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ante diem xiv kalendas junias
I’m sure regular readers of rogueclassicism are familiar with the Ancient World Open Bibliographies Project … we regularly post links to bibliographies which are part of that (see the next post, e.g.). I know you all find such things useful and there are perhaps some of you who are thinking, “Hey, rogueclassicist, I’d love to get in on this bibliography action. How can I contribute?” Well, as luck would have it, Charles Jones et al. just sent out a flier on that very subject! Ecce:
Ancient World Open Bibliographies Project
Our Goal: To provide an online destination for students and scholars seeking bibliographies about the ancient world. In the modern academy, sometimes too much information is as thorny a problem as too little. The Ancient World Open Bibliographies seeks to provide annotated bibliographies on specific subjects that serve as an introduction to students or to scholars exploring a new area of research. We will also link to existing open-access bibliographical resources online.
Open Access: The project is currently hosted at a dedicated wiki (http://ancientbibliographies.libs.uga.edu/ ), with duplication using the (free) bibliographic citation management software Zotero (see our group library here: http://www.zotero.org/groups/ancient_world_open_bibliographies ). It is open access and covered by a Creative Commons license.
Scope: Geographically, we cover Europe, Asia, and Africa. Temporally, we cover prehistory through ca. 700 CE. Right now the project is richest in Classical, Near Eastern, and Egyptian Studies, but we welcome broader contributions within our scope.
How Can You Help?
- Create an annotated bibliography on a topic of your expertise.
- Contribute an existing bibliography you have assembled on a topic – perhaps one you use for your own work, or distribute to students.
- Add a link to an existing online bibliography you use.
- Encourage your colleagues and students to participate by creating and sharing their own bibliographies; for example, consider whether the creation of an collaborative annotated bibliography would work as a class assignment.
Bibliographies or links can be emailed (see contact info below) or feel free to edit the wiki, adding a link or a new page (see details on how to do the latter at http://ancientbibliographies.libs.uga.edu/wiki/How_To_Contribute ). Emailed bibliographies in most formats will work: .doc, .pdf, .ris or other export from EndNote/Refworks/Zotero/etc.
Questions, or Want to Contribute? Visit the wiki or blog or contact Phoebe Acheson (University of Georgia Libraries, pacheson@uga.edu ) or Chuck Jones (Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, NYU, cejo TA uchicago.edu ).
I know I’m going to be swamped for the next while and probably won’t get a chance to comment on any of the items in Sotheby’s upcoming antiquities auction (June 11), so you might want to peruse the online catalogue for yourself. There are a handful of red figure items, a few heads, a few headless torsos … there’s an interesting statue of Melpomene holding (presumably) a tragic mask, but I can’t figure out whether the head belongs on the statue or not (strange description) … also noteworthy is the so-called ‘Stowe Sarcophagus’ with its nice sacrifice scene …
… but this time in Bulgaria … from Novinite:
A temple of Ancient Greek goddess Demeter and her daughter Persephone has been discovered by a team of Bulgarian archaeologists near the town of Sozopol on the Black Sea.
The archaeological team of Prof. Krastina Panayotova found the Ancient Greek temple Tuesday during excavations on the Skamniy Cape where the archaeologists are exploring a fortress wall and a church that were part of a Byzantine imperial monastery.
Panayotova explained that the figurines and ceramics found in a concentrated spot are clear evidence of the cult for Demeter and Persephone.
“We have come across pieces before but this time the finding is concentrated in one location, in the wall of the tower that was built above it. It is connected with the cult for Demeter and Persephone. As there is a church here, we naturally expected a sanctuary from the Antiquity period,” the archaeologist explained as cited by Focus.
The sanctuary is near the monastery complex “St. Apostles and 20 000 Martyrs” built in the first half of the 14th century by Anastasios Palaiologos, brother of the Byzantine Emperor.
Sozopol, whose name as an Ancient Greek colony was Apollonia, was a traditional Byzantine stronghold during the Middle Ages even though its hinterland was in Bulgarian hands. The town itself was conquered by the First Bulgarian Empire under Khan Krum in 812 AD but was later recaptured by Byzantium.
Sozopol was conquered by the Ottoman Turkish Empire only in 1459, six years after the fall of Constantinople; Bulgarian archaeologists have found evidence that the monastery “St. Apostles and 20 000 Martyrs” was set on fire and the town was ravaged during the invasion.
Sozopol appears to be one of the earliest centers of Christianity as in 2010 Bulgarian archaeologist Kazimir Popkonstantinov found relics of St. John the Baptist on the St. Ivan island near the town.
