Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition

Ground Floor The Gallo-Roman Population of Switzerland and Their View of Death
The Extraordinary Finds at the Necropolis of En Chaplix
deceased has been discovered, but it is possible that the urns containing their ashes
stood on top of the monuments or that these were cenotaphs (empty tombs) and
that the remains were buried elsewhere.
The connection between these two monuments built at an interval of twelve
years is not known. However, it seems plausible that the deceased were related and
perhaps owned the suburban villa situated on the nearby site called Le Russalet.
The villa and the monuments may have belonged to a large native Helvetian family,
thus confirming the rapid integration of the local aristocracy into the new Roman
order. These two monuments reflected the prosperity of Avenches during the
Tiberian period.
The Northern Monument
During the construction of the first monument the unstable ground forced the
builders to set the foundations on a number of oak piles driven deep into the
ground. Thanks to the humidity of the ground the wood was preserved and it was
possible through dendrochronological analyses to establish that the felling dates of
the trees lay between AD 23 and 28.
The sculptures (1) decorating the upper part of the podium on both sides of
the exedra represented two symmetrical groups each consisting of a Triton seizing
a Nereid. The concave part was most probably decorated with friezes as proven by
three rather badly preserved male portraits, one of which was probably part of a
retinue.
Judging by the shape of the roof, the ground plan of the aedicule must have
been octagonal. Only a few fragments of the three statues are preserved. The
central figure was a woman – probably the owner and donator of the monument –
flanked by two men wearing togas.
The crown of the roof was decorated with a group consisting of a Satyr carrying
the Child Bacchus, thus symbolising the elevation of the deceased to higher spheres.
9. Satyr Carrying the Child Bacchus (2)
Satyrs, recognisable by their long horses’ ears and their scruffy hairstyles, belong to the
retinue of the wine god Bacchus. In this instance, Bacchus is depicted as a child and has
wings. This particular feature indicates that he is assimilated with Amor-Somnus who
personifies sleep.
In funerary symbolism groups comprising Satyrs and Bacchus represent the
exhilarating and carefree life in the hereafter. Placing such a group on the roof of the
monument implies that the deceased had achieved a divine existence and was enjoying
life after death. This is very important because it is one of the earliest examples of this
Hellenistic theme having been taken over by the Romans (3rd – 2nd centuries BC).
Group, in limestone, crowning the northern monument of En Chaplix. Around 30 AD.
10. Head of a Drunken Silenus (3)
Like the Satyrs, the Sileni belong to the retinue accompanying Bacchus. Their particular
features are horses’ ears, bald heads and bulbous noses. Comparisons with other known
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Ground Floor