Corpus of Inscriptions of Central Boeotia

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Klaus Hallof
• Subject Area: Ancient History ; Greek and Latin Philology ; Classical, Roman, Christian and Islamic Archaeology
• Term: from 2015 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 264601969

This project aims to prepare a new edition of the corpus of inscriptions from central Boeotia, comprising the cities of Thebes, Plataea, Thisbe, Coronea, Haliartos, Lebadeia, the and port towns of Anthedon, Siphai and Chorsiai. The old corpus edited by W. Dittenberger and published in 1892 in the series of Inscriptiones Graecae Berlin is now obsolete due to the large number of inscriptions discovered after this date as well as a wealth of more recent studies on the epigraphy and history of this region. The number of Boeotian inscriptions has increased from nearly 4000 in Dittenbergers corpus to around 10,000 today. It should be noted that the central region of Boeotia - and in particular the city of Thebes - is one of the most researched and epigraphically rich areas in Central Greece. This area also includes the three major federal sanctuaries of Boeotia, namely the sanctuary of Poseidon at Onchestos near Haliartos, and the Alalkomeneion and the Itonion of Coronea. Most of the inscriptions discovered after 1892 are published in various periodicals, often difficult to access and written in several languages. The epigraphic bibliography on central Boeotia is disparate, a fact that discourages the writing of synthetic works on various aspects of the history of this region. The new edition will include the corpus of the great city of Thebes, as well as Plataea, Thisbe, Coronea, Haliartos, Lebadea and smaller cities such as Anthedon, Chorsiai and Siphai. The corpus of inscriptions from central Boeotia will include a systematic presentation of philological and epigraphic sources on the region, and will be accompanied by a database containing a catalogue of the inscriptions posted and updated online, allowing researchers working in the area access to modern tools for the study of this rich and varied epigraphic material. A corpus of this region containing numerous unpublished inscriptions will prove a major contribution to the history of Boeotia and in particular the history of the Boeotian confederacy from the archaic period until its dissolution in 171 BC. This project will be under the auspices of two institutions that have long traditions in the study of epigraphy and especially that of central Greece and Boeotia: the Inscriptiones Graecae of the Berlin Academy, and the French School at Athens. The new edition of the corpus of Boeotia is a priority for Inscriptiones Graecae but until now it has not been part of their regular scientific program; it will form a major addition to its activities in Central Greece. The CIBEC consitutes a project of a large number of new editions in the epigraphic corpus of Greece and in particular central Greece, accompanied by new reflections on the use of electronic media for the preparation of the corpus.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Greece
• Co-Investigator: Dr. Yannis Kalliontzis