… just a few days ago, we were hearing of a semi-similar find in Russia: Temple of Demeter from Russia
Image by lisby1 via Flickr
ante diem xv kalendas junias
I’m anxiously waiting for Chasing Aphrodite (about the Getty and its acquisitions policy in the past) to show up at a bookstore I frequent (or as an ebook), but until then, I can listen to things on NPR:
Transcript of the audio segment here …
Seen on Twitter:
President Woodrow Wilson was made a citizen of ancient Rome in 1919 by King Emmanuel. Crazy Virginians. We love our antiquity.—
Sarah Bond (@SarahEBond) May 17, 2011
Somewhat strange item from the Greek Reporter:
The Federal Court of New York has acquitted Socrates after 2,410 years. During a historic trial, with ancient Greek characteristics and contemporary views, presented from their legal and humoristic side at the same time, hundreds of people had the chance to experience a wonderful “performance” of the truth, the law and the Greek heritage. Alexander S. Onassis Foundation was in charge of the transfer of Socrates’ trial to one of the most representative court rooms of American Justice, succeeding in ensuring the participation of top judges and acclaimed lawyers of New York’s legal elite. During this Manhattan trial, which was not actually a representation but a new version, all charges against Socrates were examined. The case dated back to 399 BC, when Athenians had to decide if Socrates was “guilty” or “not guilty”, concerning charges for “impiety against Gods” and “corruption of young people’.
Archbishop Demetrios of America stated: “The presentation of Socrates’ trial was very interesting as far as defence, advocacy and accusation are concerned. Important views were presented, with elements of intelligent speech and clever references. The Onassis Foundation will release a DVD of the trial, which will also be published on the internet”.
Seen on various lists:
Penn-Leiden Colloquia on Ancient Values VII
CALL FOR PAPERS
The Penn-Leiden Colloquia on Ancient Values were established as a biennial venue in which scholars
could investigate the diverse aspects of Greek and Roman values. Each colloquium focuses on a single
theme, which participants explore from a diversity of perspectives and disciplines. A collection of
papers from the first colloquium, held at Leiden in 2000, was published in 2003 under the title
‘Andreia’— Manliness and Courage in Classical Antiquity, edd. Ralph M. Rosen and Ineke Sluiter.
This was followed by Free Speech in Classical Antiquity, (2005), City, Countryside, and the Spatial
Organization of Value in Classical Antiquity (2006), KAKOS: Badness and Anti-Values in Classical
Antiquity (2008), Valuing Others in Classical Antiquity (2010), and Aesthetic Value in Classical
Antiquity (in preparation).The topic of the seventh colloquium, to be held at the University of Leiden, the Netherlands, June
15-16, 2012, will be:Valuing Antiquity in Antiquity
Short description of the topic:
The ‘classical tradition’ is no invention of modernity. Already in ancient Greece and Rome, the
privileging of the ancient over the present and future played an integral role in social and cultural
discourses of every period. In this colloquium we want to examine this temporal organization of value
and the mechanisms by which it was produced and sustained—in other words, ancient valuations of
antiquity as expressions of lived value-systems. How did specific Greek and Roman communities use
notions of antiquity to define themselves or others? What models from the past proved most
acceptable or desirable (or not) for political practice or for self-fashioning? What groups were the
main agents, or audiences, of such discourses on the value of antiquity, and what were their priorities
and their motivations? What were the differences between Roman and Greek approaches, or between
antiquarianism, genealogy, classicism, nostalgia, canonization and their opposites? How did temporal
systems for ascribing value intersect with the organization of space, the production of narrative, or the
espousal and application of aesthetic criteria?For the seventh Penn-Leiden colloquium, we invite abstracts for papers (30 minutes) that address ‘the
past in the past’ along these lines. We hope to bring together researchers in all areas of classical
studies, including literature, philosophy, linguistics, history, and visual and material culture, and hope
to discover the significant points of intersection and difference between these areas of focus.Selected papers will be considered for publication by Brill Publishers. Those interested in presenting a
paper are requested to submit a 1-page abstract, by email (preferable) or regular mail, by Friday
