The population of Aquae Balissae (Pannonia Superior)
The population of Aquae Balissae (Pannonia Superior)

Summary/Abstract: Aquae Balissae, known from the written and epigraphic sources also as ‘res publica Iasorum’ and ‘municipium Iasorum’, was a Roman town that developed in the territory of the Pannonian-Celtic tribe Iasi, situated between the rivers Drava and Sava in northern Croatia (Roman Pannonia Superior). The written sources mentioning this town are scanty, and so is the archaeological evidence, leaving the urbanism and architecture of Aquae Balissae practically at the level of a broad sketch. The evidence of stone monuments is not substantial either, but is quite variegated in terms of both the categories of monuments and artistic renderings. It therefore represents the main source for the research of the town’s population. In this paper a cross section of the population of Aquae Balissae has been attempted through a selection of stone monuments stemming from the town’s presumed ager and containing either an inscription alone or a combination of a relief and inscription. Of a total of 20 monuments nine are funerary, seven votive, and four honorary. They are here discussed in terms of the three most important aspects of the population of Aquae Balissae: (1) social status (the relationship between the civilians and military); (2) religious worship; (3) ethnic and geographical origin (the relationship between the local inhabitants and immigrants). Due to the limited evidence, the analyses produced here remain in the realm of indications rather than final conclusions.

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