Lapidarium Brigetionense (Roman Stoneworks), Komarom

Gravestones and sarcophagi from the Roman Period, altar stones, reliefs, statue and building fragments, and milestones are on display in the museum.

The stonework, inscribed, carved or decorated, gives a faithful overview of the wealth of the arts in Roman times. The array of motifs extends to geniuses, dolphins and Medusa heads among the multitude of symbols of the cult of the dead; Dionysus motifs as symbols of the other worldly continuation of terrestrial joy; the busts of the dead and their family members and other representations.

Among the masonry here a mythological relief stands out particularly for its artistic achievement, content and plot in its telling of the tragic story of Phaedra and Hippolytus. The stone carving broke into two at some point in ancient times. The part with Phaedra was found at the turn of the last century and was transported to the Danube Region Museum of Ethnography in Komarno, while the other half with Hippolytus was uncovered in the 1960's and taken to the György Klapka Museum. Relief fragments were made complete and are now exhibited in both museums. Take some time to study the rich ornamentation of the gravestone of Plotianus: a burial feast scene, gods of the dead and a so-called sacrificial scene for deceased ancestors are carved on it. The cover of Mercator's sarcophagus is decorated with what seem to be stone-carving tools, perhaps as a reference to the occupation of the deceased.

This exhibition is not the only one in the city to demonstrate the wealth of Antiquity. Proceeding along the east-west main road, the former Limes road that is, travellers can spot sarcophagi and milestones.

The first stonework museum was established in 1965 in the external casemate corridor of the Igmánd fortress. The exhibition of the György Klapka Museum was rearranged in 1993 in the rooms inside the fortress.