November 18th, 2011.Contact (please copy both with email correspondence):
Dr. Christoph Pieper
Classics Department
University of Leiden
P.O.Box 9515
2300 RA Leiden
The Netherlands
Email: c.pieper TA hum.leidenuniv.nl
Phone: +31 (71) 527 2673Prof. James Ker
Department of Classical Studies
University of Pennsylvania
201 Cohen Hall
Philadelphia PA 19104-6304
USA
Email: jker TA sas.upenn.edu
Phone: +1 (215) 898 3027
Seen on the Classicists list:
Beyond Self-Sufficiency
Households, City-States and Markets in the Ancient Greek World
Durham, 2nd-5th July 2011The Department of Classics and Ancient History, Durham University, will be
holding an international conference on 2nd-5th July 2011, Beyond Self-
Sufficiency: Households, City-States and Markets in the Ancient Greek
World.This conference will draw on the expertise of scholars working in a
variety of disciplines, including archaeology, numismatics, epigraphy and
history to examine a controversial topic of Greek economic history: the
issue of self-sufficiency. Many scholars still subscribe to the view held
by Hasebroek and Finley that the Greeks, from the level of individual
households to entire city-states, aimed at self-sufficiency and minimal
participation in markets. However, the validity of this view has not been
rigorously tested from a variety of methodological approaches. By
examining this problem from a number of angles, this conference represents
a major step towards clarifying one of the central problems in Greek
economic history.A limited number of places are available for participants, so it is
recommended that those who wish to attend contact the organisers as soon
as possible; the conference fees are as follows:Standard: £10 daily rate/ £40 full conference
Concession: £8 daily rate/ £30 full conferencePlease direct your enquiries to:
Mark Woolmer (mark.woolmer TA durham.ac.uk)
or
David Lewis (d.m.lewis TA durham.ac.uk)Programme:
Saturday 2nd July
(1) 5pm-6pm E.M. Harris (Durham University)
Markets in the Ancient Greek World: A Typology(2) 6pm-7pm J.K. Davies (Liverpool University)
Markets and Market-places in Ancient GreeceSunday 3rd July
(3) 9am-10am C. Pébarthe (University of Bordeaux)
Beyond The Ancient Economy, ancient economics(4) 10am-11am P. Acton (independent scholar)
The Household Mode of Production: Political Ideology or Economic
Rationality?(5) 11:30-12:30 B. Ault (SUNY Buffalo)
Households and Self-Sufficiency(6) 12:30-1:30 B. Tsakirgis (Vanderbilt University)
Whole Cloth: Exploring the Question of Self-Sufficiency through the
evidence for Textile Manufacture and Purchase in Greek Houses(7) 3-4pm J.H. Kroll (Oxford University)
Changes in Athenian Weights Standards and Their Implications for Athenian
Trade(8) 4-5pm S. Psoma (University of Athens)
Weight-Standards in Coinage outside Athens and Trade between PoleisMonday 4th July
(9) 9-10am M. Lawall (University of Manitoba)
Transport Amphoras as Evidence for Motivation and Market Behaviour in the
Economies of Classical and Hellenistic Greece(10) 10-11am C. Tzochev (independent scholar)
The Export of Thasian Amphoras and Markets in the Black Sea Region(11) 11:30-12:30 T. Panagou (University of Athens)
Patterns of Amphora Stamp Distribution. Tracking Down Export Tendencies(12) 12:30-1:30 M. Woolmer (Durham University)
Honours and Rewards for Merchants(13) 3-4pm D. Lewis (Durham University)
The market for slaves from the Persian Empire in the fifth and fourth
century Aegean(14) 4-5pm G. Kron (University of Victoria)
Classical Athenian Trade in comparative perspective: Literary and
archaeological evidence, demand and infrastructureTuesday 5th July
(15) 9am-10am A. Bresson (University of Chicago)
Markets and the Role of the State(16) 10-11am P. Van Alfen (American Numismatic Society)
An Overview of Commodities in Long-Distance Trade c. 500-300 BCE
Adrian Murdoch continues the series with a look at the guy who isn’t a character from Harry Potter (although some search engines seem to think so):
Image via Wikipedia
ante diem xvi kalendas junias
[note in passing for fans of The Office (North American version) ... remember the episode called 'Launch Party' where Michael ended up taking a pizza delivery boy hostage because the pizza joint didn't honour his coupons? Didn't the pizza guy in that episode (Kevin McHale look exactly like this bust of Elagabalus?]
I was just grumbling on Facebook because I couldn’t access this via the BBC archive … it does reside on Youtube, as it turns out. From a 1966 edition of BBC Chronicle (the volume seems rather low on this):
100 days’ march… as Pliny says (NH 10.27 … via Lacus Curtius): mirum in hac alite a Morinis usque Romam pedibus venire.( fessi proferentur ad primos; ita ceteri stipatione naturali propellunt eos. ) Mirum indeed!
