Digital Commons Network^™

The Ktisis Of The Early Christian Kourion: The Cosmic Symbolism Of The Mosaics In The House Of Eustolios And The Emergence Of Christian Kourion, Clay Carpenter

Doctoral Dissertations

The fourth and fifth centuries AD comprise a crucial transitional period in the history of Western Civilization. With the legalization and triumph of Christianity, the Roman Imperial world was, in time, entirely transfigured in all sectors of human life – the religious, the social, the political, and the economic. For the archaeologist in particular, the changes to the configuration and orientation of the urban space of the classical cities that abundantly dotted the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean are high upon this list of transformations. During these centuries, the classical city or polis of antiquity would begin to fade, giving …

The Roman Language Policy: Its Parts, Presence, And Consequences, Lilianna Darnell

Honors Bachelor of Arts

No abstract provided.

The Pie Verb: A New Reconstruction, Percy Huffman

Honors Bachelor of Arts

No abstract provided.

2023 Addendum To The Rough Cilicia Kiln Site Ceramics (Syedra, Delice, Biçkici, And Antiochia Ad Cragum): An Update To The Kiln Sites, Nicholas K. Rauh

Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project, 1996-2011

This addendum summarizes the ceramic remains recovered by the Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project at four posited amphora kiln sites in the survey area: the Syedra Kiln Site, the Biçkici Kiln site, the Antiochia ad Cragum Kiln Site, and the Delice Kiln Site. All four sites were identified early on during the survey (1995-1997). The survey team conducted grab collections and triaged dozens of sherds recovered by 1997, before returning the bulk of these fragments to the field. A representative sample of the amphora fragments together with context ceramics for each site was conserved at the Alanya Archaeological Museum. In …

The Development And Adoption Of The Codex, Rutherford Allison

Honors Bachelor of Arts

One of the longest-lasting and least recognized changes that occurred under the Roman Empire is the transition from scrolls as a vessel for literature to codices, the format which, in some way, is still used today. Indeed, until the invention of the printing press, texts had not undergone as impactful a shift as was experienced during the period between 250 and 450 AD. This shift was tied closely to the spread of Christianity; the codex’s rise to dominance maps closely to the spread of Christianity, and this is no accident. As will become apparent, Christians possessed a strong and distinctive …

Spectacle In The Roman Imperial Funeral Procession, William Smith

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

From the legendary foresight of Augustus, to the scandalous escapades of Nero and Commodus to even the philosopher emperor, Marcus Aurelius, much has been written. This thesis does not concern itself with the deeds of emperors, but rather their funerals. Imperial funerals in some ways were quite similar to their Republican era antecedents. They differed in spectacular ways. This thesis investigates the spectacle evident in imperial funerals and argues that their inclusion is not to honor the deceased but rather cement their place in the cultural memory of Rome by means of this performance. In addition, it examines the role …

Musical Evidence For Low Boundary Tones In Ancient Greek, Dieter Gunkel

Classical Studies Faculty Publications

Several scholars have suggested that in ancient Greek there was a low boundary tone at the end of a relatively small prosodic constituent such as a clitic group or maximal prosodic word. The boundary tone may phonologically motivate some puzzling pitch-accentual phenomena in the language. One is the diachronic pitch-peak retraction that led to the circumflex pitch accent (HL) on penultimate syllables (the “sōtêra rule”). Another is the intonational phrase-internal downstepping or deletion of a word-final acute accent (H); that conversion of an acute to a grave accent is known as “lulling” or “koímēsis”. If such a low …

Leonardo’S Ancient Inspiration, Willem N. Roelandts

CAFE Symposium 2023

Investigating the hidden ancient inspiration in Leonardo de Vinci’s 'Battle of Anghiari' and it’s significance to the city of Florence. How and why Leonardo chose to incorporate Greco-Roman aesthetics into his art.

