Oenoanda: Pages in Stone

Oenoanda

Oenoanda, also spelt Oinoanda, is the site of the most important philosophical inscription to be found in the classical world: the discourse on Epicurean philosophy by Diogenes of Oenoanda.

Arches, Oenoanda

Some 40 kilometres north east of Fethiye in a forested saddle in the mountains not far off the main road to Antalya, lie the tumbled ruins of the ancient Lycian city of Oenanda. It’s an obscure site, seldom visited by tourists, and its earthquake shattered remains present a forlorn sight.

There are the usual ruins of great walls, of triumphal arches, of an amphitheatre, aqueduct and baths, variations of which can be found in many of the archaeological sites scattered around the Lycian peninsula. But what makes this site so special – unique, in fact – is the wealth of inscriptions to be found here. According to the German Archaeological Institute team, who are currently researching the site, Oinoanda is an ‘epigraphic eldorado’ whose texts ‘are among the most important inscriptions recovered from the ancient Greek world’.

Unfortunately, unless one is a classical scholar and expert in epigraphy, all one can do is stand in mute wonder in front of these writings in stone. I was fortunate enough, however, to visit the site with a friend of mine who happens to have a Classics degree, which he was finally able to put to some use (?) by translating bits and pieces from the Latin and Greek. Suddenly, lumps of rock came alive as mention was made of the ‘Asian Games’, of winners of wrestling matches and of the illustrious sponsors of the competitions and so on.

Diogenes’ Inscription:

But apart from these texts, there is one particular inscription that makes Oenanda unique. The inscription in question is no mere sentence or two, nor even a paragraph. It’s an entire book, 25,000 words long, which originally spanned a wall 80 metres long and took up 260 square metres of wall space. And what’s more it’s a book of philosophy! Its author’s name was Diogenes, a wealthy citizen of the town who is thought to have lived some time during the early part of the second century contemporaneously with the rule of the Emperor Hadrian.

Fragment of Diogenes' philosophic inscription, Oenoanda

Diognenes was an Epicurean, which is to say he subscribed to the arguments of Epicurus (341–270 B.C) whose school of philosophy lasted for over 800 years and which, along with that of the Stoics, was one of the most important philosophic and ethical traditions of the classical world. Not many of the original writings of Epicurus have survived and most of what we know about his philosophy has come down to us second hand from other classical authors who lived long after his death. The major sources are Diogenes Laertius’ (third-century A.D.) “Lives of Eminent Philosophers” and an earlier didactic poem by Lucretius (first century B.C.) De rerum natura (“On the Nature of Things”). Other than these two works, the most comprehensive summary of Epicurus’ ideas is the account presented in these pages in stone written by Diogenes of Oenoanda.

Unfortunately, all that remains to be seen on site are a few blocks scattered here and there, easily distinguished by their page like inscriptions, all of which have been identified and numbered by archaeologists currently working on the site. Though the inscription was first discovered as long ago as the 1880s, it wasn’t until the 1960s and 70s that serious investigations began, notably by the British archaeologist Martin Ferguson Smith who uncovered and translated many more fragments. Since then work has been carried out by the British Institute at Ankara, the Fethiye Museum and, most recently, by the German Archaeological Institute whose team have discovered 50 more fragments since their project started in 2007.

Exactly how many fragments have been found and translated, and where they are all located, I haven’t as yet been able to discover. Sadly, it seems the inscription which was constructed along the ‘stoa,’ or covered public walkway, was soon to be dismantled with much of it ending up in the city’s defensive walls. Many centuries later bits of the engraved stone have been found even further afield, including one block found in a fountain in the nearby village of Incealiler.

Nonetheless, thanks to the work of the archaeologists and scholars, what Diogenes had to say has largely survived and is available for public consumption in book form and on the Internet. I shall attempt a summary of the ideas expressed in the inscription in a later post. Suffice it to say here, in my view its message has relevance to this day. Furthermore, given its location in place and time, I believe it marks a pivotal point in the history of ideas.

Diogenes himself stipulated that his inscription should not be read in a ‘patchy fashion’ but should be read as a whole – all 80 metres of it! The link which follows is provided so anyone reading this article will have the opportunity to meet Diogenes’ request. Meanwhile, here is a key excerpt, courtesy of Martin Ferguson Smith’s translation published at “http://www.epicurus.info/etexts/tei.html”:

“… we contrived this in order that, even while sitting at home, we might be able to exhibit the goods of philosophy, not to all people here indeed, but to those of them who are civil-spoken; and not least we did this for those who are called “foreigners,” though they are not really so.  For, while the various segments of the earth give different people a different country, the whole compass of this world gives all people a single country, the entire earth, and a single home, the world.”

Gallery

Photo Gallery:

Here are a few photos taken at Oenoanda on a grey and overcast day.

Map

Route from Fethiye to Oenoanda.

You can use your mouse to explore the website map or click on the link below it to see the full Google Map version.
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