This one’s kind of interesting … I’m poking around the Internet Archive and came across this short film put out by Encyclopedia Britannica back in 1964. It is an interesting look at daily life in ancient Rome and could very well be used in a classroom — it’ll definitely get giggles at some points — you sometimes wish that someone would step out and say “Hi, I’m Troy McClure”. Outside of giving a nice overview of slavery, education, etc. through the eyes of a young boy named Claudius and his friend/slave Vistus, there is actually some Latin dialogue scattered throughout (with subtitles). Even better, much of it is shot on the set of Fall of the Roman Empire. Worth a look …
Seen on the Classicists list:
ANCIENT CARTHAGE: MODELS OF CULTURAL CONTACT
Friday 5 – Saturday 6 August 2011
The aim of this networking project is to address the Carthaginian-Phoenician
nexus in the wider Mediterranean context from the 9th century BCE to the
fall of Carthage to Rome in 146 BCE, as well as the rediscovery and
reception of Carthage and her Phoenician motherland from the 18th century.This international conference, building on workshops already held at Durham,
will adopt a cross-disciplinary approach going beyond word-based evidence
(whether archival, epigraphic or literary) to gain a clearer picture of this
complex and significant culture, drawing upon current archaeological work
and upon the findings of epigraphy and linguistics. As well as in Tunisia
itself, archaeology and a range of relevant disciplines are practised
throughout the Mediterranean world, from Italy, Spain and Greece, via Cyprus
and the North African lands, to the Middle East and beyond.Topics to be examined include materiality, migration, colonial encounters,
and connectivity, and their important contribution to the understanding of
the social, cultural and political identity of the Punic-Phoenician diaspora.Equally important is the study of the engagement with Phoenician and
Carthaginian culture in the modern colonial period through to the present
day on the part both of the inhabitants of the successor lands and of
incomers of all kinds (travellers, settlers and scholars).Papers will be welcomed from scholars working within the field of
Punic-Phoenician studies from all relevant disciplines, such as ancient
history, classics, archaeology, art history, reception, and Old Testament
studies.The following scholars have agreed to participate:
Edward Bragg (Havant College)
Robert Kerr (Wilfrid Laurier)
Richard Miles (Sydney)
Luke Pitcher (Oxford)
Louis Rawlings (Cardiff)
Mark Woolmer (Durham).Papers should be either 20 or 40 minutes long (please state)
PLEASE SEND ABSTRACTS TO:
carthage-conference AT hotmail.co.uk
BY TUESDAY 31 MAY 2011
Seen on the Classicists list:
Philologisches Schubladendenken: Epochen und Gattungen auf dem Prüfstand
Stereotyped Thinking in Classics: Literary Ages and Genres Re-Considered
University of Vienna
Wed., May 30 – Fri., June 1, 2012
Organizers: Farouk F. Grewing (Vienna) and Christine Walde (Mainz)Call for Papers This conference is supposed to be the first of a series of conferences or workshops (and publications) on the present, 21st century, condition and self-conception of Classical Philology. ‘Stereotyped Thinking in Classics: Literary Ages and Genres Re-Considered’ is primarily meant to critically examine the long-lasting problem(s) of categorizing literature according to ‘ages’, ‘genres’, etc. At first sight, the advantage of such classifications in various categories seems to be evident, for they purport to lend stability and clarity to otherwise chaotic forms. This includes purely temporal classifications by historical and literary ages, systematic ones by ‘genres’ or ‘types of texts’. Often enough, such simplistic concepts result in aesthetic judgments, such as ‘high/low’, ‘good/bad’, etc., which entail the development of canons or lists (e.g., ‘must-reads’ vs. ‘don’t-reads’). The standard companions to, and histories of, Greek and Latin Literature are full of classifications and simplifications that are for the most part handed over from one generation to another. It is the aim of this conference to critically re-assess the pros and cons of such categorizations and to bridge the undeniable gap between traditional philology and modern literary theory. Conference languages: German and English.
Individual talks: 30 minutes plus ca. 15 minutes of discussion each.
Those who wish to contribute a paper should send an e-mail to Farouk F. Grewing (farouk.grewing AT univie.ac.at) and/or Christine Walde (waldec AT uni-mainz.de). Please include a brief abstract in your mail.
