The main part of the ancient public cemetery has been excavated at the Vitzi site, on the modern coast road of Paroikia. It was located outside the city-wall. Its large size indicates the ancient city’s wealth and size. Part of the cemetery was discovered in this area by the German archaeologist Otto Rubensohn in the late 19th century. He uncovered late Hellenistic and Roman marble sarcophagi, which stood on stone-built pedestals, two of which unusually tall. Nowadays, none of the monuments is visible, while only parts of the sarcophagi with decorating scenes are exhibited in the Archaeological Museum. Their shape and size are known to us by Rubensohn’s drawn reconstruction.
During the Hellenistic period funerary monuments on Paros became monumental in size and decoration, following the demands of prominent citizens, who sought to express their economical, social and political power in this way. This tradition continued in the Roman period with the elaborate marble sarcophagi, now preserved in the ancient cemetery and the Archaeological Musuem.
Yannos Kourayos
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