Ekkyklema
Enable an agent to recognise an ekkyklema, assess a proposed or reconstructed theatrical use, and distinguish supported historical features from modern design choices.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
6 bundles · 11 layers · 13 findings · 23 questions
Device identity Establish what the name denotes in the particular record.
Referent classification
Separate equipment, historical descriptions and modern instances.
Ekkyklema referent
Record whether the subject is the device type, an attestation or a particular reconstruction.
- Does this record describe the ancient device type, a passage mentioning it or an identifiable built platform? definition
- What evidence supports correcting PHY.PLC to an equipment classification for vr.tr.ekkyklema? boundary
Neighbouring stage devices
Test identification against alternative reveal and movement techniques.
Identification tests
Separate the ekkyklema from stationary reveals, scenery devices and generic stage wagons.
- What identifies this mechanism as an ekkyklema rather than a door revealing a stationary scene? boundary
- Which source establishes the relationship between this platform and the historical ekkyklema tradition? provenance
Historical evidence Track the basis and limits of claims about ancient ekkyklema use.
Attestation context
Locate statements in their date, genre and transmission context.
Source to claim
Attach each historical assertion to the passage or material evidence that supports it.
- Which exact passage or archaeological observation supports the claimed device feature? provenance
- Is the source contemporary with the proposed use, a later description or a modern interpretation? provenance
Reconstruction inference
Keep inferred mechanics separate from direct testimony.
Alternative reconstructions
Record viable alternatives and the observations that could discriminate between them.
- Which features of this reconstruction are attested, inferred from stage geometry or introduced for modern operation? provenance
- Could the cited scene be presented without a moving platform, and what evidence favours either interpretation? boundary
Platform and motion Describe how a particular ekkyklema supports and moves its tableau.
Tableau support
Represent the usable deck and the distribution of its staged contents.
Loaded platform
Assess the platform with the intended performers and scenery in position.
- What usable deck dimensions and edge conditions constrain the proposed tableau? measurement
- Where are performers and props positioned, and how does their movement change the load distribution? measurement
Movement mechanism
Specify rolling, turning, propulsion and stopping for the proposed instance.
Reveal trajectory
Record the supported movement path without prescribing one universal ancient mechanism.
- Does this proposal translate, rotate or combine movements, and what supports that choice? definition
- How is the loaded platform started, guided, stopped and held at the display position? action
Stage and tableau interface Connect the device to the opening, concealed space and intended audience view.
Concealed-to-visible route
Assess the full movement envelope through the proposed stage opening.
Opening and threshold fit
Match loaded geometry and running gear to the route and threshold.
- Does the complete tableau clear the opening throughout emergence and withdrawal? measurement
- What threshold, slope or floor discontinuity affects the proposed rolling path? measurement
Dramatic disclosure
Relate concealment and display to a specific scene and audience arrangement.
Tableau visibility
Identify what must remain hidden and what the reveal must make legible.
- What interior scene or offstage consequence is the tableau intended to disclose? definition
- From which audience positions is the tableau concealed before the cue and intelligible after emergence? measurement
Reconstruction operation Govern the use of a built ekkyklema for a specified performance.
Reveal sequence
Coordinate platform movement, doors, tableau occupants and withdrawal.
Cue and reset
Define prerequisites and stop conditions for each part of the reveal.
- Which cue authorises emergence after the opening and movement route are clear? action
- How are performers, props and doors coordinated during withdrawal and concealed reset? action
Loaded use assessment
Assess the reconstruction with its actual tableau and stage conditions.
Performance readiness
Record evidence that the specified reveal can be executed under its intended conditions.
- What assessment supports carrying this tableau across the actual threshold and holding it at the display position? provenance
- Which changes in performer placement, scenery height or running gear require the reveal to be reassessed? action
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Check these first
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these check these first hold for the sense of Ekkyklema this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of Ekkyklema this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of Ekkyklema this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.PLC
What it is Filled
An ekkyklema is a movable scenic platform associated with ancient Greek theatre, conventionally understood as being rolled out through a stage-building doorway to reveal a tableau representing an interior scene.