A Virtual Reality Educational Game For The Ethics Of Cultural Heritage Repatriation, James Hutson, Ben Fulcher

Faculty Scholarship

The technology of virtual reality and the gamification of education has had proven educational benefits and has the ability to immerse students in a participatory learning experience. To capitalize on the strengths of the new digital medium, including immersion, engagement, and presence, a new educational game aims to teach the ethics of cultural heritage repatriation through the lens of art history. The use of games to address current issues and conceptualize a framework for understanding the complexities of geopolitics is not new but aligning these considerations with the pressing need to protect cultural heritage as seen in modern-day Ukraine is. …

The Greco-Roman Influence On Early Christian Art, Tim Ganshirt

Honors Bachelor of Arts

It cannot be denied that early Christian communities used familiar Greco-Roman symbols, images, icons, and ideas in their own ways. For this reason, it will be necessary to examine why these communities in Rome took parts of Greco-Roman society that were familiar to them and used them in a different way, in addition to exploring the varying degrees of effect that these images had on the Christian communities themselves and on the society around them. By “early Christian communities,” I mean Christians living in Rome at the beginning of the third century until the late fifth century.[1] For these …

By The Power Vesta-Ed In Me: The Power Of The Vestal Virgins And Those Who Took Advantage Of It, Elena M. Stanley

Classical Mediterranean and Middle East Honors Projects

Vestal Virgins were high ranking members of the Roman elite. Due to the priestesses’ elevated standing, Romans made use of their inherent privileges. Through analyses of case studies from ancient authors and archaeology, I identify three ways Romans wielded Vestal power: familial connections, financial and material resources, and political sway. I end by exploring cases of crimen incesti, the crime of unchastity, which highlight all three forms. The Vestals were influential women who shared access to power in different ways. The Vestals were active participants in the social and political world of Rome.

Humanity And Nature: From Vergil To Modernity, Aaron Ticknor

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Though ecology is a relatively new field of study, the human relationship to nature has shifted and changed throughout history. In antiquity, it has been understood by scholarly consensus that there was a more general understanding of nature as a living force with spirit, for example the Roman animist concept of numen, and humanity being one with nature. In modernity, however, under the influence of Rene Descartes and Francis Bacon, nature is seen as completely separate from humanity and devoid of any value beyond the economic value of resources. Later philosophers such as Nietzsche lamented this shift, advocating for …

Cultural Collapse Of The Seleucid Empire, John Paul Mastandrea

Honors Bachelor of Arts

This paper seeks to explore the causes for the collapse of the Seleucid Empire following the death of Alexander the Great. The reasons for this collapse were numerous, but primarily focus on the administrative difficulties inherited from the Persian empire, the vast cultural differences within the empire, and the priorities of the Seleucid rulers. In order to show a counter point of a Greek state that succeeded in ruling a foreign people, the exploration of Ptolemaic Egypt is put alongside the Seleucids. The Egyptian Greeks succeeded in all of the ways that the Seleucids failed. By putting these two states …

The Name And Its Significance: An Examination Of Names In Aristotle’S And Plato’S Philosophy Of Language, Matthew Blain

Honors Bachelor of Arts

In the early 20th century, philosophy underwent a “linguistic turn,” in which philosophy, humanities, and even sciences made a redoubled focus on language itself. This turn was quite comprehensive, focusing on nearly every aspect of language such as meaning, reference, truth and falsity, logic, and the connection of language and reality. This renewed focus garnered a significant amount of attention and thought in the 20th century by some of its most prominent thinkers of both the analytic and even continental traditions. In the analytic tradition, Wittgenstein, in his Tractatus, saw language as the logical limit of our known world, out …

Wearing Your Heart On Your Sleeve: Expressing Hecuba’S Emotions In Artistic Retellings, Marie Gruver

Undergraduate Research Awards

Hecuba has famously been regarded as the secondary character of the Fall of Troy and not as the maternal symbol of the city’s downfall itself as she deserves. Forever the overlooked heroine, I argue that it is not Euripides’ Hecuba per se, but readings of her story by empathetic artists, creators, and scholars of different time periods are who create new interpretations of Hecuba’s role within her own myth. As artistic renditions have progressed through time, Hecuba’s grief itself has become the central focus of the illustrated retellings of her story.

