| The first week of an excavation usually does not produce many interesting finds, as a lot of time is spent on cleaning, setting out grids, and removing topsoil. Yet, during the cleaning operations on the terrace above the north side of the Lower Agora, an interesting find was made in the partially destroyed southeast corner of the steps leading to the Hadrianic nymphaeum. It consisted of a slightly larger than life sized finger of a bronze statue. Most probably, as it does not carry any trace of gilding, it belonged to one of the two statues representing the fountain's builder: Ti. Claudius Piso, the first Roman knight of Sagalassos. We know that the upper story of the fountain, most probably built between A.D. 129 and 132 (see report 2004), contained in its central niche a gilded bronze statue of the emperor Hadrian, flanked by two bronze statues of Piso, one probably representing him as a Roman officer and thus referring to his knighthood, and one as agonothetes (sponsor and supervisor) of the Klareian games that were connected with the Imperial cult.
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![[image]](images/find1.jpeg)
