Publication Date
5-26-2026
Abstract
During the Antonine Plague, the Lydian community of Caesarea Trocetta consulted the oracle of Apollo at Claros and inscribed its response, which was exceptional in form and language. This paper argues that Claros drew on performative literature and oracular traditions to provide an authoritative and innovative response that mediated the distress of the client community. Polymetry, diction, and intertexts with Pausanias and Statius combine to enhance both the aesthetic and religious function of the text. This analysis contributes to the study of epigraphy as literature, the mechanisms of oracular institutions, and civic responses to pandemic.
First Page
46
Last Page
57
Recommended Citation
Nagao, Ryo
(2026)
"Oral Tradition and Literary Innovation in an Epigraphic Oracle: Claros and Caesarea Trocetta during the Antonine Plague,"
New England Classical Journal: Vol. 53
:
Iss.
1
, 46-57.
Keywords
Greek religion, oracles, epigraphy, Asia Minor, Antonine Plague, Second Sophistic, Claros, intertextuality