A Group of Bronze Lamps from Demre Museum

This study examines 12 copper alloy oil lamps in Demre Museum, which were identified as bronze due to the lack of chemical analysis. Three of the oil lamps (Cat. No. 1, Cat. No. 4 and Cat. No. 5) were found in mixed contexts during scientific archaeological excavations, while the other nine oil lamps entered the museum's inventory through purchase or forced acquisition. Since there is no link between the lamps, the order of examination is based on the chronology provided by similar examples, which help to date the lamps. The oil lamps, which date from the IInd century BC to the Seljuk Period, were analyzed by considering the characteristic form features of the periods to which they belong; Cat. No. 6, Cat. No. 7, Cat. No. 8, Cat. No. 9 and Cat. No. 10 have been classified as “biconical-bodied lamps with crosses” due to their body structure and the crosses on the handle, in a group whose similar lamps were widely found between the Vth-VIIth centuries AD. In some cases, the other oil lamps analyzed are considered to be local designs that may have been inspired by terracotta contemporaries or predecessors.