Classics Commons^™

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 …

The Vulnerable Immigrant, Jason M. Schlude

Languages and Cultures Faculty Publications

Immigration is not just a modern phenomenon -- nor is the vulnerability associated with it. In "The Vulnerable Immigrant," Jason Schlude explores the experience of the Jews as immigrants in ancient Alexandria, Egypt and how it highlights the choices before us at a critical moment in the United States.

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 …

Tolle Superbiam: Divitiae Non Nocebunt Community, Renunciation, And The Fall Of Rome: Wealth In The Pelagian Controversy, Charlie Evans

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

During the fourth and fifth centuries, discourse about Christian almsgiving and wealth proliferated widely as charitable institutions and ascetic communities began to form, such that “social norms and expectations regarding poverty were also in flux.”[i] Congregations across the Roman Empire were trying to discern what was the Christian way to understand the relationship between wealth and the Christian life: Should good Christians have wealth? Augustine’s and Pelagius’ early fifth-century discourses on wealth which the Pelagian Controversy produced were pivotal in providing answers to this question. Augustine’s views on wealth formally triumphed at Ravenna in 418. Good Christians could have …

Tracing The Collective Endeavors: The Cultural Discourses Of Women Printmakers Throughout History, Ann Henrietta Bittl

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the dissertation is to examine the women who paved the way for future generations of women printmakers by tracing the influences and practices of women printmakers throughout history within collective workshops. In the West, the concept of a collective endeavor began during the Middle Ages with monasteries and convents, where artisans created religious works of art as a way to teach illiterate audiences and also to adorn churches and cathedrals. However, during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the concept of the collective workshop grew out of artist’s studios and ateliers. Artists were trained in the apprentice system, …

Haifa, Naḥal Aḥuzza A-10170/2025, Tal Lavi

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In November 2025, a trial excavation was conducted in advance of the construction project “Ofer Moradot Freud” in Haifa (Permit No. A-10170/2025; map ref. 197775/743020; Fig. 1). The excavation took place on the western slope of Mount Carmel, east of Yod-Alef Ha-Sporta’im Street and north of Naḥal Aḥuzza (Ahuzza River), within the antiquities area Naḥal Aḥuzza [1] (61059/0). The excavation was conducted on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Yael Oko. It was directed by T. Lavi (field photography), with the assistance of A. Azab (Haifa District archaeologist), N. Shahar (Haifa sub-district archaeologist), Z. Lotan and Y. …

Nahal Tamar (Tamar River) A-9979/2025, Avshalom Davidesko

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In February–March 2025, a salvage excavation was conducted on the eastern bank of Nahal Tamar, west of Road 90 and of the access junction to Moshav ʽEn Tamar (Permit No. A-9979/2025; map ref. 545150/232580; fig. 1), prior to the installation of a Mekorot water pipeline. The excavation was carried out on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Mekorot Water Company. The excavation was directed by A. Davidesko, with the assistance of Y. Alamor (administration), M. Kahan (aerial photography and plans), A. Fraiberg (aerial photography), I. Azoulay (drafting), D. Eisenberg-Degen (scientific giudance), G. Seriy (safety), and workers from …

Nahal Tamar (Tamar River) A-9978/2025, Avshalom Davidesko

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In January–February 2025, a salvage excavation was conducted in the Nahal Tamar area, east of Road 258, approximately 3 km north of Zafit Junction (Permit No. A-9978/2025; map ref. 220626-894/552395-3084; Fig. 1), prior to the installation of a Mekorot water pipeline. The excavation was carried out on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Mekorot Water Company. The excavation was directed by A. Davidesco, with the assistance of Y. Alamor (administration), A. Montague (drone photography and plans), A. Fraiberg (drone photography), L. W. Davies (flint), I. Azoulay (drafting), D. Eisenberg-Degen (scientific guidance), G. Seriy (safety), and laborers from …

The Medea Effect: The Binary Terror Of Women Existing In The Liminal Space, M. Nance

