Classical Studies
Professor Maurizio Forte's two digital classes, "Digital Archeology" and "Virtual Museums", will be having their final presentations on December 8th from 9:30 a.m.- 1:15 p.m. at Bay 12, Smith Warehouse, Rm. A228. Several of the presentations are related to Classics, with themes of language and material culture, and anyone from the department is welcome to come. read more about CLST Professor Maurizio Forte Class Presentations »
Students taking Principles of Archaeology (CLST 144) with Prof. Jiménez visit the Stagville Plantation and compare the material record of Roman and 18th century slavery in the US. To see more photos, please visit our Facebook album Field Trip to Stagville Plantation. read more about CLST Field Trip to Stagville Plantation with Professor Jiménez »
On November 21st, Professor William Johnson presented his paper “Judaic and Christian Readers and Reading Cultures- A Response” at the Society for Biblical Literature conference in San Antonio. The panel was entitled “The Reading Cultures of Judaism and Christianity in Late Antiquity: A Dialogue with William A. Johnson" and was organized to explore how his work on Greco-Roman reading cultures can be applied to early Jewish and Christian communities. Papers inspired by his work were presented by Rebecca… read more about The Reading Cultures of Judaism and Christianity in Late Antiquity: A Dialogue with William A. Johnson »
Colin Renfrew, Disney Professor Emeritus of Archaeology and former Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge, presented "The Sapient Paradox: Social Interaction as a Foundation of Mind" on November 14th. The event was sponsored by the Franklin Humanities Institute, as a part of their Humanities Futures initiative, and the Ancient Mind: Neuroarchaeology Working Group. read more about Professor Renfrew from University of Cambridge discusses the Sapient paradox at Duke »
Fieldtrip to Maplewood cemetery in Durham with the Archaeology of Death class (Prof. Jiménez). We studied the relationship between social structure and cemeteries and compared Maplewood to Roman necropoleis. read more about Archaeology of Death Class Fieldtrip with Professor Jiménez »
We recently visited the DiVE with students taking the course Principles of Archaeology (CLST 144). We discussed the virtual reconstruction of the Turkish Neolithicsite Çatalhöyük and how virtual reality is changing the way we do archaeology! read more about Principles of Archaeology visit to DiVE »
In April, graduate student Melissa Huber's abstract entitled “Claudius and the Monumentalization of Water Supply Improvements in Rome” was one of those selected by the CAMWS Program Committee for the 113th annual meeting in Kitchener, Ontario, April 5-8, 2017. Accepted abstracts and a preliminary program will be posted in the near future at https://camws.org/113thMeetingKitchener. Congratulations! read more about Graduate Student Melissa Huber's Abstract Selected By CAMWS Program Committee »
This program is designed to give freshmen and sophomores the opportunity to explore intellectual interests during spring break through seminar-style short courses. These courses will be free and ungraded so as to provide students the chance to explore new topics simply for the love of learning. We have a set of awesome courses lined up with some of Duke’s most sought after faculty. This is a great opportunity for students to gain exposure to new subjects. For more information, visit: http://springbreakthrough.duke.edu… read more about CLST Professor Dr.Sosin to teach in new Spring Breakthrough Program »
CLST Professor, Dr. Maurizio Forte, was recently awarded an Outstanding Work Award (from the top 21 pieces out of 70 nominated works) by the China International Tangible Interaction Design and Innovation Exhibition, 2015. Aimed at providing an international arena for exchanging excellent TID ideas and concept, the exhibition is one of the most important moves to promote innovation, and will also enhance international communication for research, education and industrial collaboration in China. read more about CLST Professor Maurizio Forte awarded the Outstanding Work Award at the China International Tangible Interaction Design and Innovation Exhibition, 2015 »
This October William Johnson gave an invited paper on “Ancient Magic and Ancient Literacies” as the conference respondent for Inscribing Power in Antiquity at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich, Germany. read more about CLST Professor William Johnson on “Ancient Magic and Ancient Literacies” »
On October 16th, Dr. Mary T. Boatwright presented her paper “The Imperial Family, and Families in Pannonia and Palmyra,” at Aarhus, Denmark at a conference on women and children on Palmyrene funerary reliefs, part of the Palmyrene Portrait Project. read more about CLST Professor Mary T. Boatwright Presents "The Imperial Family, and Families in Pannonia and Palmyra" »
For more information about what the Spring Breakthrough Program is, please see here. read more about CLST Professor Joshua Sosin Teaching in the Pilot Year of Spring Breakthrough Program »
