concerning this most famous artistic masterpiece of Pergamon, neither the builder nor the date nor the occasion nor the purpose of the construction. Just as uncertain is the nature of the sacrifices made there. Judging from the remains of the actual, relatively small fire altar inside the huge altar edifice, it can at least be concluded that its shape resembled a horseshoe. It was apparently an altar with two projecting side wings and one or several steps in front. Possibly the thighs of sacrificial animals were burned here. But it is just as possible that the altar served only for libations — the offering of sacrifices in the form of incense, wine and fruits. It is likely that only priests, members of the royal household and illustrious foreign guests were allowed access to the fire altar. The altar until the close of antiquity Probably in the 2nd century, the Roman Lucius Ampelius recorded in his liber memorialis ("Notebook"), in Chapter VIII (Miracula Mundi): "At Pergamum there is a great marble altar, 40 feet (12 m) high, with colossal sculptures. It also shows a Gigantomachy." Besides a comment by Pausanias, who compares sacrificial practice in Olympia with that in Pergamon, this is the only written reference to the altar in all of antiquity. This is all the more surprising because the writers of antiquity otherwise wrote a great deal about such works of art, and Ampelius considered the altar to be one of the wonders of the world. The absence of written sources from antiquity about the altar has given rise to a number of interpretations. One possibility is that the Romans did not regard this Hellenistic altar as important since it did not date from the classic epoch of Greek, especially Attic, art. Only this art and later evocation of the associated values were considered significant and worth mentioning. This view was held particularly by German researchers starting in the 18th century, especially after the work of Johann Joachim Winckelmann became known. The only graphic representations of the altar are on coins of the Roman Empire, which show the altar in a stylized form. Since a reassessment of the perception and interpretation of antiquities dating from other than "classical" periods took place in the course of the 20th century, it is undisputed that the great altar of Pergamon is one of the most significant works, if not the apex, of