Images Roman funerary stele with portraits of the magi. Compact limestone, I century A.D., from Milan, Archi di Porta Nuova Large funerary stele in memory of father who was a "sevirum". Marble, end of I century A.D., from Sesto Calende (Varese) Votive monument with scene of sacrifice dedicated to Jove. Ornavasso-Candoglia marble, I century AD, from Angera, Varese, Italy Commemorative or funerary altar dedicated by craftsmen. Compact limestone, II century A.D., from the area near the city of Cremona, Italy Funerary altar for a whole family. Limestone, end I– II century A.D.

Epigraphs stand as some of the most important sources for the understanding of a historical time. Though they give only very succinct and limited information, epigraphs do not reflect only the life of a person, but, read through the life of the city and its evolution in time. Names, political offices, years, deeds, allow historians to reconstruct a frame, limited though it may be, of the evolution of the political and social life of the city of Milan.