The statues near Lycurgus in the theatre of Sparta

This paper aims to analyse two statue bases which Sparta dedicated to two proconsuls of Achaia in the 4th cent. AD in the theatre near the statue of Lycurgus. After a brief description of the theatre and its building phases, the paper focuses on the lives and careers of the two honorands: Publilius Optatianus and Anatolius. The last part attempts to underline the significance of setting up these two statues of provincial governors in the theatre, near the one of mythical lawgiver. This choice will be analysed in relation to their place of exhibition and to their socio-cultural context. In late antiquity, it was common in the province of Achaia to set up statues of imperial officials and local personalities in association with statues or monuments from its Greek past.