Rescue excavation and findings in Marul Ovasi Bahcearasi neighborhood Cine district Aydin province

ABSTRACT RESCUE EXCAVATION AND FINDINGS IN MARULOVASI BAHÇEARASI NEİGHBORHOOD CINE DISTRICT AYDIN PROVINCE Simge BALCI ÇAKALOGLU MSc Thesis at Archaeology Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Murat ÇEKİLMEZ 2024, XXIII+250 Pages In 2018, upon the report of a marble statue and some cultural artifacts being unearthed during the water line works conducted by DSİ in Marulovası, Bahçearası Neighborhood, Çine District, Aydın Province, a rescue excavation was carried out by the experts of the Aydın Archaeology Museum. In the works conducted in two stages, two different spaces were revealed. The excavation context includes a single-handled terracotta pot, a terracotta lid, a terracotta spindle whorl, a frit bead, a bone spoon, 6 bone needles, 3 bronze coins, and thirty-one study-worthy terracotta roof tiles. The aim of this study is to evaluate the archaeological data obtained from a rescue excavation within the context, support archaeological-logical evaluations with analytical methods, and present this comprehensive study to the scientific world. The revealed spaces are located on the edge of the Marsyas (Çine) River, one of the important branches of the Büyük Menderes River. This location also draws attention due to its proximity to the ancient cities of Alabanda and Tralleis. The spaces and findings, determined to have been inhabited from the 2nd century AD onwards, make this study significant as they provide insights into the daily life practices and artistic interactions of a rural settlement. Studies on the statue of a standing male child differentiate it from similar examples due to its use in a residential context in the 2nd century AD. The iconographic evaluation of the artifact as Ascanius (Iulus) has also made it the focal point of the study by revealing the thought structure of the period. Proposals for the dating of the artifact's use and iconographic and analytical evaluations of the painted areas observed on it are presented in the study. The first part of the study deals with the excavation works. This section is included in the thesis as an infrastructure for the determinations anticipated to be made within the scope of the study. In the second part, determinations regarding the function of the revealed spaces are included. It was determined that the spaces belonged to the type of private bath room (lavatrina) and peristyle courtyard house, and evaluations were made by comparing them with known similar examples in the Caria Region and its vicinity. Typological and analogical evaluations of other findings in the excavation context are also presented in this section. The analysis results and evaluations made to reach a holistic approach are included in the third part. The results of the analyses made with the P-XRF method were compared with the results of analyses from previous studies. According to this, the similarities and differences detected in the clay structure of the artifact were evaluated, and comparisons were made with different production sites. In the analyses conducted on the marble statue, a lack of provenance results was encountered in the literature. Since determining the quarry from which a marble was extracted undoubtedly requires a more comprehensive study, alternative solutions to the problem were presented within the available means. Accordingly, the similarities detected with the Menderes Massif rocks and the prominent ancient marble quarries were mentioned. In the conclusion section, the relationship between the spaces and findings was evaluated, and the structure, interactions, socio-economic, and socio-cultural contexts of the Roman Imperial Period settlement in the Caria Region were conveyed to the scientific world. KEY WORDS: Caria Region, Context, Rural Settlement, Sculpture, Space.