In scope
- Identification of the ekkyklema device type and particular reconstructions
- Platform, running gear and proposed movement mechanism
- Passage between concealed staging space and audience-visible position
- Support and presentation of performers, props and tableaux
- Evidence supporting historical attributions and reconstruction choices
Out of scope
- The theatre building and its complete architectural history
- The dramatic text and interpretation of the entire play
- The mechane and other devices for suspended performer movement
- Periaktoi and other scenery-changing devices considered independently
- General freight wagons without an ekkyklema staging function
Why it exists Filled
Enable an agent to recognise an ekkyklema, assess a proposed or reconstructed theatrical use, and distinguish supported historical features from modern design choices.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Its identifying theatrical function is to expose a prepared scene associated with an otherwise concealed interior.
- The conventional reconstruction carries the scene on a movable platform; opening a door onto a stationary tableau alone does not identify an ekkyklema.
- Its primary presentation involves a supported tableau emerging into view, distinguishing it from a device suspending performers overhead.
- A modern stage wagon requires an explicit relationship to the ekkyklema's reveal function or historical reconstruction before being classified under this model.
- A proposed identification must distinguish evidence for the device from a scene that could have been staged using several different techniques.
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Present a speculative reconstruction of the device as established fact.
- Attribute uses of it to specific plays or performances without textual evidence.
- Operate a reconstructed stage platform with performers aboard without the venue's safety checks.
Only with a human decision
- Using a working reconstruction in a live performance with actors.
May
- Describe the ekkyklema and the evidence for its use from classical scholarship.
- Separate what ancient sources support from modern reconstructions and staging choices.
Moral aspects Filled
- Ancient theatre is shared heritage; honest scholarship separates evidence from guesswork.
- Rolling stage platforms in modern productions carry real risk to performers.
Who is affected
- Performers and stage crew
- Students and audiences
- Classical scholars
Owners Filled
Steward
Nobody owns the concept; a theatre or museum answers for any reconstruction it holds.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q607361 - registry parent class
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.ekkyklema
- Wikidata: Q1323193 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1323193)
Direct properties required Filled
- Referent status: historical device type; textual attestation; hypothetical reconstruction; built reconstruction; modern adaptation
- Reveal relationship: concealed scene location, stage opening, visible display position
- Loaded movement envelope: metres; platform and tableau width, height, length and swept clearance
- Movement configuration: translation; rotation; combined movement; unresolved, with propulsion separately recorded
- Tableau load: kilograms and load positions in metres for a specified reconstruction
- Reveal state: concealed; prepared; emerging; displayed; withdrawing; immobilised
- Historical attribution: claimed period, theatre, dramatic passage and supporting source
- Operational readiness: unassessed; rehearsal only; approved for specified tableau; withdrawn from use
Recognition required Filled
- A wheeled low platform rolled out through the central door of a stage building.
- Carries a tableau of actors or props revealing an indoor scene.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- Classify a described mechanism as an ekkyklema candidate and record competing identifications.
- Compare reconstruction proposals against their textual and architectural evidence.
- Check whether a loaded tableau fits its proposed concealed-to-visible route.
- Plan and rehearse emergence, display and withdrawal cues for a built reconstruction.
- Determine which changes to scenery, performer positions or stage openings require renewed assessment.
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Performers falling or being crushed when a rolling platform moves or tips.
Standards and interfaces not applicable Not applicable
Not applicable
No specific standard, law or official classification applies to the historical scenic device itself independently of a modern reconstruction and its venue.
Context of use required Filled
- An ekkyklema is encountered in studies of ancient Greek theatre and in modern reconstructions of its staging practices.
- It is conventionally understood as a movable platform used to reveal an interior tableau to the audience through a stage-building doorway.
- Reconstructed examples support performance and teaching, although their detailed mechanisms reflect interpretations of incomplete historical evidence.
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q1323193: Ekkyklema - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Ekkyklema - general description of the item
Open questions
- Does the registry's underlying identifier confirm the theatrical device, and what caused its PHY.PLC placement?
- Which periods and theatres have sufficiently direct evidence of ekkyklema use, rather than retrospective attribution?
- What evidence distinguishes translating, rotating and combined reconstructions, including their proposed propulsion methods?
- Which dramatic passages support an ekkyklema interpretation over other ways of revealing an interior scene?
- How should ekkyklema and exostra terminology be related without assuming either universal synonymy or a settled mechanical distinction?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q1323193/spec.json