TelephusAchillesANCIENT

Roundel in white marble depicting Achilles consulting the Oracle as part of the Telephus myth, decorative revetment from the Basilica Noniana at Herculaneum, 1st century CE, prior to 79; Herculaneum/Ercolano Deposito Archeologico, inv. 77515.

Rectangular white marble depicting two phases of the Telephus myth — (left) Achilles consulting the Oracle about the healing of Telephus and (right) Achilles scraping rust from his spear to heal Telephus' wound — decorative revetment from the House of the Telephus Relief at Herculaneum, 1st century CE, prior to 79; Napoli, Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, inv. 286787

The discovery after 2006 of the roundel in the Basilica Noniana allows scholars now to study the mythological program presented by M. Nonius Balbus, the Herculanean benefactor who developed a grand property all around and adjacent to the Suburban Baths on the town's sea-front. Balbus also benefitted the town by erecting the powerful basilica directly opposite the Hall of the Augustales on the decumanus. The two properties, about 300 meters distant from one another showcased, it seems the influence of Balbus through the narrative of the Telephus myth.