Classics Commons^™

Khallat Abu Ḥalaḥ: The Shells / ח'לת אבו חלאח: ממצא הקונכיות, Inbar Ktalav

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at Khallat Abu Halah uncovered 24 shells, including 14 marine shells from the Mediterranean Sea, two freshwater bivalves—one local and the other originating from the Nile—and eight terrestrial snails. Most of the shells were dated to the Byzantine period but were not found in situ, making it difficult to interpret their use. The Mediterranean shells indicate a connection to the Mediterranean coast, whereas the freshwater bivalve from the Nile suggests connections with Egypt, likely via Caesarea. The terrestrial species are similar to those found in the region today, indicating that the environmental conditions in the area during the …

Khallat Abu ḤAlaḥ: The Coins, Gabriela Bijovsky

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

A modest number of coins was discovered during the excavations at Khallat Abu Ḥalaḥ, dating from the fourth to the mid-seventh centuries CE. Most of the coins belong to common types that deserve no special discussion. Noteworthy is a rare Alexandrian dodecanummium of Maurice Tiberius. The latest coin is a very worn follis of Heraclius, dated to 624/628 CE.

Khallat Abu ḤAlaḥ: The Ceramic Assemblage, Neer Lect Ben Ami

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

This report details the ceramic assemblage recovered from excavations at Khallat Abu Ḥalaḥ. The pottery spans from the first to the tenth centuries CE, with the majority dating to the Late Roman and Byzantine periods. The assemblage includes various vessel types, mostly from unstratified contexts. The pottery indicates strong commercial ties with other Southern Levantine coastal and inland sites. The variety of finds suggests the site was a domestic structure, possibly a farmstead, within the economic sphere of Byzantine Caesarea.

Khallat Abu ḤAlaḥ: A Byzantine-Period Structure At Ramot Menashe / ח'לת אבו חלאח: מבנה מן התקופה הביזנטית ברמות מנשה, Ron Be'eri

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavation at Khallat Abu Ḥalaḥ uncovered part of a Byzantine-period structure comprising several rectangular rooms, corresponding to five construction phases. One of these rooms may have functioned as a bathhouse. Remains of another nearby structure decorated with a cross were also revealed, along with the upper fragment of a small chalkstone altar incised with a cross; a road paved with small stones and flanked by two walls that led to the site and continued toward Naḥal Dalia; and several field walls, one of which may have served as an enclosure. The finds from the site—including a fragment of a …

Eshta’Ol: A Protohistoric And Bronze Age Site In The Judean Shephelah, Amir Golani, Benyamin Storchan

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

This report presents the results of several excavations at Eshta’ol, which revealed occupation remains from six strata, dating from the Neolithic period to the Intermediate Bronze Age. These excavations were the first to identify occupational horizons dating to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B and Pottery Neolithic periods (Jericho IX/Lodite cultures), including significant flint and ceramic assemblages. The Early (Wadi Rabah) and Late Chalcolithic remains at Eshta’ol indicate a small settlement with two occupation phases. The large Early Bronze Age settlement at the site comprised at least four occupational phases, all associated with EB IB, reflecting a long-lived, preplanned rural village that …

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: The Coins, Helena Sokolov, Lior Sandberg

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavation at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered 26 bronze coins, 22 of which were identified. The coins range in date from the fourth century CE to the Umayyad period. The earliest coin is of Constantius II, dated to 341–346 CE, while the latest coins are Umayyad Post-Reform issues. The coin data is consistent with the archaeological context of the excavation and confirms the excavator’s conclusion that the site can be dated to the period of the sixth–ninth centuries CE.

