18th UNC-CH and Duke University Colloquium in Classics
18th Annual UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke UniversityGraduate Colloquium in Classics
April 7, 2007
Possessing Knowledge:
Archiving, Collecting, and Displaying in the Ancient World
Keynote Speaker: Professor Richard Janko,
University of Michigan.
The ancient world was alive with archives, collections, and displays. The library at Alexandria reveals a fascination not only with recording the past, but also with organizing and displaying it. Although this library remains the most famous example, it was only one of a number of public archives, along with the Didascaliae in Athens, the consular lists in Rome, and the library within the Baths of Caracalla. The practice of maintaining private libraries flourished in the Roman world, as did other forms of collection: private sculpture gardens, precious stones, and exotic building materials. These material collections spoke silently but powerfully about their owners. Other collections, such as treasuries and inscriptions stored at sanctuaries, tell us not only about the desire to project a particular image, but also about the need of communities to record and publish distinctive events in their history.
The UNC-Duke 2007 Graduate Colloquium in Classics will explore the logistics behind and ramifications of collections in the ancient world. We welcome papers that will engage long-standing problems, challenge accepted viewpoints, and expand our knowledge about the creation and impact of archives, collections, and exhibits on all areas of classical civilization.
Possible topics include:
. Political and/or ideological motivations behind collecting
. Grave goods as collections
. Process of archiving and the physical organization of collections in the ancient world
. The impact of the collection and exchange of manuscripts or works of art in the ancient world and beyond
. Virtues and vices to understanding the history of religion as a process of collection and assimilation
. Building assemblages (e.g. the Acropolis) as collections of architectural, sacred, and political history
. The degree to which the modern understanding of the classical world has been influenced by our own practices of collection, organization, and ownership
We invite graduate students to submit a one page abstract via email to Alex Loney at alexander.loney@duke.edu along with the applicant's name, home institution, and department. Abstracts should be received no later than January 15, 2007.