Theodosian Palace of Stobi
CONSERVATION PROJECT PROPOSAL
The project for the conservation of the Theodosian palace (4th – 6th c. CE) is the first serious step towards the implementation of the Master Conservation Plan of Stobi developed in 2019 – 2021 by the National Institution of Stobi, Republic of North Macedonia (N.I. Stobi) and the Balkan Heritage Foundation, Bulgaria (BHF) thanks to the support of the J.M. Kaplan Fund. It follows the Plan’s recommendations and envisions the conservation of one of the most representative buildings at the site.
The Theodosian Palace occupies an area of 1330 sq.m. on the middle terrace at Stobi, the largest and best preserved Roman and Late Antique city in the central part of the Republic of North Macedonia. The residence consists of a large peristyle court with corridors and a large fountain/nymphaion, 11 rooms around the courtyard including a large triclinium to the south and a vestibule with corridors to the east. The floors in the northern and western corridors are covered with mosaic floors in opus tessellatum, the court in opus segmentatum, the triclinium is covered with opus sectile, while the four smaller apsidal rooms on the northwestern side are covered with mosaics in opus tessellatum and opus sectile. In 2023, a new mosaic depicting Dionysus was discovered in a room located to the south of the peristyle court. The walls are built with sandstone and lime mortar. Most of the architectural marble is preserved in fragments and left in the courtyard.
$
100000
Awarded by the Expandere Conscientiae Lumen Grant
The project for conservation of the building was funded by J. M. Kaplan Fund for the period 2022 – 2025 and included conservation and re-conservation of the stone walls, floor mosaics and marble architecture elements. It was designed by the team of NI Stobi in close collaboration with an international conservation team of experts led by John Stewart, Graham Abrey (UK) and Alessandro Lugari (IT). In charge of the implementation of the wall conservation is the Skillington Workshop (UK) together with the team of NI Stobi and BHF affiliated trainees. The problems addressed by the current conservation project are valid for the most monumental buildings in Stobi. That is why the project includes training the local team in order to increase their capacity in architectural conservation as a precondition for a sustainable preservation of the site.
The conservation methodology of the Skillington company follows the highest international standards and includes:
- Avoid the use of Portland Cement, using instead mortars more closely related to the Roman mortar – using natural lime
- Preserve the character of an ‘as excavated’ structure
- Respect the existing masonry patterns
- Create a legacy of sustainable conservation of the monuments in the archaeological site.
The grant received by the American Institute for Roman culture will allow the team in charge of the conservation project of the Theodosian palace to complete the conservation works of the walls and the mosaics.
PARTNERS