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Byzantine Pottery / ראשון לציון, גן הגיתות: ממצא כלי חרס מן התקופה הביזנטית, Aviva Bouchenino, Ayelet Dayan

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered a large pottery assemblage dated to the Byzantine period, including locally produced bowls, casseroles, cooking pots and bag-shaped jars, as well as bowls imported from Asia Minor, Cyprus and Tunisia. The rich and varied assemblage uncovered at the site, along with architectural remains, may indicate that this was a residential area—possibly a farmhouse inhabited by tenant farmers who operated the nearby winepresses. The pottery vessels served as a primary dating tool and contributed to establishing the site’s chronology. The ceramic finds, together with the numerous repairs identified in the winepresses, …

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Remains Of Agricultural Activity From The Byzantine And Early Islamic Periods And Remains From The Ottoman Period And The British Mandate Era / ראשון לציון, גן הגיתות: שרידי פעילות חקלאית מהתקופות הביזנטית והאסלאמית הקדומה ושרידים מהתקופה העות'מאנית ומימי המנדט הבריטי, Ayelet Dayan, Aviva Bouchenino

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

Five excavation seasons conducted in and around the archaeological Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered the agricultural hinterland of a settlement active during the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods. The finds included architectural remains, three winepresses and several installations. The locally produced and imported domestic pottery from the Byzantine period suggests a residential zone—possibly a farmhouse—that likely served the tenants operating the nearby winepresses. The number and size of the winepresses indicate that wine production at the site was intended not only for local consumption but also for export. Activity at the site ceased during the Early Islamic period, when …

Shoham: A Byzantine-Period Farmhouse (Monastery?) / שוהם: בית אחוזה (מנזר?) מן התקופה הביזנטית, Israel Kornfeld, Ayelet Dayan

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

Two salvage excavation seasons conducted in the center of the Ḥamanyot neighborhood in Shoham uncovered the remains of a large building, adjacent tombs, a complex winepress and several additional agricultural installations, all dating to the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods (sixth–eighth centuries CE). The building can be identified as either a large farmhouse or a monastery. Its solid walls, agricultural installations and small finds—such as fragments of glass windows, a marble chancel-screen column and a marble table leg likely from an offering table—all indicate the presence of a church at the site, supporting the interpretation that the building functioned as …

Camp In The Kitchen: Feminism And Craft In Liza Lou's Beaded Worlds, Aurora X. Bell

Theses and Dissertations

Kitchen (1991–96) was the first major work of art by American artist Liza Lou. It is an installation of a life-size kitchen in which every surface and object is covered in glass beads. Kitchen, which Lou refers to as a monument to women’s unsung domestic labor, received considerable critical attention and drew the artist into ongoing conversations around the relationship between “fine art” and “craft” and about the role of feminism in the art of the 1990s. In contemporary interviews, however, Lou expressed discomfort with the label of “craft” as well as with feminist art that she considered “didactic.” …

William Hogarth's Portraiture: A Vehicle For Social Commentary, Kaitlyn Elizabeth Hoff

Theses and Dissertations

William Hogarth is often celebrated for the critiques of eighteenth-century England seen throughout his widely reproduced satirical print series and paintings, however his contributions to portraiture offer a compelling extension of his artistic vision and techniques. This research aims to explore Hogarth’s use of portraiture as a vehicle for social commentary and moral messaging, revealing broader themes of morality, nationalism, and identity among all of his works, comparing this approach to that of both his contemporaries and his own prints.

In examining Hogarth’s portraits alongside other formal portraiture, the socio-political landscape of the time, and existing scholarship, methods such as …

Modi‘In, Nofim Neighborhood: Remains From The Neolithic And Persian–Byzantine Periods / מודיעין, שכונת נופים: שרידים מן התקופות הניאוליתית והפרסית–הביזנטית, Elie Haddad

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

A vast salvage excavation was conducted in Complex N, an area designated for the construction of the Nofim neighborhood in Modi‘in. The excavation documented 130 find spots, including agricultural terraces, partition and boundary walls, dams, stone heaps, watchtowers, roads, winepresses, fences (pens), rock shelters, lime kilns, cupmarks, caves, shafts, cisterns and modern walls. It also revealed a fortress with adjacent casemate rooms dating to the Persian and Early Hellenistic periods, which could have been used by Persian military forces. Byzantine-period remains consisted of a farmstead, winepresses and terraces, indicating the agricultural character of the region.

