SÜRÜKLEYİCİ ŞEHİR YAZITLARI: MİLET'TE (KÜÇÜK ASYA) YAZTIRLAR VE SOSYAL ALANLARIN İNŞASI (DFG)

Jenny Gabel

The project focuses on the question of how inscriptions structured public spaces in Miletus during the Roman Imperial Period. Inscriptions are a comparatively complex medium: The perception of inscriptions is equally influenced by its formal design, its material, or its placement as by its text. The range of corresponding evidence includes scratched graffiti on the wall at the street corner as well as detailed honorary inscriptions with their own carrier or monumental imperial letters chiselled in careful onto the facades of public buildings. So-called topos (ancient greek for place) inscriptions marked sales stalls in the street or seats in the theatre. Therefore, they affirm the presence of various groups in public spaces. The distribution of the inscriptions and their design can thus reveal spatial constructions resulting from competing agents and groups.

For this project, all inscriptions preserved in situ in Miletus or attributable to specific locations will be documented in their spatial contexts using various methods (drawing, photography, laser scanning, and 3D visualization in virtual reality (VR)) and analyzed regarding the aforementioned question. Dense epigraphic spaces, such as the theatre, are digitally reconstructed. The detailed true to scale 3D model of the theatre is created based on the laser scanning and photogrammetry data. Moreover, former structures including the 3rd seating tier and the first and second Roman stage are digitally reconstructed. The virtual theatre of Miletus will be an interactive experience for VR-headsets like the Meta Quest 2. This immersive tool enables users to experience and investigate the spatial perception of the inscriptions. In addition to a case study of the Greco-Roman period, the project serves as an example of the transcultural and diachronic comparison of inscribed spaces, incorporating perspectives and methods from classical archaeology, ancient history, and human-computer interaction.

You can find additional information and visualizations on the project website. 

• Doctoral Researchers: Ann Lauren Osthof and Jenny Gabel
• Collaboration Partners, Photogrammetry and 3D Scanning: Prof. Ing. Michael Breuer (Berliner Hochschule für Technik (BHT)), Felix Neupert, Johannes Neis