36,808 research outputs found
Beyond the Foreigner: representations of non-roman individuals and communities in latin historiography, from Sallust to Ammianus Marcellinus
No full textFrom the foundation of the city of Rome in 753 BCE to the capture of the same in 476 CE, the ancient Romans came into contact with a diverse range of peoples. The Romans did not want only to conquer these peoples and incorporate them into the empire, but also they displayed a genuine interest in learning about foreigners. Roman historical narrative demonstrates clearly this prevailing curiosity. This thesis examines the representations of foreign individuals and communities in five works: SaUust, helium lugurthinum; Livy, Ab Vrhe Condita 21-30; Justin, Epitome of Pompeius Trogus, Historiae Philippicae 11-12; Tacitus, Germania; Ammianus MarcelHnus, Res Gestae 23.6. These authors represent a broad range of types of history writing (monograph, AUG history, universal history), and they span most of die history of Rome as an empire (40s BCE to the late 300s CE). Moreover, these works represent a diverse range of geographic locations in that they include the three major parts of the world as understood by the Romans: Africa, Europe and Asia. Finally, they cover—or they exist within the context of—the full range of the Roman-Foreign experience: victory (Numidia, Carthage), defeat (Persia), and non- result (Germani).This thesis demonstrates that Roman historians employ a diverse range of presentations of non-Roman individuals and communities. Roman historians appear not to have been constrained by a narrow set of rules when it comes to writing non- Romans; rather, each author can be seen to be engaging in a wider Roman discourse on the foreigner. And this discourse extends beyond the Roman world and Roman historical writing: the historians of Rome can be seen as building upon, and responding to, the so-called father of history, Herodotus, whose own narrative established firmly that exploration of the foreigner is an important part of historical inquiry. Close analysis clearly demonstrates each presentation of a non-Roman character or community to be an intricate and fascinating construction, and understanding how the foreigner is conceptualised in the work is of critical importance. On the one hand, the presentation of foreigners fits into the historian’s overarching aims and objectives in his work; on the other hand, the representation of foreigners can dictate the ways in which the Roman history is narrated. Non-Romans both fit into and they provide direction for, Roman historical narrative. By studying the complexities of the presentation of non-Romans, therefore, this thesis enhances our understanding of the sophistication of Roman historical writing. Despite the continuing acknowledgement of the important role ethnography plays in writings of Herodotus and his Greek and Roman successors and imitators, there has not so far been a genre-wide detailed study of the ethnography in Greek or Roman historiography. This thesis, therefore, seeks to rectify partially this omission on the part of scholarship, and establish a foundation for future study of the non-Roman in Latin literature and Roman culture
The Roman Inquisition : A Papal Bureaucracy and Its Laws in the Age of Galileo /
No full textAs Thomas F. Mayer demonstrates in this first study of the Roman Inquisition as an institution, the Inquisition underwent constant modification as it expanded. Originally aimed to eradicate Protestant heresy, it went beyond medieval antecedents by becoming a highly articulated centralized organ directly dependent on the pope.As Thomas F. Mayer demonstrates in this first study of the Roman Inquisition as an institution, the Inquisition underwent constant modification as it expanded. Originally aimed to eradicate Protestant heresy, it went beyond medieval antecedents by becoming a highly articulated centralized organ directly dependent on the pope.Electronic reproduction. ,Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.Thomas F. Mayer is Professor of History at Augustana College. He is author of Reginald Pole: Prince and Prophet, and editor and translator of The Trial of Galileo, 1612-1633.Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher’s Web site, viewed March 24, 2015
After Sulla: study in the settlement and material culture of the Piraeus peninsula in the Roman and Late Roman period
No full textModem text-based and ancient historical accounts take the sack of Piraeus, the port of Athens in Greece, by the Romans under Sulla in 86 ВС as the terminal point of the history of the area in antiquity. Archaeological work on the town has tended so far to regard the post-Classical phases of the settlement as less interesting than those marking the 'heyday' of the port in the Classical period. This thesis explores the nature and scale of settlement in the area in the centuries spanning the town's destruction by the Romans in 86 ВС and the Late Roman period. The study is based on a re-assessment of archaeological data from old and recent rescue excavations in the modem town up to 1997. It also presents and discusses in detail the results of post-excavation work by the author on unpublished material from an extensive site excavated in the early 1980s, These results are compared to and synthesized with epigraphic and other testimonies to answer questions about the nature of settlement and the degree of social and cultural change in the area during the period in focus. The discussion focuses in particular on; 1) exploring continuity and change in the settlement patterns, demography and topography of the town, 2) the changing nature of domestic space and its organization, and 3) investigating patterns of pottery consumption and trade. These issues are examined in the context of the social, economic and cultural changes documented for the Roman imperial and Late Roman period by previous archaeological fieldwork and excavations in the region of southern Greece and the Aegean
