Gleason, K. (2026). "Mausoleon." Gardens of the Roman Empire, accessed October 2, 2026. https://roman-gardens.github.io/id/72f98f966a/

Mausoleon

Contributor: Amelia Lamis
Published: 2026-10-01
Last modified: 2026-10-01

Dates

353/352 BCE

Excavation Dates

1865 (Biliotti), 1990s (Pederson)

Garden Description

The tomb of Mausolus (d. 353/352 B.C.) in Halicarnassus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was known to the Romans, as it was the central feature of the capital of Caria and was not destroyed until 1494 when its stones were used in the nearby castle of St. Peter. The tomb is housed within a precinct enclosed by walls on its north and east sides. P. Pederson has recently published a detailed analysis of the terrace of the monument. He challenges the conclusion of A. Biliotti, who found some paving slabs in 1865 and concluded that the entire precinct was paved. Pederson found no direct evidence of planting, but observed that the “paving seems to have been reserved for the eastern third of the terrace, where the buildings have been found…while a park or alsos would harmonize well with the picture the investigations have given” (1991: 85). Pederson also reported three well heads that functioned during the initial century of the monument’s creation, and water sources, as well as soil levels with inclusions of pottery, and large pot fragments in relationship to architecture that with further study may provide the kind of direct evidence needed to identify a cultivated area around the Mausoleon.

K. Jeppeson, in his study of the quadrangle of the monument, provides further discussion on whether the open area was an alsos or a paradeisos, given the nature of the site and the absence of paving in any other trenches of the Danish excavations. The monument has neither a cella nor an altar, so he suggests that the planting would be more in the tradition of a hero-cult and suggests that the tomb was set in a paradeisos, though not necessarily a hunting park. Jeppesen notes that it would have been a simple task to plant the area with trees, and that later cultivation might have removed all traces of the original design.

Bibliography

  • Jeppesen, K. 2000. The Quadrangle. Maussolleion at Halikarnassos 4. Jutland Archaeological Society Publications 15.4. Aarhus: Jutland Archaeological Society. (worldcat)
  • Pedersen, P. 1991. The Maussolleion Terrace. Maussolleion at Halikarnassos 3.1–2. Jutland Archaeological Society Publications 15.3. Aarhus: Jutland Archaeological Society. (worldcat)

Keywords

Places