Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition

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First Floor Language and Writing Nevertheless, Celtic culture and traditions survived. The Celtic heritage is apparent in art (display case 3, no. 1; display case 5, nos. 1-2), religion, writing, craftsmanship (display case 5, nos. 3-6), hairstyles and clothing (display case 3, no. 1). Display case 3 1. Bust of woman (1) wearing a torque, a typical Celtic piece of jewellery, as well as a tunic and a cloak fashionable among the native population. Limestone. Early 1st century AD at the latest. Display case 4 1. Dedication in honour of Caius Valerius Camillus: C(aio) Valer(io) C(ai) f(ilio) Fab(ia)Ca millo quoi publice funus Haeduorum civitas et Helvet(i)decre verunt et civitas Helvet(iorum) qua pagatim qua publice statuas decrevit I[u]lia C(ai)Iuli Camilli f(ilia) Festilla ex testamento « To Caius Valerius Camillus, son of Caius, of the Fabia tribe, for whom the communities of the Haedui and Helvetii ordered an official funeral; furthermore, the community of the Helvetii dedicated statues to him, in the name of each pagus as well as in the name of the entire civitas. Iulia Festilla, daughter of Caius Iulius Camillus, (erected this inscription) according to the last will of the deceased » Marble block, discovered near the forum. Second quarter of the 1st century AD. Catalogue of inscriptions: no. 5. Display case 5 1. Head of woman, limestone. Cigognier sanctuary. Second half of the 2nd century AD. 2. Gilt bronze head of a dead Helvetian (2). Cigognier sanctuary. 2nd century AD. 3. Ceramic pot, painted according to local tradition. 4-5. Ceramic goblets, with figurative decoration. Second half of the 2nd century AD. 6. Ceramic goblet with erotic scene. Second half of the 2nd century AD. Language and Writing (Display case 6) The Helvetii spoke Gaulish, a Celtic language, which probably varied from one region of Gaul to the next. It was mainly a spoken language. The rare evidence at our disposal consists of written documents of lesser importance, which offer only limited information about Celtic culture. In the beginning, the Celts used Greek letters to transcribe their language. The arrival of the Romans led to the dissemination of Latin, a new language, which, depending on the density of the Roman immigrants, was more or less understood and adopted. 1 2 23 First Floor 3 4 5 6
First Floor Language and Writing No inscriptions in Gaulish have been discovered in Aventicum. From time to time, Celtic names are found, written in a mixture of Greek and Latin alphabets (display case 6, no.9, display case 23, no. 1). It can be assumed that, from the 1st century AD onwards, the inhabitants of Aventicum understood Latin. This is confirmed by funerary, honorific and votive inscriptions dating from this period as well as graffiti carved on various types of surfaces. They used a stylus (stilus) for writing (display case 6, nos. 19-21) which had one sharp end for incising the letters into a wax-covered wooden tablet. The other end was spatula-shaped so that the text could be erased by smoothing out the wax. Several tablets could be tied together with a string (display case 6, no. 18). For writing on papyrus or parchment they used a calamus or quill with a sharpened point, which was dipped into an inkwell (atramentarium). The latter could be made of glass (display case 6, no. 10), pottery (display case 6, no. 11) or bronze. The ink was diluted with water before its use and was either derived from cuttlefish, from lees of wine or consisted of a mixture of soot and resin. A book (volumen) consisted of several pages of papyrus or parchment glued together, which were then rolled onto a wooden stick (display case 6, no. 1). Capital letters were used for inscriptions on stone and for hallmarks on mortars (display case 6, no. 8), vases (display case 6, no. 9), amphorae, tiles, and also on various metal objects. Engraved (display case 6, nos. 2-3) or painted inscriptions (display case 6, nos. 4- 5) were generally written in italics (small letters); the same applied to everyday correspondence. Occasionally graffiti were written in capital letters (display case 6, nos. 6-7). Seal-boxes (display case 6, nos. 12-16) served as protection for seals used for closing up writing tablets or parcels. In order to seal something, the intaglioengraved signet ring was pressed into wax (display case 6, no. 17). Display case 6 1. Marble statue of a sitting philosopher or poet holding a volumen in his left hand. 2. Fragment of a grey ceramic storage vessel bearing the inscription, in italics, ...icco immallobrocus, the meaning of which is not clear. 3. Majuscule inscription on painted wall plaster. 4. Neck of amphora (1st century AD) with painted inscription indicating its contents (1): Excel(lens) / flos... « Excellent flower » ... (referring to the quality of garum, a sauce containing pieces of fish pickled in salt). 5. Amphora neck bearing a painted inscription indicating its capacity (LXX probably 70 Roman pounds or the equivalent of approximately 32.8 litres) as well as the merchant’s name in genitive case: Felicionis (Felicio). 2nd century AD. 6. Jug fragments (2) with a graffito in capital letters: LAGO(NA) NICOMIIDIIS QVI ILLA IIMIIRIT « The (wine)jug of Nicomedes who really deserves it » 1 2 24 First Floor 6
Page 1 and 2: Avenches - Roman Museum - Permanent
Page 3 and 4: Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Page 5 and 6: Ground Floor - Introduction Switzer
Page 7 and 8: Ground Floor - Introduction Chronol
Page 9 and 10: Ground Floor The Gallo-Roman Popula
Page 17 and 18: Ground Floor The Inscriptions portr
Page 19 and 20: Ground Floor The Inscriptions The S
Page 21 and 22: Ground Floor Miscellaneous 31. Lime
Page 23: First Floor The Indigenous Populati
Page 27 and 28: First Floor Weights and Measures Th
Page 29 and 30: First Floor Theatre, Games and Musi
Page 31 and 32: First Floor Trade and Money The Mon
Page 33 and 34: First Floor Trade and Money Money S
Page 35 and 36: First Floor Rome and Aventicum The
Page 37 and 38: First Floor Rome and Aventicum The
Page 39 and 40: First Floor Religion Roman Religion
Page 41 and 42: First Floor Religion Roman Religion
Page 43 and 44: First Floor Religion The Local Gods
Page 45 and 46: First Floor From Late Antiquity to
Page 47 and 48: Second Floor Clothes and Jewellery
Page 49 and 50: Second Floor Body and Health Care A
Page 51 and 52: Second Floor Textile Production 3.
Page 53 and 54: Second Floor Gardens There were var
Page 55 and 56: Second Floor Protective Gods of the
Page 57 and 58: Second Floor Kitchen and Tableware
Page 59 and 60: Second Floor Food The Table of the
Page 61: Second Floor Food Types of Tablewar

Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition

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