Roman New Comedy In The Renaissance: The Influence Of Plautus In Shakespearean Comedy, Nick Minion

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Undoubtedly the most well-known playwright in the English language, Shakespeare’s influence can be felt in most every genre in most every era. Allusions to his work can be found anywhere, from horror novels to sci-fi. Beyond allusions, most strongly felt is his stylistic influence in theatre. Names, plot devices, and images have all been taken from Shakespeare’s greatest works and implemented and transformed in new art forms. However, not all elements of Shakespearean drama originated with the bard himself. Shakespeare drew inspiration from the dramatists that preceded him, especially Roman playwrights. In his earlier works, these similarities are apparent. The …

Ancient Drama Applications In Education And Interactive Entertainment, Katerina Zacharia, Marientina Gotsis

Classics and Archaeology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

The Unwelcome Guest: Envy And Shame Materialized In A Roman Villa, Andrew Scholtz

Middle Eastern and Ancient Mediterranean Studies (MEAMS) Faculty Scholarship

A third-century C.E. inscribed mosaic from Skala, on the Greek island of Kefallonia, has greatly expanded our knowledge of envy’s evil eye in the Roman Mediterranean. Yet its inscription has not drawn the attention it deserves. Paying heed to the literary, affective, and material dimensions of this and other mosaic texts, I explore how the Skala poem, in tandem with the imagery it accompanies, mediates encounters between guest, host, and house. In so doing, it forms part of a decorative program materializing envy as actor in a drama celebrating a householder’s fortune while exposing the envious to general scorn.

Li Pittori Parlano Con L’Opere: Visualizing Poetry In Practice In Early Modern Italian Art, James Hutson

Faculty Scholarship

The relative sophistication of artists in the early modern era is contested, especially with regards to their educational backgrounds. On one hand, Dempsey-esque intellectual history is vested in touting the structured, literary curricula in art-educational institutions; while on the other, a complete rejection of the “artist-philosopher” as historical fiction seeks to undermine this hegemonic construct. This study argues that the lack of early formal education in the cases of artist like Annibale Carracci and Nicolas Poussin, who, unlike Peter Paul Rubens, did not have a firm foundation in the classics and languages that would allow them to engage directly with …

The Changing Role Of The French Court As Seen In Medieval Millefleurs Tapestry, Kelsey Cook

Student Scholarship

Amongst the chaos of war, plague, and death of the Middle Ages in France, there remained a seemingly untouched class of people: the nobility. These courtesans, although living in the lap of luxury, were not exempt from the anxieties of the time. The Hundred Years’ War left France in a constant state of unrest between the 1300s and 1400s, causing the elite to fall in and out of favor continuously. The price of luxury, it seemed, changed with each political shift. When studying the art made by and for these aristocrats, it becomes apparent that there are veiled indications of …

Byzantine And Islamic Influences On The Art And Architecture Of The Basilica Di San Marco In Venice, Suzie Hanny

Student Scholarship

More than any other building in Venice, the Basilica di San Marco (figure 1) incorporates many Byzantine and Islamic architectural, artistic, and design elements. These stylistic elements were not only intended to glorify God but to promote the Venetian Republic’s political and religious ideologies. The Venetian Republic held the belief that it was divinely ordained to be the rulers of the Adriatic. It was no coincidence that the founding of Venice is said to have occurred on March 25^th, the feast day of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. While there are no surviving records of this, Venice …

Women In Livy And Tacitus, Stephen Alexander Prevoznik

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Although often neglected in Roman literature, women play important roles where they do appear. This is especially true in Livy's history called the Ab Urbe Condita or "From the Founding of the City" and Tacitus' work the Annals. For reasons I will clarify more in my presentation, Livy uses women as examples. Some are examples that the readers should follow. Lavinia, Lucretia, and the Sabine women all exemplify something good. Lavinia is noble in her aim, Lucretia is a model for chastity, and the Sabine women show the value of harmony. Livy also presents women who are bad examples. …

The Use Of Egyptian Blue In Funerary Paintings From Roman Egypt, Margaret Sather

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

This paper explores the use of the synthesized pigment Egyptian blue in the encaustic and tempera funerary portraits of Graeco-Roman ruled Egypt in the 1st-3rd centuries CE. Recent developments in non-destructive imaging analysis technology have aided research institutions and museums in detecting the presence of this pigment. New questions have arisen based on these findings of Egyptian blue in the depiction of flesh and hair of these subjects, particularly because blue is so rarely used as a standalone pigment in works of this category. These analyses have challenged assumptions that Egyptian blue was a rare and valuable pigment during the …

