Ingrid Laube, ‘The Sarapieion of Alexandria – The Architecture in the Context of the Osiris Cult’
The Sarapieion of Alexandria was completely rebuilt in the 3rd century BCE under Ptolemy III and again in the 2nd century CE. The topography combines 'Greek-Ptolemaic' and 'Egyptian-Ptolemaic' elements and provides a spotlight on how the sanctuary was used politically in the respective reconstruction phases. The lecture will present possible reconstructions of the buildings, and focus on how the architecture has to be understood in the context of the known rituals that took place in the temenos. These include the Choiak Festival, for which an Osiris necropolis was presumably built, and the New Year’s Festival, which was still celebrated during the Roman Imperial Period.
The Graeco-Aegyptiaca lectures are organized by the UCL Department of Greek and Latin, London and the Palladion, Budapest. The series started in January 2022 with papers given monthly by established scholars in the field of ancient Egyptian and Greek cultural relations.
Recordings of our previous lectures are accessible on the Palladion website.
