The Heraclean Tablets (in older texts, the ''Heraclean Table(s)''; Lat.''Tabulae Heracleenses'') are bronze tablets found a short distance from the site of

Heraclea Lucania Heraclea, also Heracleia or Herakleia ( grc, Ἡράκλεια), was an ancient city of Magna Graecia. It was situated on the Gulf of Taranto between the rivers Aciris (modern Agri (river), Agri) and Siris (modern Sinni (river), Sinni). The ruin ...

, in the direction of

Metapontum Metapontum or Metapontium ( grc, Μεταπόντιον, Metapontion) was an important city of Magna Graecia, situated on the gulf of Tarentum, between the river Bradanus and the Casuentus (modern Basento). It was distant about 20 km from ...

. They are significant for the study of

Roman Law Roman law is the law, legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...

Background

As a consequence of its having accepted

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

citizenship in 89 BCE, Heraclea became a

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (pl. ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ("duty holders"), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the privi ...

, and the ''Tabulae Heracleenses'' contain a long Latin inscription relating to the municipal regulations of Heraclea, which is a part of a copy of a more general law, the '' Lex Iulia Municipalis'', issued in 45 BCE for the regulation of the municipal institutions of towns throughout Italy. This document is a major authority for the municipal law of ancient Italy; it is engraved on two tablets of bronze, on the back of which is a long Greek inscription of earlier date, probably the 3rd century BC, defining the boundaries of lands belonging to various temples.

History of the tablets

The tablets were separate, and the major one was in two fragments. They were found in 1732, and 1735, in the bed of the

Cavone The Cavone (in its upper course: ''Salandrella'') is a river in the Basilicata region of southern Italy. It is long, and has a drainage basin of . Its source is west of Accettura in the province of Matera near the border with the province of Pote ...

river.''Dialects'', in

Harry Thurston Peck Harry Thurston Peck (November 24, 1856 – March 23, 1914) was an American classical scholar, author, editor, historian and critic. Biography Peck was born in Stamford, Connecticut. He was educated in private schools and at Columbia College, gr ...

, ''Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities'' (1898)
online
A fragment was purchased by

Francesco Ficoroni Francesco (de') Ficoroni (1664–1747) was an Italian connoisseur and antiquarian in Rome closely involved with the antiquities trade. He was the author of numerous publications on ancient Roman sculpture and antiquities, guides to the monuments of ...

and taken to England, where it was sold to Brian Fairfax the younger. On Fairfax's death in 1749, it was bought by

Philip Carteret Webb Philip Carteret Webb (14 August 1702 – 22 June 1770) was an English barrister, involved with the 18th-century antiquarian movement. He became a member of the London Society of Antiquaries in 1747, and as its lawyer, was responsible for securin ...

. In the end it was returned to Naples in 1752. The tablets are now in the

Naples National Archaeological Museum The National Archaeological Museum of Naples ( it, Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, italic=no, sometimes abbreviated to MANN) is an important Italian archaeological museum, particularly for ancient Roman remains. Its collection includes wo ...

Scholarship

The Latin inscription was first published by

Michel Maittaire Michel Maittaire (also Michael) (1668 – 7 September 1747) was a French-born classical scholar and bibliographer in England, and a tutor to Lord Philip Stanhope. He edited an edition of Quintus Curtius Rufus, later owned by Thomas Jefferson. His ...

in 1735. There have been legal commentaries by

Heinrich Eduard Dirksen Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...

(Berlin, 1817–1820) and

Friedrich Carl von Savigny Friedrich Carl von Savigny (21 February 1779 – 25 October 1861) was a German jurist and historian. Early life and education Savigny was born at Frankfurt am Main, of a family recorded in the history of Lorraine, deriving its name from the cast ...

, in his ''Vermischte Schriften'' vol. iii. Both inscriptions were published with commentaries, by Alessio Simmacho Mazzocchi (1684–1771)

John Edwin Sandys Sir John Edwin Sandys ( "Sands"; 19 May 1844 – 6 July 1922) was an English classical scholar. Life Born in Leicester, England on 19 May 1844, Sandys was the 4th son of Rev. Timothy Sandys (1803–1871) and Rebecca Swain (1800–1853). Livin ...

, ''A History of Classical Scholarship: From the Revival of Learning to the End of the Eighteenth Century in Italy, France, England and the Netherlands'' (2011 edition), p. 384
Google Books
(2 vols. fol. Naples, 1754, 1755). The other inscription is in

Doric Greek Doric or Dorian ( grc, Δωρισμός, Dōrismós), also known as West Greek, was a group of Ancient Greek dialects; its varieties are divided into the Doric proper and Northwest Doric subgroups. Doric was spoken in a vast area, that included ...

Notes

External links

Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, ''Lastra con decreto della colonia di Eraclea relativo alle proprietà del tempio di Dioniso, cd. tavole di Eraclea (2480)''
;Attribution * * {{Authority control Greek inscriptions Latin inscriptions Roman law Heraclea Lucania

Background

History of the tablets

Scholarship

Notes

Further reading

External links