Stelai of ancient Amorium city

The city of Amorium was one of the important cities of Roman Asia Minor.However, the city was particularly important during Byzantine times and was onlysurpassed by Constantinople and Thessaloniki. The significance of this Phrygian citywas partly due to its geographic position since it was on a major junction on theroads that tied the east and west. Subsequently, this city in the central AnatolianPlateau became a place where various cultures interacted with each other, which canbe seen visually.The Phrygian type gravestones found at Amorium and its immediate vicinityhelp us to estimate the degree of cultural interactions that took place in this part ofRoman and Early Byzantine Anatolia.These gravestones from Amorium have not so far been examinedcomprehensively in detail. Previous studies on this type of artifact at Amorium didnot place special emphasis on the implications of these gravestones for the ethno-cultural structure of the city and the region. In this context, this study also aims topresent new data on beliefs that existed at Amorium and in Phrygia as a whole.Phrygian type gravestones constitute the most distinctive type among the examplesrepresented there. Moreover, these Phrygian gravestones also differ from thoseexamples found in other parts of Phrygia in terms of style and manufacturingtechniques. This may help us to formulate new hypotheses about the gravestones ofPhrygia as a whole.