Ritual And Revolution: Rethinking Roman Women’S Influence On Religion, Katlin Smith

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis challenges the long-standing portrayal of Roman women as passive figures. Focusing on the mid-to-late Roman Republic and early Empire (264 B.C.E.–180 C.E.), it argues that women were active participants in Roman society, particularly through their engagement in religious life. Drawing on the theory of “lived religion,” this study highlights how religion offered Roman women opportunity to interact with both domestic and public spheres in socially acceptable means. Religion allowed women to exercise influence, power, and autonomy otherwise denied to them in political or legal contexts. Through a combination of textual analysis and material evidence, such as inscriptions and …

Tetradrachms, Shekels, And Denarii: Cross-Cultural Exchange In Money At The Edges Of Greece And Rome, Miles Thompson

Honors Theses

This thesis focuses on the coin collection of the University of Mississippi Museum. I cataloged ancient coins in its collection through consulting online databases and reference books, and designed an exhibition to display some of the notable examples. This exhibition was based around the theme of cross-cultural interaction between Greek and Roman cultures and other ones towards the edges. It had both a physical and virtual component, and was displayed in Bryant Hall, and the museum’s website. I provide greater historical depth and research on some of the coins I cataloged that illustrate these cross-cultural interactions well. This exhibition successfully …

Unam Magnum Scutellam De Onichio: The Many Lives Of The Tazza Farnese, Merrick L. Gormley

Classical Mediterranean and Middle East Honors Projects

The Tazza Farnese is a large-scale sardonyx phiale (a shallow bowl) with a diameter of about 22 centimeters. The Tazza has caught the attention of numerous historical figures throughout antiquity, but despite how coveted the object may have been, records of its provenance before the 1400s are dissatisfactory or entirely nonexistent. This project seeks to shape a number of clear, thorough timelines for the object, as a synthesis of the many conflicting scholarly theories for its chronology. Furthermore, it examines the Tazza in the contexts of the cultures it was immersed in and investigates the way it was interpreted by …

The Demise Of Fossil Cycad National Monument As A Consequence Of Paleontological Resource Mismanagement, Nathaniel Valentine, Vincent Santucci, Justin Tweet, Aubrey Bond

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Located in the Black Hills of South Dakota (Figure 1), Fossil Cycad National Monument boasted well-preserved specimens of cycadeoid fossils from the Cretaceous and concentrations of these fossil plants were greatest at the site’s location (Santucci and Hughes, 1998). I studied historical records to estimate the number of fossils removed by paleontologists at the site between 1890-1957.

Pedro Aceves Mfa Thesis, Pedro M. Aceves

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

My Work is about looking at Cruising through a queer decolonial lens. Using multiple mediums such as photo, glass, Augmented reality, and film, I explore these queer histories and aesthetics through not just an anthropological approach but also an artistic epistemological approach weaving together narratives of prehispanic and modern queer Latinidad.

Pengembangan Pabrik Gula Banjaratma Sebagai Heritage Rest Area: Persepsi Terhadap Nilai-Nilai Pentingnya, Hasna Alya, Agi Ginanjar

Multikultura

The Banjaratma Heritage Rest Area is a form of development of the Banjaratma Sugar Factory with the concept of adaptation and revitalization. Until it was inaugurated as a rest area in 2019, the Banjaratma Sugar Factory still had the status of an Alleged Cultural Heritage Object (ODCB). This research reviews the suitability of the form of adaptation and revitalization of the Banjaratma Sugar Factory to UU No.11 of 2010 concerning Cultural Heritage and the perception of the significant values of the Banjaratma Sugar Factory. The method used is an archaeological research method, includes seven steps, including formulation, implementation, data collection, …