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to analyze the Medea character as a liminal figure. Taking a metaphorical approach to Victor Turner’s ideas on liminality, this study will deconstruct different binary oppositions—villain/victim, agent/object, Dionysian/Apollonian. The Medea character does not fall neatly to one side of these binary oppositions; therefore, this thesis argues that Medea instead inhabits the space between the binary oppositions in the realm of the liminal. The thesis then analyzes the same binary oppositions within a survey of theatrical and non-theatrical texts that feature characters that embody archetypes that originated within the Medea character—the she-devil, the murderous mother, …

Between Sde Boker And Mitzpe Ramon: Passing Bays, Highway 40, A-10140/2025, Nofar Lary

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In September 2025, a trial excavation was conducted on Highway 40 (Permit No. A-10140; map ref. 174894-9185/518274-31301; Fig. 1), within preparation for the construction of passing bays. The excavation, conducted on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Netivei Israel, was directed by N. Lary, with the assistance of T. Sapir (photography, field director), Y. Alamor (administration), A. Montagu (GPS, plans, and model), D. Varga (pottery), D. Degen-Eisenberg (consultant), S. Talis, G. Seriy, I. Radashkovsky, and A. Fraiberg (Southern District), along with laborers under contractual employment.

Caesarea Industrial And Business Park (ʻAl-Domiry) A-10145/2025, Anna Khalatov, Yotam Tepper

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

On October 2025, a trial excavation (Permit No. A-10145; map ref. 194335–41/708123–30; Fig. 1) was conducted in an area of dune sands, south of the Caesarea Industrial Park and north of Highway 65, in advance of the installation of an Israel Railways track. The excavation, carried out on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Israel Railways, was directed by A. Khalatov (field photography) and Y. Teper (guidance), with the assistance of Y. Amrani and Z. Lotan (administration), S. Emmanuilov (surveying, documentation, and drafting), A. Dagot (GPS), A. Massarwa (sub-district archaeologist), A. ʻAzab (district archaeologist), and eight laborers.

Jerusalem, Ramat Rahel (West, Kathisma Site) A-10036/2025, Rina Avner

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In early April 2025, a trial excavation was conducted south of the Kathisma site and south of the junction between Hebron Road and the main road descending eastward to the Har Homa neighborhood, approximately 200 m north of the Mar Elias Monastery (Permit No. A-10036/2025; map ref. 220137-51/627263-79; Fig. 1). The excavation, on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Moriah – The Jerusalem Development Corporation, was directed by R. Avner, with the assistance of M. Chernin (field supervision), N. Sapir (Jerusalem District), S. Halevi (photogrammetry), M. Cimadevilla (drafting), and laborers.

Practical Necromancy For Beginners: A Short Incomplete Opinionated Introduction To Artificial Intelligence For Archaeology And History Students, Shawn Graham

Digital Press Books

Many feel bewildered and quietly embarrassed that they don’t know more about how AI technology works, where it came from, or even how to get started. Start here.

Practical Necromancy represents Shawn Graham’s vision for how we should treat large language model (LLM) artificial intelligence applications. Graham advocates approaching these technologies as a necromancer. In antiquity, the figure of the necromancer lay outside the boundaries of official religion, talking not with gods but with the mournful echoes of ghosts. Practical Necromancy explores ways of surfacing the ghosts that lurk in AI technology. Graham suggests that the most useful thing we …

Elat, Shehoret Industrial Zone, A-10054/2025, Tal Sapir

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In April–May 2025, a trial excavation was conducted northwest of Elat, in the Shehoret Industrial Zone (Permit No. A-10054/2025; map ref. 196507/390351; Fig. 1), in advance of the construction of Reservoir 2. The excavation was carried out on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Mekorot – Israel’s National Water Company. The excavation was directed by T. Sapir (field photography), with the assistance of Y. Alamor (administration), A. Montague (surveying and aerial photography), A. Azoulay (plans), D. Degen-Eisenberg (scientific guidance), Y. Radashkovsky (aerial photography) and G. Seriy of the Southern Negev District.

