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Origin and history

The tomb of Turpio is a Roman funerary monument discovered in 1885 in the Saint-Just district of Lyon, during clearing works. It is part of a set of ten tombs bordering the ancient Roman way from Lugdunum (Lyon) to Aquitaine and Boulogne. Five of these mausoleums, including Turpio's, were dismantled and rebuilt in Eugene-Wernert Square for their preservation.

Turpio's mausoleum, the best preserved of all, is presented as a square block in large aircraft (3.93 m side, 5.80 m height), placed on a podium. Its corners are decorated with canned pilasters surmounted by ionic capitals, and a frieze remains on one side. Built in Midi stone (Burdigal limestone), this material was common in Lugdunum at the beginning of the first century before being replaced by Seyssel stone. Archaeologists assume that he supported a light superstructure, perhaps a colonnade housing the statue of the deceased.

A dedication engraved on the south-east side reveals the identity of the deceased: Quintus Calvius Turpio, freed from the Palatina tribe and a member of the Augustales Seviri, a college responsible for imperial worship. This status marked the culmination of a remarkable social ascent for a former slave, despite his mocking nickname (Turpio, "The Shameful"). The tomb was erected by his freemen (Regilus, Chresimus, Murranus, Donatus, Chrestus) according to his will. The typography of the inscription, with its archaic capitals, suggests a dating prior to the Christian era, although Monumentum indicates a construction in the second century.

Ranked Historic Monument by order of 12 August 1905, the tomb is today located Place de Coulans (Lyon 5e), near the climb of Choulans. It bears witness to the importance of the Roman necropolises near Lugdunum, the then capital of Gauls, and the wealth of the freemen in provincial society. The other remains of Trion's unpreserved funeral complex were destroyed during the 19th century.

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