Funerary Inscription for Tiberius Claudius Kerdon
Funerary Inscription for Tiberius Claudius Kerdon
Place of OriginGreece, Island of Kalymnos
Date1st or 2nd century CE
Dimensions18 1/2 × 11 × 2 1/2 in. (47 × 27.9 × 6.4 cm)
object with pedestal: 20 1/8 × 14 × 7 1/4 in. (51.1 × 35.6 × 18.4 cm)
object with pedestal: 20 1/8 × 14 × 7 1/4 in. (51.1 × 35.6 × 18.4 cm)
MediumMarble.
ClassificationSculpture
Object number
1927.28
Not on View
DescriptionGreek funerary inscription, from Calymnos.
Label TextThis marble inscription from the Aegean island of Kalymnos marks the grave of a young child named Tiberius Claudius Kerdon. The Greek text translates to “I, Tiberius Claudius Kerdon, of Ephesus [----] lie here. A child, not yet having looked upon my relatives, being of few years, two and a half.” Though Ephesus is identified as Kerdon’s origin, his burial on the island of Calymnos suggests migration or family ties across regions, a common occurrence in the interconnected Hellenistic world. The child’s first two names, Tiberius Claudius, are Roman in origin, suggesting either that the family’s ancestors migrated to Ephesus from Italy or, more likely, that they were formerly enslaved by a Roman citizen bearing that name. It was common in the Roman world for enslaved people, upon being freed, to take on the praenomen (first name) and nomen (family name) of their enslaver.Published ReferencesUnpublished (as of 2024).
1st-2nd century CE
after 87-89 CE
2nd century CE
1st-2nd century CE
First half of first century
First half of first century
First half of first century
4th century CE
about 130 CE
about 90 CE
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