Robert M Chapple, Archaeologist

< Back to Table of Contents This inscribed slab of carrara marble dates to the late 6th to early 7th century and was discovered in 1920 in the Saint-Ferjus cemetery in La Tronche, Grenoble. The cemetery is only about 1km to the east of Saint-Laurent and the slab is close in date to the carving of the capitals in the Saint-Oyand crypt . Although the decoration here is incised and that of the capitals is executed in false relief, there is a similarity in the decorative choices. Here we see a two-handled vessel, or cantharus, sprouting swags of luxuriant foliage. On each side there is a bird of some description, looking over its shoulder. While the intention must have been to create a symmetrical composition, the vine on the right swoops noticeably lower than the one on the left, sufficient for a leaf to touch one of the birds. The composition, down to the noticeable lack of symmetry, are reminiscent of the 2nd century parakeet mosaic in the Musee del’Ancien Eveche . While the...

< Back to Table of Contents This remarkable little gravestone caught my eye. It was discovered in Drabuyard, Varces, to the south of Grenoble and dates to the 6th century. The upper portion is decorated with a variety of incised cross-forms (one of which bears more resemblance to a snowflake, but you can't have everything) and a little bird. If my guess is correct, the tuft on top of the bird’s head may be enough to identify it as a peacock. Although modern readers will often consider the peacock as an emblem of pride (“Proud as a peacock” and all that), the ancient Greeks believed that its flesh did not decay after death. In this way, it became a symbol of immortality and was adopted by early Christianity. Although fragmentary, the Latin inscription survives sufficiently well to be recorded and translated: [IN H]OCTUMU[LO M]ESERECOR[DIA] [CH]RISTI RE [QUIESC] ET IN [PACE BON] [MEMORIAE] In this tomb by the mercy of Christ, rest in peace, of good memory...