia, Ochamchira). The Ochamchira Joint Russian-Abkhaz Archaeological Expedition has excavated the ancient, and later Byzantine settlement since 2019. The expedition continued the study of an early Byzantine single-nave temple discovered as early as in the mid-1970s. For the first time in the study period, all bricks discovered throughout the excavation were carefully examined. Eleven size classes were identified based on a size study of the bricks, as well as their analogies in other temples of Abkhazia and Transcaucasia. Various signs were found on a number of bricks, which were also carefully studied. The series of signs described in this paper includes single signs and symbols (61 pcs.). All signs were classified and fragmentary symbols were restored where possible. Detailed information is provided for each sign, including its position and location of the brick itself. The signs were divided into a number of groups, in which several conventionally named types were distinguished. The symbols were compared with signs found in other early Byzantine churches of Caucasus, Crimean tiles, as well as the marks of masters in Armenian medieval stone churches, graffiti on medieval Chersoneses ceramics and traditional Abkhaz tamgas. Based on these analogies, assumptions were made about the meaning of certain signs.
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