Lubiya (El-Khirbeh): A Late Hellenistic, Roman And Early Byzantine Village In Lower Galilee, Yardenna Alexandre, Michal Oren-Paskal, Gil Tsioni

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

A small archaeological excavation carried out in 2005–2007 on a hilltop in the Lavi Forest in Lower Galilee uncovered a small area of the village of Lubiya that was settled in the Late Hellenistic to early Byzantine periods. The earliest exposed building complex was constructed on the bedrock and comprised parts of two residential units with a shared long wall, an internal courtyard and several rooms. An underground complex beneath the units comprised individual basement storage elements that were subsequently joined to form an underground hiding complex, dated by the associated finds to the time of the First Jewish Revolt …

Race And Greek Mythology: An Analysis Of A Racialized Hierarchy In Literary And Artistic Depictions Of The Line Of Io In Archaic And Classical Greece, Angie Pierre

History & Classics Undergraduate Theses

Following the emergence of the Greek alphabet in 8th century B.C.E, Greece produced literary works which demonstrated contemporary beliefs, customs, and practices. Additionally, pottery during this era began to be more expressive. The use of geometric shapes and imagery from Egypt were later used to create stories and induce emotions in pottery. Following the Archaic period, the Classical era has produced a plethora of literary and artistic material that expands on material from the Archaic era while simultaneously providing commentary on its own period. While not in a consistent manner, an underlying theme within the art and literature of the …

Rediscovering Ancient Greek Pigmentation, Cynthia-Rose Seeds

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This thesis paper will discuss various questions relating to pre-Greco-Roman Ancient Greek paint pigments. In recent years discoveries of paint samples on Ancient Greek sculptures and architecture are becoming increasingly common, contradicting the stereotype that history has made of Ancient Greece having a pristine white aesthetic in their artwork. (Brinkmann, 2008) The various paint pigments that can be found throughout excavations in Greece, as well as the general history of pigments, create a new narrative when it comes to the art of Ancient Greece. Using various evidence such as pigment samples, artworks, textual primary sources, and scholarly research, this thesis …

For The Birds, Charlotte L. Middleton

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

For the Birds is a homogenous material exhibition of porcelain pottery that explores the relationships between, expectations of, and roles placed upon women and pottery. Using traditional craft processes, still life imagery, and the language and limits of porcelain, I create arrangements that expose the viewers assumptions of both subjects. Pottery- pitchers, cups, and vases—is a product of anthropocentrism and anthropomorphism and can be entirely taken for granted- their role is assumed and unquestionable—to serve. The language and expectations of these objects are the medium I build with.

The title of the show, For the Birds, is both a …

Ras El-‘Amud, Jerusalem: A Scarab And Two Pithos Handle Impressions, Baruch Brandl

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at Ras el-‘Amud yielded a scarab and two stamped pithos handles, all recovered from Stratum III and dated to the Middle Bronze IIC. The scarab, attributed to the group of Late Middle Bronze Age Canaanite Scarabs, has only one published parallel from a Canaanite site. The two stamped pithos handles likely originated from a single pithos. Variations in the size and outline of their impressions, as well as in the location and size of the hieroglyphic signs, suggest they were made either from different plaques or from opposite faces of the same bifacial plaque. Both impressions have only …

Migdal, Ashqelon: The Glass Finds, Natalya Katsnelson

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The salvage excavation at Migdal, Ashqelon, unearthed some 85 glass fragments, including jars, bottles, a bowl, a bowl-shaped oil lamp, bracelets, beads and a windowpane. Most of the glass fragments were found in Ottoman- and British Mandate-period strata (III–I). Several fragments were found in Mamluk-period installations (Stratum IV), and only one fragment could be associated with the Roman–Byzantine period (Stratum V). Given the well-stratified context of the glass fragments, some of the uncovered types allow for more precise dating within the Ottoman period. As our knowledge of Late Islamic and early twentieth-century CE glass from settlements in southern Israel is …

