Antioch Collection
Princeton’s long history of archaeological research in Roman Syria, conducted through a partage agreement in the 1930s, has built a substantial collection of archaeological material from Antioch-on-the-Orontes.
Antioch-on-the-Orontes, nestled alongside the Orontes River in present-day Turkey, sat at the crossroads of the Near East, Greece, and Rome, and functioned as a major cosmopolitan center in the ancient Mediterranean. In 1931, Charles Rufus Morey, professor of art and archaeology, formed the Committee for the Excavation of Antioch, which was led by the team from Princeton University. Working together with the Worcester Art Museum, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Musées nationaux de France, the committee actively worked at the site from 1932 to 1939. Spanning eight seasons, the excavations yielded astonishing results, including monumental structures, massive mosaic pavements, marble sculptures, and small objects. The finds not only transform our understanding of everyday life in the ancient world but also trace the shifting religious landscape of Antioch from the 4th century BCE to the 15th century CE as the city transitioned from a major site of Greco-Roman polytheism to one engaged with Christian and Islamic theologies.