Preliminary Report On The 2018 Field Season Of The American Excavations At Morgantina: Contrada Agnese Project (Cap), Christy Schirmer, D. Alex Walthall, Andrew Tharler, Elizabeth Wueste, Benjamin Crowther, Randall Souza, Jared Benton, Jane Millar

Art Faculty Publications

In its sixth season, the American Excavations at Morgantina: Contrada Agnese Project (CAP) continued archaeological investigations inside the House of the Two Mills, a modestly-appointed house of Hellenistic date located near the western edge of the ancient city of Morgantina. This report gives a phase-by-phase summary of the significant discoveries from the 2018 excavation season, highlighting the architectural development of the building as well as evidence for the various activities that took place there over the course of its occupation.

Into The Light: Making Blessings And Vows, Katerina Zacharia

Classics and Archaeology Faculty Works

This essay is the first in a triptych of essays about Katerina Zacharia's film Blessings and Vows (2018).

On A Defense Of Democracy: How Roman Delatores And Emperors Dismantled Libertas And Established The Principate In The Early Roman Empire, Justin R. Scott

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Precis

My thesis argues that the delatores’ legal and political actions restricted political freedom and cemented a shift in authority from the Roman Senate to the Roman Emperor. This thesis utilizes primary works from Cicero, Dio, Pliny the Younger, Quintilian, Suetonius, and works from Tacitus, that had lived under the times when the delatores held the most power and influence over Rome. I also include secondary scholarship about how historians have understood the impact of the delatores on the Roman political and legal systems, all of which explain who the delatores were and how they impacted Roman society after …

The Galileo Affair In Context: An Investigation Of Influences On The Church During Galileo’S 1633 Trial, Evan W. Lamping

Honors Bachelor of Arts

This paper explores the context of the 1616 trial of Galileo within the history of the geocentric and heliocentric theories of the solar system, as well as some factors that may have initiated this trial or influenced the result. Some of these factors include the criticism of contemporary Reformers, Galileo’s relationship with the Pope, and recently uncovered Vatican documents accusing Galileo of atomism. These last two are found in Pietro Redondi’s book Galileo Eretico, which alleges that Pope Urban VIII spared Galileo by having him investigated for holding heliocentric views, instead of letting him face potential charges of heresy …

The Impact Of Ancient Doctor-Patient Relationship Standards On Modern Bedside Manner, James P. Stebbins

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Precis

An examination of the oaths surrounding the doctor-patient relationships in the healthcare systems of antiquity, as well as those of the early Medieval period and modernity, reveals that the modern concept of bedside manner is one with roots throughout history, and has changed according to the predominant religion of the time. This is done by comparing the oaths taken by physicians across these periods, and examining how they outline the tenets of the relationship between a patient and their healthcare provider. I also provide examples of religious beliefs and how they interact with medical practice to show how bedside …

A Living Faith: Christianity’S Pre-Constantine Survival, Derek Allen Seifert

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Précis

In my thesis, I argue that the beliefs and practices of Christianity helped it to not only coexist with but survive beyond the cults that were prevalent and more established. To demonstrate this, I compare Christianity with said cults. In my first chapter, I examine three mystery cults, looking at the factors that gave them their popularity. In the second chapter, I discuss Christianity. Citing authors such as Tacitus and Pliny, I reveal the ill reception given to Christianity. I then use sources, such as Saint Justin Martyr, Saint Cyprian, and Saint Dionysius, to explain what exactly Christians believed …

Frontmatter For Egyptian Textiles And Their Production: ‘Word’ And ‘Object’. (Hellenistic, Roman And Byzantine Periods), Maria Mossakowska-Gaubert

Egyptian Textiles and Their Production: ‘Word’ and ‘Object’

Covers

Dedication

Contents

Introduction by Maria Mossakowska-Gaubert

Contributors