Necropolis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Necropolis (disambiguation).

The gatepost at the entrance to the Western Necropolis in Glasgow

A necropolis is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name
stems from the Ancient Greek ?e???p???? nekropolis, literally meaning city of the
dead. The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distance from a city, as
opposed to tombs within cities, which were common in various places and periods of
history. They are different from grave fields, which did not have remains above the
ground. While the word is most commonly used for ancient sites, the name was
revived in the early 19th century and applied to planned city cemeteries, such as
the Glasgow Necropolis.

History[edit]
[icon]
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2013)

Mastabas in the Giza Necropolis with the Pyramid of Khafre in the background.
The Giza Necropolis of ancient Egypt is one of the oldest and probably the most
well-known necropolis in the world since the Great Pyramid of Giza was included in
the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Aside from the pyramids which were reserved
for the burial of Pharaohs the Egyptian necropoleis included mastabas, a typical
royal tomb of the early Dynastic period.[citation needed]

Naqsh-e Rustam. The order of the tombs in Naqshe-e Rustam, from left to right is
Darius II, Artaxerxes I, Darius I, Xerxes I.
Naqsh-e Rustam is an ancient necropolis located about 12 km northwest of
Persepolis, in Fars Province, Iran. The oldest relief at Naqsh-i Rustam dates to c.
1000 BC. Though it is severely damaged, it depicts a faint image of a man with
unusual head-gear and is thought to be Elamite in origin. The depiction is part of
a larger image, most of which was removed at the command of Bahram II. Four tombs
belonging to Achaemenid kings are carved out of the rock face at a considerable
height above the ground. The tombs are known locally as the 'Persian crosses',
after the shape of the facades of the tombs. Later, Sassanian kings added a series
of rock reliefs below the tombs.

In the Mycenean Greek period pre-dating ancient Greece burials could be performed
inside the city. In Mycenae for example the royal tombs were located in a precinct
within the city walls. This changed during the ancient Greek period when
necropoleis usually lined the roads outside a city. There existed some degree of
variation within the ancient Greek world however. Sparta was notable for continuing
the practice of burial within the city.[1]

Tumuli are placed along a street in the Banditaccia necropolis of Cerveteri.

The Etruscans took the concept of a city of the dead quite literally. The typical
tomb at the Banditaccia necropolis at Cerveteri consists of a tumulus which covers
one or more rock-cut subterranean tombs. These tombs had multiple chambers and were
elaborately decorated like contemporary houses. The arrangement of the tumuli in a
grid of streets gave it an appearance similar to the cities of the living.[2] The
art historian Nigel Spivey considers the name cemetery inadequate and argues that
only the term necropolis can do justice to these sophisticated burial sites.[3][4]
Etruscan necropoleis were usually located on hills or slopes of hills.[5]

In ancient Rome families originally buried deceased relatives in their own homes
because of the Roman practice of ancestor worship. The enactment of the Twelve
Tables in 449 BC forbade this, which made the Romans adopt the practice of burial
in necropoleis.[6]

References[edit]
Jump up ^ Erasmo, Mario (2012). Death Antiquity and Its Legacy. London I.B. Tauris.
p. 74. ISBN 9781848855571.
Jump up ^ Gardner, Helen; Kleiner, Fred S. (2010). Gardner's Art Through the Ages
The Western Perspective. Boston, MA Cengage Learning. p. 148. ISBN 9780495573555.
Jump up ^ Worpole, Ken (2003). Last Landscapes The Architecture of the Cemetery in
the West. London Reaktion Books. pp. 7984. ISBN 9781861891617.
Jump up ^ Spivey, Nigel; Squire, Michael (2004). Panorama of the Classical World.
London Thames & Hudson Ltd. p. 17. ISBN 9781606060568.
Jump up ^ Erasmo, Mario (2012). Death Antiquity and Its Legacy. London I.B. Tauris.
pp. 7677. ISBN 9781848855571.
Jump up ^ Kyle, Donald G. (1998). Spectacles of Death in Ancient Rome. London
Routledge. p. 145. ISBN 9781134862719.