On September 16th, Dr. Mary T. Boatwright presented her paper "Alma Mater? Rome and the Emperor’s Mother,” as the 2016-2017 John Charles Lecturer at Wabash College. read more about CLST Professor Mary T. Boatwright honored as the 2016-2017 John Charles Lecturer at Wabash College »
read more about Want a ride in an open-cockpit WWII plane by Duke Classics alumni Elizabeth Djinis »
Duke Graduate Student Laura Camp receives Research Travel Award from The Department of Classical Studies to support her studies in the 2017 Winter Program in Greek Palaeography at the American Academy in Rome. read more about Graduate Student Laura Camp receives Research Travel Award »
Whether they know it or not, today’s candidates use ancient rhetorical techniques. read more about Classic Communication »
We are delighted to report that our outgoing student Cord Peters has been awarded the Chester P. Middlesworth Award. read more about Cord Peters is awarded the Chester P. Middlesworth Award »
Research Travel Award Winner (Graduate): Summer 2016 Thanks in large part to a grant from Teasley Family Antiquites Fund, I was able to travel to Rome this past July to gather inscriptional evidence for my dissertation and participate in the Summer Program in Epigraphy at the American Academy in Rome, taught by Professor John Bodel (Brown University). The Summer Program in Epigraphy was an intensive, but incredibly rewarding ten days spent learning from top scholars in the field and from the other participants… read more about Melissa Huber: AAR Summer Program in Roman Epigraphy, Rome Italy »
Research Travel Award Winner (Undergraduate): Spring 2016 Elizabeth wrote her senior honors thesis on depictions of Odysseus’ death in literature, beginning with The Odyssey. She worked from the outside in, starting with Dante, retracing his steps, looking at the classical tradition around Odysseus, and then going past Dante to who he inspired. In Oxford, she learned more about Dante’s own experiences with Odysseus, combining the classical and Medieval/Renaissance knowledge. There is an illuminated manuscript at the… read more about Elizabeth Djinis: Conducted senior thesis research in Oxford, England »
Research Travel Award Winner (Graduate): Summer 2016 Thanks to a generous grant from the Teasley Family Antiquities Fund, I was able to spend my summer sharpening necessary skills at the American Academy in Rome’s summer program in Latin Epigraphy under the direction of John Bodel (Brown University), as well as beginning research on my dissertation in both Italy and Spain. For ten days, our small, but eager group of aspiring epigraphists learned how to read, interpret, and publish Latin inscriptions. Not only did we have… read more about Courtney Monahan: AAR Summer Program in Roman Epigraphy, Rome Italy »
Research Travel Award Winner (Undergraduate): Summer 2016 This summer I was in Greece thanks to a generous grant from the Teasley Family Antiquities Fund. I spent two weeks as a participant in the Paideia Institute’s “Living Greek in Greece” program. The Paideia Institute (http://www.paideiainstitute.org/) offers programs in both Ancient Greek and Latin wherein students approach them as “living,” that is, spoken languages. To that end, we read passages from numerous prose authors each morning, sections of Homer’s Odyssey… read more about Zach Heater: Attending the Living in Greece Program, Selianitika Greece »
Research Travel Award Winner (Graduate): Summer 2016 This summer was a very productive one for me. In May, I visited the British Museum in London, which had a fantastic exhibition on Sicily, which had an amazing cross-section of material from prehistory to the Norman conquest. This exhibition served as the perfect preface to a six-week field season at Morgantina in central Sicily (http://morgantina.org). The first three weeks of June, I worked as an excavator for the Contrada Agnese Project (http://themagazzino.org/) as… read more about Timothy Shea: Conduct research in Great Britain and participate in Duke's Morgantina excavation, Sicily Italy »
Research Travel Award Winner (Undergraduate): Summer 2016 This past summer, I was fortunate enough to receive a research grant from the Teasley Family Antiquities Fund to travel to Italy with George Mellgard (Duke undergraduate). In Italy, we conducted research on the way in which the Ancient Romans viewed women in life and in death. Our research centered on the epitaph Allia Potestas, which is unique in nature because of it featured personal details about the deceased, atypical of other contemporary epitaphs… read more about Jacob Weiss: Research on Latin inscriptions in Italy, Rome & Perugia »
Research Travel Award Winner (Undergraduate): Summer 2016 The Teasley Family Antiquities Fund enabled me to conduct hands-on research for my senior thesis as well as finally get to see the eternal city. My thesis focuses on the inscription of Allia Potestas, a freedwoman. The inscription is unique in its length, style, and content and gives the reader a lens into ancient idealization of freedwomen. Consequently, my research in Rome focused on exploring the inscriptions and tombs of various freedmen and freedwomen in Italy… read more about George Mellgard: Contextualize the artifacts in their original setting in Rome and Perugia, Italy »