The Palmyrene Banqueting Tesserae

An Updated Corpus

By (author) Aleksandra Kubiak-Schneider By (author) Rubina Raja By (author) Julia Steding By (author) Jean-Baptiste Yon

Book cover: The Palmyrene Banqueting Tesserae

Extent: 360 pages

Publisher: Brepols Publishers

Subjects: Mediterranean Archaeology

Series: Studies in Palmyrene Archaeology and History

Series volume number: 14

Language: English

Hardback (Published)

(August 2026)

ISBN: 9782503609584

Price: $207.00

On back order

Banqueting tesserae — small, moulded terracotta tokens — were used in the religious sphere of Palmyra in the first three centuries AD, conveying a vivid iconographic language that underpinned sacral banquets held in the city’s sanctuaries and banqueting halls. Found today in those locations, these artefacts offer a rare glimpse into the overwhelmingly rich ritual and social lives of Palmyrene society. This book and corpus provides the first comprehensive revision to the study of banqueting tokens since the 1955 publication Recueil des tessères de Palmyre, which catalogued 1132 types. Building on that foundational work, this publication updates the original corpus with 168 newly identified tesserae types, including numerous previously unpublished examples from the Palmyra Museum and a private collection in Damascus. Each new type is presented with detailed descriptions of motifs and inscriptions. The book examines the rich iconographic and epigraphic landscape of tesserae, which feature depictions of priests, deities, animals, and symbolic imagery, while also casting light on some of the individuals who financed these feasts. With extensive indices on the iconography and epigraphy of the new types, as well as a translation of the indices from the Recueil des tessères de Palmyre, this new corpus presents a comprehensive overview and systematic study of this overlooked yet revealing class of material culture, which provides a unique source for our understanding of Palmyrene religious life.

  • By (author) Aleksandra Kubiak-Schneider
  • By (author) Rubina Raja
  • By (author) Julia Steding
  • By (author) Jean-Baptiste Yon