Nahal Tamar (Tamar River) A-9980/2025, Avshalom Davidesko

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In February–March 2025, a salvage excavation was conducted on the eastern bank of Nahal Tamar, west of Road 90 and of the access junction to Moshav ʽEn Tamar (Permit No. A-9980/2025; map ref. 546070/233150; fig. 1), prior to the installation of a Mekorot water pipeline. The excavation was carried out on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by the Mekorot Water Company. It was directed by A. Davidesko, with the assistance of Y. Alamor (administration), M. Kahan (aerial photography and plans), A. Fraiberg (aerial photography), I. Azoulay (drafting), D. Eisenberg-Degen (scientific supervision), G. Seriy (safety), and workers from …

Duae Cypriani Soarez Praefationes Ad Opus De Arte Rhetorica Libri Tres Commentariis Rhetoricis Instructae, Marcus Porto

Theses and Dissertations--Modern and Classical Languages, Literature and Cultures

De Arte Rhetorica Libri Tres (1562) written by Cyprian Soarez (1524-1593), priest and teacher of the Society of Jesus, was the standard rhetorical manual in the Ratio Studiorum and thus was used for over two centuries in Jesuit colleges throughout the world. Concerned that young students of Latin were not yet ready for the major rhetorical texts of antiquity, such as Cicero’s and Quintilian’s, Soarez wrote this manual as a digest of ancient rhetoric to the beginner. This thesis uses the rhetorical precepts found in Cyprian’s work to analyze the work’s own two prefaces. Thus, it aims at providing …

[Review Of The Book Querns And Mills In Mediterranean Antiquity. Tradition And Innovation During The First Millennium Bc, By N. Alonso, T. J. Anderson, L. Jaccottey]., Jared T. Benton

Art Faculty Publications

[First paragraph] Querns and Mills in Mediterranean Antiquity (hereafter QMMA) is the publication of an EAA (European Association of Archaeologists) session on querns held in Barcelona in 2018. The purpose of the session—and by extension the volume—was to fill a gap by studying the smaller, hand-operated millstones, which have received less attention than their larger Roman-era and medieval counterparts. A second aim was to begin a conversation about standardizing the study of millstones, and particularly querns, in terminology and methodology.

Waking The Witch: Exploring Gender, Magic, And Power Dynamics In Ancient Rome, Diana Gibson

Honors Theses and Capstones

This thesis explores the presence of witches and magic in the literature of the Roman Empire. The study ranges from the 1st century BCE to the 6th century CE, and relates the prevalence of female witches in the Roman literature to particularly turbulent social contexts, such as the fall of the Republic and the rise of Christianity. The piece considers the rhetorical nature of accusations of witchcraft, and how the concepts of magic and witchcraft themselves were defined and shaped by those in power to uphold imperial hegemony and structures of patriarchy. The project seeks to highlight a distinction between …

The Shifting Power Dynamic: How The Director’S Role Redefined Collaboration With Playwrights, Riley K. Mcconnell

SPARK Symposium Presentations

The Shifting Power Dynamic: How the Director’s Role Redefined Collaboration with Playwrights

Riley McConnell

For much of theatre history, playwrights held primary authority over productions, shaping not only the script but also the staging and interpretation of their work. As theatrical production became more complex during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, however, the role of the director emerged as a central creative force. This essay explores how the development of the modern director transformed the collaborative relationship between playwrights and directors.  By examining the historical rise of directing, influential collaborations such as that between Anton Chekhov and Konstantin Stanislavski, and …

“The Old Lie”: The Effect Of Classical Heroism On The Wwi Soldier, Sage Fikse

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Before the outbreak of World War I, poet Wilfred Owen studied Greek and Roman literature, which presented him with idealized notions of patriotism, glory, and sacrifice. Influenced by classical texts such as The Iliad and the writings of Horace, these ideals of heroism left him unprepared for the brutal realities of anonymous warfare and for what it meant to be a “hero” in the twentieth century. In his poem “Dulce et Decorum Est,” Owen draws on his classical education to challenge the romanticized ideals of heroic sacrifice and glory. However, through the poetic nature of his death, dying exactly one …

"These Are The Concepts Of The Father": Proclus' Solution To Parmenides' Dilemma, Daniel J. Grifferty

Theses and Dissertations--Modern and Classical Languages, Literature and Cultures

