Review paper
Lucia Nováková, Trnavská univerzita v Trnave, Filozofická fakulta, https://orcid.org/
0000-0001-9595-2351
pp. 167-180
https://doi.org/10.38003/zrffs.14.10
Abstract:
The paper evaluates works of ancient authors who mention and provide details of the
burial of fallen soldiers in ancient Greece, and then it compares them with preserved
archaeological finds. Textual analysis shows a long-term tradition of war graves on
battlefields. The commanders of the troops provided funeral services in the first
place, as the extradition request of bodies was equal to the recognition of defeat. In
most cases both sides had enough time to take care of their fallen after the battle,
but there were exceptions when the last honors were rather provisional. In addition
to burial directly on the battlefield, it seems that, depending on the circumstances,
the removal of the remains to the hometown or burial outside the battlefield and
outside the home also applies. The tombstones could have various forms, in the
case of collective burials, tumuli with stelae bearing the names of the deceased were
preferred, in the case of burial of military commanders, tombstones took the form of
a monumental statue. Cremation burial is thought to have prevailed over inhumation.
Key words:
antiquity, burial, fallen, Greece, war dead
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