Seen on the Classicists list:
Eighth annual seminar on ancient Greek music
The Ionian University, Corfu, 4-9 July 2011 (with preliminaries on July 3)
Every summer since 2004, the Music Department at the Ionian University has
held a week-long seminar on ancient Greek music. The programme follows a
regular pattern: the mornings are devoted to the study of the particular
text or topic chosen for that year, and in the evenings there are lectures
on other topics of interest to students of the subject. This year there
will also be a preliminary session, on Sunday July 3, introducing
participants who are not specialists in Greek musicology to some of the
basics of the subject, especially those relevant to the chosen text; and
each evening there will be classes designed specifically for Greek
students, taking them through the next day’s passage of text and helping
them to translate it. This year the text for the morning seminars is Book
8 of Aristotle’s Politics; the seminars will be led by Dr Eleonora Rocconi
(University of Pavia), Prof. Andrew Barker (University of Birmingham) and
Prof. Egert Pöhlmann (University of Erlangen).
The afternoons (when it is sometimes too hot for serious work) are free
for swimming, sight-seeing, sleeping or what you will. The sessions take
place in the magnificent settings of the Mon Repos palace (the former
summer residence of the Greek royal family) and the main university
building (the Ionian Academy).Programme
Sunday July 3, Ionian Academy 10.00: Introduction to Greek music and
musicology (Andrew Barker)Sunday July 3 to Friday July 8, Ionian Academy 18.00: translation classes
for Greek students (Petros Andriotis and Andromache Batziou)Monday July 4 to Saturday July 9, Mon Repos 10.00: seminars on Aristotle,
Politics Book 8 (July 4-5 Eleonora Rocconi, 6-7 Andrew Barker, 8-9 Egert
Pöhlmann)Monday July 4 to Saturday July 9, Ionian Academy 19.00: lectures. The
speakers and topics are as follows (provisionally in this order, but it
may change).
Monday July 4: Massimo Raffa, University of Calabria, ‘Porphyry on voice
and perception’.
Tuesday July 5: Christos Terzis, University of Athens, a discussion of
Dionysius’ Technē mousikēs.
Wednesday July 6: Tosca Lynch, University of St Andrews, ‘A sophist “in
disguise”: a reconstruction of Damon of Oa and his role in Plato’s
dialogues’.
Thursday July 7: Andomache Batziou, Ionian University, ‘Some
notes on the educational role of the aulos in the first half of the fifth
century BCE’.
Friday July 8: Martin Carle, Humboldt University,
Berlin, ‘Harmony to the power of melody: epistemology and computation in
Aristoxenian theory’.
Saturday July 9: Stelios Psaroudakis, University of Athens, ‘How complex
can a complex rhythm be?’
Stefan Hagel, University of
Vienna, ‘From metre to rhythm: searching for traces of a path’.In the past we have had participants from about a dozen different
countries in Europe and the Americas; for the seminars and lectures, and
for the introductory session, we obviously have to choose a language which
is more or less common property, and the language we use is English. The
translation classes will be conducted in modern Greek…The fee for participation is 200 euros. Accommodation for students (both
undergraduates and post-graduates) can be provided in the university
dormitories at very low cost, but the number of places is limited, and it
is essential to book in advance to ensure a place. Students who want to
take advantage of this facility should contact one of the organizers (see
below) as soon as possible, certainly by the end of May and preferably
well before that. Other participants should let the organizers know that
they intend to come; it would be helpful if they could get in touch soon,
though there is no deadline for doing so. They will need to arrange their
own accommodation, but the organizers will be happy to offer advice.For all other information, please get in touch with one of the organizers,
Dr Petros Andriotis (pandriot AT ionio.gr) and Prof. Panos Vlagopoulos
(pvlag AT ionio.gr).
The incipit of a review of (Classicist) Peter Toohey, Boredom: A Lively History:
In the late third century, the Roman city of Beneventum inscribed the following message of thanks:
For Tanonius Marcellinus, a most distinguished man of the consular rank and a most worthy patron as well, because of the good deeds by which he rescued the population [of Beneventum] from endless boredom, the entire people [of this city] judges that this inscription should be recorded.
The identity of Tanonius Marcellinus has been lost, Peter Toohey writes in “Boredom: A Lively History,” but the sort of restlessness experienced by the inhabitants of Beneventum is still with us today. Boredom is universally viewed as an affliction, he argues, but the dreary feeling can also be useful—as long as it is in short supply. [...]
Of course, I had to look this one up, here it is:
TANONIO MARCELLINO
V C CONS CAMP PATRO
NO DIGNISSIMO OB IN
SIGNIA BENEFICIA QUI
BUS LONG POPULI TAE
DIA SEDAVIT UNIVER
SA PLEBS BENEVENTA
NA CENSUIT PO
NENDAM
… it’s number 1854 in volume 2 of Gustav Wilmanns, Exempla inscriptionum latinarum in usum praecipue academicum. Can’t help but wonder if Tanonio is a mistake for either ‘Antonio’ or T. Antonio …
