Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons^™

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.

Cicero And His Exploration Of Frienship, Madison Brown-Moffitt

Honors Program Theses

The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons Cicero had for writing on morals and friendships following the Civil Wars between Pompey and Caesar. This exploration uses a great deal of background information, detailing Cicero’s relationships with Pompey and Caesar, before addressing several of his works that address friendship, and finally looking at how his philosophical musings influenced his friendship with a man named Matius. The relationships that Cicero had are the inspiration for his writings, and as such are given appropriate attention before moving on to the works that were inspired by the events in Cicero’s life.

Democracy Vs. Liberty: The Telos Of Government, Ryan C. Yeazell

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Democracies are known for being relatively stable and ensuring freedom for their citizens. However, those assumptions are called into question by the various failures of modern democracies to both maintain authority and enshrine liberty. Are the institutional checks and balances failing to prevent some of the expected issues with governments based on popular voting? Or is there some other cause of failure outside of the institutional structures themselves?

To examine these questions, I will be comparing a few examples of failed modern democracies with arguably history’s longest lasting democratic government: the Roman Republic. Although separated by over two thousand years …

Piecing Together Roman Life And Art: The Impact Of Societal Changes On Developments In Roman Mosaics, Emily A. Lewis

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Although changes in mosaics in ancient Rome can be attributed to various factors such as available resources, skills of the mosaicists, and room aesthetics with wall paintings, the changes in the relationship amongst social classes is a factor that is rarely examined, but strongly impacted these development in mosaic styles. First, an analysis of various mosaics from the 2^nd century BC-2^nd century AD will be given so that there is an understanding of the changes that occurred. From there, reasons for the adaptations of polychrome into black and white will be assessed; focusing the argument on analysis of …

The Seed Of Principate: Annona And Imperial Politics, Joseph B. Ruter Iii

Honors Bachelor of Arts

From my study of the annona, I propose a new perspective on the transition between the Republic and the Principate. Each of the big three imperial historians account for the Principate in terms of personal politics and preferences of the “great man” Augustus (Div. Aug. 28; Rom. His. 52.1; Ann. 1.2). By contrast, I argue that the Principate represents the long-term political result of growing social inequality in Rome. From an equalitarian society of yodel-men farmers and shepherds in the 2^nd BCE, Rome had evolved into an unequal society by the 2^nd CE, …

Viget Certe Viget Adhuc: The Invention Of The Eternal City In Flavio Biondo's Roma Instaurata, Ryan G. Warwick

Senior Projects Spring 2016

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College.

"Future City In The Heroic Past: Rome, Romans, And Roman Landscapes In Aeneid 6–8", Eric Kondratieff

History Faculty Publications

From the Intro: “Arms and the Man I sing…” So Vergil begins his epic tale of Aeneas, who overcomes tremendous obstacles to find and establish a new home for his wandering band of Trojan refugees. Were it metrically possible, Vergil could have begun with “Cities and the Man I sing,” for Aeneas’ quest for a new home involves encounters with cities of all types: ancient and new, great and small, real and unreal. These include Dido’s Carthaginian boomtown (1.419–494), Helenus’ humble neo-Troy (3.349–353) and Latinus’ lofty citadel (7.149–192). Of course, central to his quest is the destiny of Rome, whose …

The Column And Coinage Of C. Duilius: Innovations In Iconography In Large And Small Media In The Middle Republic, Eric Kondratieff

History Faculty Publications

"[From the conclusion]: This discussion presents a linked series of hypotheses, each one suggested in its turn by evidence relating directly to C. Duilius (cos. 260), and contextualized by near-contemporary precedents wherever possible, or relevant-seeming analogues from slightly later periods. Taken together, these hypotheses support a plausible scenario in which the elogium on Duilius’ rostral column may be read not only as an account of a cunning and audacious commander whose pioneering efforts in naval warfare destroyed the myth of Carthaginian supremacy at sea, but also as an encomium on a generous benefactor to Rome’s citizenry. The inscription’s redactor has …