FUNERARY MONUMENTS AND FUNERARY RITES IN LATE ANTIQUE AQUITAINE

Summary. Within the major groups of late Roman sarcophagi and especially of late Gallic sarcophagi (those of Arles and Marseille), the sarcophagi of Aquitaine stand apart in both shape and style. This study traces the broad lines of their stylistic evolution from direct imitations of shape and decoration of the Arelasian models to the fully developed Aquitanian style with its exclusive floral and vegetal patterns, the trapezoid box and the rooflike lid.
Historical, cultural and religious factors point to the period of Visigothic rule in Aquitaine (AD 418–507) and to Visigothic patronage. Only this patronage can account for all the far-reaching changes of style and form. It is also quite possible that the introduction of new, non-Roman, funerary rites contributed to these changes, as can be gleaned from a small cemetery in Narbonne.