Migdal, Ashqelon: The Ceramic Finds, Anna De Vincenz

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The ceramic material presented in this report was recovered from a salvage excavation conducted to the east of the mosque in Migdal, Ashqelon. Although most of the ceramic material was dated to the late Ottoman period, Late Roman–Byzantine ceramics, a few sherds from the Crusader period and a Mamluk-period assemblage were also uncovered. The Mamluk assemblage is characterized by imported glazed bowls and locally made, handmade geometric painted vessels. The Ottoman-period material is varied and comprises ceramics imported from Turkey, Greece and Italy. Black Gaza Ware characterizes the locally produced vessels. Smoking pipes and narghile were common at the site.

Migdal, Ashqelon: Remains From The Late Roman–Byzantine, Mamluk And Ottoman Periods / מגדל, אשקלון: שרידים מן התקופות הרומית המאוחרת–הביזנטית, הממלוכית והעות'מאנית, Ilan Peretz

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavation at Migdal, Ashqelon, uncovered remains from the Late Roman–Byzantine, Mamluk, Ottoman and British Mandate periods. It revealed a sequence of architectural remains, suggesting continuous occupation of the site during the thirteenth–fifteenth centuries CE, with a possible abandonment during the sixteenth century. During the seventeenth–eighteenth centuries, the site appears to have been resettled, and in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, it underwent renewed construction. From the nineteenth century until the early 1950s, the area was continuously inhabited. Between the 1950s and 1980s, it was occupied by immigrants from North Africa, and by the 1980s, most of its buildings …

ʻAmqa: The Coins, Donald T. Ariel

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at ‘Amqa yielded seven coins, six of which are identifiable. Three of the coins are from the Hellenistic period, two are Byzantine and one is from the late Ottoman period. The Hellenistic coins, including one tetradrachm, support evidence of occupation at the site during this period. The Byzantine and Ottoman coins augment the architectural remains uncovered during the excavations, which indicate more substantial occupations at the site during these later periods.

ʽAmqa: Faunal Remains From The Late Fatimid–Early Crusader Periods, Nimrod Marom

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

This report analyzes faunal remains found in a building complex at ‘Amqa, primarily from the late Fatimid–early Crusader periods (eleventh–twelfth centuries CE). The assemblage consists mainly of cattle, sheep and goats, with a smaller number of camel, wild boar, equid, chicken and tortoise remains. Cattle bones, particularly from young individuals, are most prevalent, suggesting a focus on cattle rearing. Butchery marks indicate the use of tools for carcass processing, and bone fragmentation patterns suggest both intentional breakage and natural weathering. Comparisons with other sites from the same period highlight the unique predominance of cattle in ‘Amqa, possibly due to the …

‘Amqa: The Glass Finds, Yael Gorin-Rosen

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at ‛Amqa yielded about fifty identifiable fragments of glass vessels from the Late Roman–early Byzantine, the late Byzantine–Early Islamic and the medieval periods. The finds also included remains of glass production debris, such as raw glass chunks and a fragment from a furnace floor with raw glass adhering to it. The assemblage from ‛Amqa contributes to our knowledge of the vessel repertoire used in a rural settlement in the western part of Upper Galilee, mainly during the late Byzantine–Early Islamic periods. These vessels were likely produced in a local workshop in ‛Amqa or one of the nearby settlements.

ʽAmqa: Settlement Remains From The Iron Age, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine And Early Islamic Periods, Yardenna Alexandre, Michael Cohen

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

A salvage excavation at ‘Amqa, on the northern part of a hill located at the juncture of the ‘Akko coastal plain and the foothills of western Upper Galilee, revealed archaeological remains from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic, Iron II, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Early Islamic and Ottoman periods. Small excavation areas distributed over the hill exposed fragmentary architectural remains from Iron II, and a coastal pottery assemblage from the Hellenistic period. The Roman-period remains of a village included the walls of four buildings associated with Galilean pottery. Larger-scale Byzantine-period building remains, including a public building and a storage complex, as well as an …