Current Epigraphy

Call for Papers: Ancient Graffiti in Context

Workshop: School of Archaeology & Ancient History, University of Leicester

November 8, 2008

This workshop will examine the spatial and social context of graffiti in the Greek and Roman worlds. Graffiti has been marginalised in archaeological and historical studies, published in distinct volumes or seen as a curiosity. There are few theoretical studies of ancient graffiti or its interpretation, and little reflection on how we – as scholars – categorise this material.

New questions now need to be asked: How do we negotiate the relationship between text and image? What can we say about the materiality of textual graffiti? What social processes or practices produce graffiti? To what extent does graffiti represent or subvert the cultural values of the society in which it occurs? By bringing together examples and approaches from across the discipline we hope to develop a better understanding of graffiti and what it can contribute to bigger questions about the ancient world.

Potential speakers, including postgraduates, are encouraged to submit abstracts of c.300 words by email to the organisers by May 31st, 2008.

For more information, contact:
Dr Claire Taylor, Department of Classics, Trinity College Dublin claire.taylor@tcd.ie

Dr Jennifer Baird, School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of
Leicester jb188@le.ac.uk

Epigraphy North, Tuesday 15th April 2008, 5.30 pm

Professor Onno Van Nijf
‘Public space and political culture in Roman Termessos’

Bosanquet Seminar Room, 12-14 Abercromby Square, The University of Liverpool

The Epigraphy North series is suitable also for students wishing to learn about epigraphy; if individuals need further information on travelling to Liverpool and accommodation if attending the seminar, please contact Graham Oliver (gjoliver@liv.ac.uk).

If anybody is planning on attending this seminar (or any other, e.g. the BES meeting mentioned earlier) it would be much appreciated if they could post a brief summary of the paper here.

Henrik Mouritsen has sent me a summary of his paper given at the Cambridge Epigraphy Day in February, which I post below:

Henrik Mouritsen (King’s College London) discussed the possibility of quantifying Roman manumission using epigraphic evidence. While acknowledging that most inscriptions are of little help in establishing hard statistics in this area, he drew attention to two types of document which may provide more reliable information. The first are the epitaphs of the familial columbaria from the early empire, esp. those of the Statilii and the Volusii, where the ratio of slave to freed suggests a very high manumission rate in elite households. The second type is the municipal alba and particularly CIL X 1403 from Herculaneum. This inscription, long believed to contain the names of the Augustales, is unique in its scale. Even a cautious reconstruction of the fragments entails a total of around a thousand names, the large majority being those of local freedmen, which–given the overall size of Herculaneum’s population–would suggest that a substantial proportion of the free adult males were former slaves.

According to a notice on the American School of Classical Studies in Athens’ website, the Upper House seminar on 17 April will be delivered by Edward Harris on the subject “The Documents in the Attic Orators and Greek Epigraphy.” The editors of CurEp would be grateful for a report from a participant in this — and any other — epigraphic seminar.