This master’s thesis will attempt to solve a dilemma presented by Parmenides in Plato’s dialogue of the same name. This dilemma arises because the young Socrates suggests that the forms may be thoughts that come to be in the soul. Parmenides responds to this statement by attempting to force Socrates to admit that this can only lead to one of two outcomes: (1) each thing thinks because it is composed of thoughts or (2) each thing does not think, even though it is composed of thoughts. Both of these outcomes are unsatisfactory and do not provide a solid grounding for …

Paratum Fuit: Double Perfect Marking In Classical Latin Passives, James F. Epperson Ii

Theses and Dissertations--Linguistics

Despite thousands of years of study, certain constructions in Latin remain insufficiently described in modern Latin linguistics. One such construction is the double perfectum, an analytic verbal construction comprising the perfect passive participle and a perfectum forms of the auxiliary esse. These forms are rare, largely absent from educational Latin materials, and receive limited attention in scientific descriptions of Latin, often focusing on their evolution into the modern Romance verbal systems. Pinkster (2015) identifies them within a broader class of resultative constructions, but acknowledges their inconsistent usage. Earlier scholars, such as Riemann (1927), interpreted them as stative, while others, like …

Ramat Bet Shemesh, Khirbat El-Qut, A-10028, Vitaliy Starman

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

During March–April 2025, a salvage excavation was conducted at Khirbat el-Qut in Ramat Bet Shemesh (Permit No. A-10028; map ref. 198640–975/622479–723). The excavation was carried out approximately 1 km southeast of Tel Yarmuth, within the agricultural hinterland of Horbat Bet Natif (for background and references, see Storchan 2022). The work was initiated following the exposure of cisterns during development operations in Neighborhood Hey (E) of Ramat Bet Shemesh. The excavation, undertaken on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by the Ministry of Construction and Housing, was directed by V. Sterman, with the assistance of N. Nehama (administration), N. …

Integral But Forgotten: Metics In Ancient Athens, Morgan Haros

Honors Theses

Every civilization has contained foreign residents, and Ancient Athens was no exception. In Classical Athens (489-323 BCE), these foreign residents and freed slaves were known as metics. The “metic” label came from the tax they had to pay: the metoikion, or metic tax. While foreign resident status most likely existed throughout city-states across Greece, Athens is the location best documented. Many of these documents come from wills and court cases, giving glimpses of the daily life of Athens’ non-citizen residents. Metics commonly worked as craftsmen, bankers, and people of commerce. Those working class metics helped supplement the Athenian labor force, …

The Rescue Of Wahutedew’Á And The Epistemological Reforestation: An Analysis Of Time In A Terra Dos Mil Povos, By Kaká Werá Jecupé, Ivo Cruz

The Coastal Review

It is estimated that in 1500, the year the Portuguese arrived in America, there was a population of 2,431,000 inhabitants, according to historian John Hemming (1978), who occupied the lands that we now know as Brazil. These peoples had their own culture whose cosmology was destroyed and erased over time by a violent process of colonization. Even though entire groups were decimated, much of their influence is still alive in Brazilian culture. This influence can be found in vocabulary, cuisine, and even religious practices. With the aim of rescuing ancestral narratives and knowledge of various native peoples, Kaká Werá Jecupé …

Light And Darkness For Aesthetic Pleasure: An Exploration Of J.M.G. Le Clézio’S Early Writings And Jun’Ichiro Tanizaki’S In Praise Of Shadows, Kenichiro Otani

The Coastal Review

Building upon comparative principles, this semantic reading of Jun’ichirō Tanizaki’s essay In Praise of Shadows and J.M.G. Le Clézio’s early writings illustrates how both the Franco-Mauritian author and the Japanese writer problematize modern Western perception laden with concepts stifling flexible imagination through the mysterious worldview of light/darkness. They also simultaneously express the hope that another way of life leading to liberation is possible. Delving into the spiritual confinement of the subject, they demonstrate how keeping rich creativity within one’s heart can be an escape from a stagnant society. Albeit in very different mediums, Tanizaki and Le Clézio assert that the …