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The Esquiline Treasure is an ancient Roman silver treasure that was found in 1793 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome. The hoard is considered an important example of late antique silver work from the 4th century AD, probably about 380 for the major pieces.〔Projecta; Cameron argues for about this date for the Projecta pieces, throughout; Shelton argues for "about 330-370", in Shelton (1985), 147〕 Since 1866, 57 objects, representing the great majority of the treasure, have been in the British Museum.〔(British Museum Collection )〕 Two of the most important objects in the treasure are the ornate silver-gilt engraved boxes known as the ''Projecta Casket'' and the ''Muse Casket''. The treasure was part of the belongings of a wealthy Roman household of high social status, which can probably be identified. The collection includes 8 plates (4 circular and 4 rectangular), a fluted dish, a ewer inscribed for "Pelegrina", a flask with embossed scenes, an amphora, 6 sets of horse trappings, with furniture fittings including 4 tyche figures representing the 4 main cities of the Roman Empire: Rome, Constantinople, Antioch and Alexandria, two hands clenching bannisters, and an assortment of jewellery.〔Kent and Painter, 44; Projecta and other BM pages; see External links for how to reach these〕 Although a number of large late Roman hoards have been discovered, most are from the fringes of the empire (such as Roman Britain), and very few objects from the period can be presumed to have been made by silversmiths in Rome itself, giving the Esquiline Treasure a "special significance".〔Kent and Painter, 18-19, 44 quoted〕 This major hoard is displayed in room 41 of the British Museum alongside the Carthage Treasure and near the British finds of the Mildenhall Treasure, Hoxne Hoard, Water Newton Treasure and the Corbridge Lanx. It has been observed that the majority of the major surviving late Roman silver hoards are in the British Museum.〔Kent and Painter, 9; at the start of his "Late-Roman silver plate: a reply to Alan Cameron" in the ''Journal of Roman Archaeology'' 6, 1993, Kenneth Painter lists (before the discovery of the Sevso Treasure, which he implies should join the list) "the 5 surviving major hoards" of late Roman silver, of which four (Esquiline, Carthage, Mildenhall and the earlier Chaourse) are in the British Museum. The other was the Kaiseraugst Treasure in Augst, Switzerland, (PDF )〕 ==Discovery of the Treasure== In the summer of 1793 workers encountered a large collection of silver objects during excavation work at the foot of the Esquiline Hill in Rome, which had been the area favoured by the Roman aristocracy for their houses throughout the Roman period. These items were found in the ruins of a Roman building, which was at that time in the premises of the monastery of San Francesco di Paola in Rome. The first official record of the finds was made one year after their discovery by the famous Italian classical archaeologist and later head of the Capitoline Museum Ennio Quirino Visconti.〔Kent and Painter, 44; Projecta and other BM pages〕 The treasure passed through many hands before eventually being acquired by the French collector and one-time ambassador to Rome the Duc de Blacas. In 1866 his collection was sold in its entirety to the British Museum.〔Kent and Painter, 44; Projecta and other BM pages〕 However, two other items in the treasure can be found in the Musee du Petit Palais in Paris (a highly decorated ''trulla'' or saucepan),〔Kent and Painter, #94〕 and the Museo Nazionale in Naples (a jug in the form of a women's head). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Esquiline Treasure」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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