Inscription of Adrastus

The Lapidary Gallery preserves hundreds of ancient texts; this slab names Adrastus within a short Latin inscription. Its chiseled capitals follow the Roman epigraphic canon—tall strokes, tapering serifs, and steady rhythm set out along lightly ruled guide lines. Word breaks are picked out with interpuncts, and standard abbreviations compress formulae to fit the field. Such stones are primary sources for social history: names, kinship, offices, and dedications that rarely survive elsewhere. Beyond the content, the lettering itself is a lesson in craft and design, where proportion and spacing carry authority. Read as document and as object, the piece shows how Rome used writing in public to fix memory and status.