Chapter Stone to Stone. Patterns and Layouts in Re-Engraved Dedicatory Inscriptions

Abstract

Layout issues have never been systematically considered in relation to re-engraved epigraphic texts. In such cases, focusing on layout is important not only for the sake of restoring missing words, but also in order to reach a better understanding of the decisions made by stonecutters when confronted with older inscriptions. The aim of this chapter is to select, from the broad spectrum of re-inscriptions, those in which stonecutters were able to interact directly with the epigraphic “originals,” and, in cases where both versions are preserved, to analyze whether and to what extent this interaction occurred. To this end, the first part of the chapter discusses a taxonomy of re-inscriptions, with specific attention to the spatial, temporal, and functional distance between various versions, while the second part offers an overview of seven case studies drawn from the genre of dedicatory inscriptions, in order to determine whether the layout of older versions is preserved or discarded in the later ones.