This sarcophagus was discovered during the excavations carried out in 1927 by Joan Serra i Vilaró on the Early-Christian Necropolis of Tarragona. It is made of white marble from Proconeso (71 cm tall, 216 cm long and 67 cm deep) and is known as the Sarcophagus of the Pedagogue. It has been dated to the third quarter of the 3rd century AD.

The front is divided into five panels, three with figurative reliefs and two with strigils. The central section depicts a lecture scene, with a seated philosopher or poet, identified by his copious beard, long hair and the feathers that rise above his forehead, wearing a tunic and a pallium. He is reading from a book which he is holding in his hands in front of a herm-bust and he is accompanied by two youths who are listening to him. One of the youths, depicted in small format, is opposite him and approaching him with a book between his hands. The other, opposite the herm-bust, appears at the back of the lecturer.

The lateral sections depict images of the deceased whose remains the sarcophagus held. On the far right we see the man, represented as a philosopher, dressed in a pallium and carrying a book. His wife, wearing a tunic and a cloak, is carrying a book in her hands and is represented as a Muse. Her hairstyle resembles that of the empresses of the mid-3rd century AD, although her physical characteristics are more similar to those of a slightly later period.

On the technical side, the prolific use of the trepan in the central scene stands out.

The Early-Christian Necropolis is currently closed to the public and is undergoing the necessary renovations to house the exhibition El món de la mort a Tàrraco (The World of Death in Tarraco). The new exhibition will signify the re-opening of this important part of our heritage and will allow the visitor to learn about the funerary customs of the Classical Period, both from a pagan and a Christian point of view, and to see how they form the basis of our present-day funeral traditions.

The Sarcophagus of the Pedagogue forms part of the exhibition The World of Death. A Prefigurative Synthesis of the Early-Christian Necropolis and Museum of Tarragona, although it is temporarily on loan to the exhibition Hispania and the Legacy of Rome. In the Year of Trajan, inaugurated in Zaragoza and currently in the National Museum of Roman Art in Mérida (until 11 April 1999), after which it moves to Seville (7 May - 11 July).