Corrigenda Porolissensia (II). Authentic, or Forgery? Critical Analysis of Some Early Christian Evidence at Porolissum

Abstract

The author briefly presents some famous forgeries in Roman archeology and epigraphy starting from the Renaissance till to the 21st century. After this introduction he is reanalyzing a Roman shard from Porolissum having incised after burning signs and letters interpreted several times as Early Christian symbols and texts. The author carefully examines the find starting from the unknown conditions of discovery, till to the interpretation of the texts. His conclusion is that the signs and inscriptions are not authentic, but it is a forgery not identified by the archaeologists of the period. In a second part of the study the author is debating other two false interpretations of two Roman buildings at Porolissum. First one was the temple of Palmyrene god Bel which was considered as transformed into a Christian Basilica in the 4th century after the Roman administration left Dacia. The allegation was not supported by any positive evidence and on this ground is rejected by the author of the present article. The second case is the shrine of goddess Nemesis identified based on an inscription under the stone stands of the amphitheater. The idea of a Christian martyrial church proposed cannot be accepted. The author demonstrates why it is impossible to imagine at Porolissum the existence of these Christian churches in the 4th century.