'Gnosticism' in fourth century Britain: the Frampton mosaics reconsidered
No full textRecent years have seen a renewed interest in the significance of the mosaic designs employed in Roman houses. Studies have concentrated on establishing the mythological sources of the images chosen, and on describing the social and architectural contexts within which such art was used. It has long been noted that some of the subjects preferred in fourth-century Britain suggest allegorical references to the hereafter, although it has also been observed that the ‘search for profound and coherent allegories may exaggerate the significance which the wealthy British patrons imparted to the floors of the great halls or dining-rooms of their villas’. Ling, in particular, has cautioned against reading exaggerated meanings into ambivalent images that may simply have been chosen to vaunt erudite taste
A re-examination of the evidence for parade-grounds at auxiliary forts in Roman Britain
No full textThis Thesis examines the underlying evidence for parade-grounds at auxiliary forts in Roman Britain. Firstly by examining the evidence supporting forts with actual physical remains, such as the altars and the tribunal at Maryport and the artificially levelled area at Hardknott, and those with flagged areas which have been interpreted as parade-grounds, such as Ambleside and Gelligaer. The literary evidence of ancient authors is examined with particular reference to training and exercising and where this might have been undertaken. The occasions when a parade might have been appropriate in Roman times are examined, as is the possibility of a modem concept being superimposed on an ancient action
The taberna structures of Roman Britain
No full textThe aim of this thesis is to explain how the shops (tabernae) of Roman Britain related to society. The buildings of a more humble nature, including tabernae, have been frequently overlooked at the expense of the more ornate public buildings and villas. This thesis proposes to redress this imbalance, as it is believed that retailing and manufacture were one of the most crucial features of Roman society. Varied sources have been used to aid this hypothetical reconstruction and these included the excavated archaeological remains, the extant remains from other parts of the empire and the ancient literary sources. Although these provided a wealth of information they are by themselves limited in what they can reveal about their society. Anthropological and geographical studies have proved an immensely useful tool to illuminate other aspects of society. These were approached with great circumspection and examined in relation to the archaeological evidence. Using all this information the thesis attempts to describe and explain the major factors that helped to create the form and geographical pattern of retail establishments in Roman Britain. It is argued that the tabernae were more responsive to and give a more accurate picture of the social and economic climate of Roman Britain than any other building type. It appears that the Romano-British community was well catered for in life's necessities with a wide variety of merchandise supplied by tabernae. The development of tabernae is difficult to summarise, as more than any other building type they were subject to a multitude of varied and individual circumstances, but it can be demonstrated that a thriving and competitive retailing community existed in the major settlements of Roman Britain
The Roman Inquisition on the Stage of Italy, c. 1590-1640 /
No full textDrawing on the Roman Inquisition's own records, diplomatic correspondence, local documents, newsletters, and other sources, Thomas F. Mayer provides an intricately detailed account of the ways the Inquisition operated to serve the papacy's long-standing political aims in Naples, Venice, and Florence between 1590 and 1640.Drawing on the Roman Inquisition's own records, diplomatic correspondence, local documents, newsletters, and other sources, Thomas F. Mayer provides an intricately detailed account of the ways the Inquisition operated to serve the papacy's long-standing political aims in Naples, Venice, and Florence between 1590 and 1640.Electronic reproduction. ,Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.Thomas F. Mayer is author of The Roman Inquisition: A Papal Bureaucracy and Its Laws in the Age of Galileo, also available from the University of Pennsylvania Press, and Reginald Pole: Prince and Prophet. He is also editor and translator of The Trial of Galileo, 1612-1633.Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher’s Web site, viewed March 24, 2015
Recensione a The Roman Inquisition. A Papal Bureaucracy and Its Laws in the Age of Galileo by Thomas F. Mayer
No full textRecensione a The Roman Inquisition. A Papal Bureaucracy and Its Laws in the Age of Galileo by Thomas F. Maye
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