Classics Postgraduate Research

My thesis examines various debates on 3rd century Christian liturgy to argue that there were alternative soteriologies which existed in the period. Recent scholarship has identified greater diversity and syncretism in Christianity than had previously acknowledged. This thesis will argue that this diversity and syncretism extends to the supposed core elements in early Christianity, the sacraments, demonstrating not just a previously unappreciated diversity of views, but in particular a range of attitudes towards the relationship between sacrament and faith.–

Although it has long been recognized that Attic tragedy emerged in the context of religious festivals of Dionysos, the matter of its status as a religious experience, rather than its intellectual or entertainment value, has often been underplayed. Drawing on insights from anthropology and the cognitive science of religion, together with fieldwork at the decennial Passion Play in Oberammergau, Bavaria, I plan to create a model of how religious affiliation and practice affects the experience of performers and audience at an avowedly religious play. I will then go on to test this model against the available evidence, both textual and material, in order to draw up an account of the kind of experience the ancient audiences and performers may have undergone in the theatre of Dionysos during festivals.–

My research project investigates the use and function of space within the domestic environment of Agrigento's Hellenistic-Roman Urban Quarter (HRUQ) by analysing preserved decorations –mosaics and wall paintings– within its monumental residences. Given the limited textual evidence regarding the social dynamics of this Sicilian city, the study highlights the necessity for comprehensive examinations of the site’s domestic decorations, which have been in use in some dwellings from the third century BCE to the sixth century CE. While recent scholarly evaluations have re-examined significant residences, they have not fully incorporated contemporary research on the interplay between architecture and decoration, as scholars such as Wallace-Hadrill and Muth highlighted. This project employs a multifaceted methodology encompassing archival research, fieldwork, archaeometry and traditional comparative analysis. By exploring how domestic decoration reflects and shapes spatial organisation, the study aims to uncover the motivations behind the placement of mosaics and wall paintings in homes and how they reflect and influence spatial organisation. It seeks to reveal what these decorations can tell us about homeowners' identities within the cultural traditions of ancient Greece and Rome. Ultimately, this research aspires to contribute to a nuanced understanding of ancient Agrigento’s spatial and social dynamics, enriching the broader academic discourse on domestic life in Hellenistic-Roman society.–

My project looks at miniature images of gods found on jewellery and personal possessions, and how those objects can be understood to construct both personal religious praxis and wider ideas about divinity.–

By conducting this research, I hope to contribute to what Cavafy’s contemporary, Georgios Vrisimitzakis, once deemed “a necessary study, bound to be conducted one day” – namely, a systematic examination of Cavafy’s use of language and technique. The main question to be asked, and in virtue of which many others will naturally follow, is: “In what ways has Cavafy’s linguistic artistry shaped his canon, and to what extent does it operate as a ‘hallmark’ for him as a poet?” The scope of this undertaking is, indeed, broad, as it includes a wide range of linguistic and technical elements, which are entirely dependent on one another. For this reason, the emergence of musicality constitutes the main focus of my study, thus confining my area of research to linguistic and technical elements directly or indirectly pertinent to musicality itself. I employ Cavafy’s language as the starting point of my research and associate its grammatical, syntactic and formalist particularities to the formation of musicality. The apparent lexical simplicity of his poetry and its prosaic expression are subverted by the use of meter, line and tone. Upon gathering relevant linguistic findings, I consider the motivation for and the effects of Cavafy’s musical technique and account for its intended subtlety. My investigation of musicality is primarily concerned with the formal aspects of the poet’s technique, including his freed verse, his adaptation of the traditional iamb, and his use of punctuation and vowel / consonant sounds to elicit a musical undertone. Following the function of musicality, I examine its compromise in translated versions of Cavafy’s poetry, and propose possible solutions to the problem of artistic compromise in the process of translation. The three-part main backbone of my research, which consists of language, musicality, and translation, will also include an examination of some of Cavafy’s non-canonical poems. While most scholars limit the scope of their research to Cavafy’s canonical works, I argue that a closer examination of his non-canonical poems will yield productive observations regarding the linguistic or technical elements, which render these poems failed experiments.–

Through the application of differing models drawn from the Cognitive Science of Religion, this thesis examines the experiential and formative impact of Athenian ritual practice on varying forms of social memory.–

My thesis challenges the prevailing academic view that the reforms to the Roman empire by Diocletian in the late third century to early fourth century CE were so radical and novel, that they mark a historical watershed between the 'Roman empire' and 'Late Antiquity'. By using the uniquely rich documentary evidence in the papyri from Egypt my aim is to transform our understanding of changes in the Roman empire from the mid-third century to early fourth century CE. In the traditional history of the Roman Empire, the emperor Diocletian (284-305 CE) saved the Roman Empire by founding the Tetrarchy (a college of four emperors) in 293 CE and instigating a series of sweeping reforms to government, provincial administration, military forces, and the financial system. In the past 50 years the idea of a third-century 'crisis' has been queried and nuanced, but the supposedly radical nature of Diocletian's reforms remain unquestioned. The papyrological evidence, however, reveals extensive administrative and taxation reforms in Egypt in the mid-to late third century CE by successive Roman emperors, which undermines the idea that Diocletian's changes were unprecedented. I will also challenge the notion that Diocletian's era represents a break from the malaise of the third century and heralds the beginning of a new epoch of Roman history.–

This project examines the dynamic and evolving representations of Saint Thecla, the protagonist of the second century text, The Acts of Paul and Thecla. The story tells of a young woman who, inspired by the Apostle Paul, converts to Christianity. After facing many trials and a brief encounter with adopting masculine clothing , Thecla is given permission to teach by Paul. Despite her strong-willed presentation, later portrayals of Thecla, such as in the seventh-century work of Aldhelm, depict her in more traditional and often graphic terms, emphasising her vulnerability and suffering, and omitting the more transgressive story lines that appear in the text. My project proposes to study this transmission and reception of Thecla in the Latin world to expand on the study of changing conceptions of gender norms and embodiment in the West. I propose to explore how later authors may have sought to highlight or discourage Thecla’s gender-fluid nature and to what end. I ask several interrelated questions: Why were certain parts of her story omitted or bolstered? How is the gendered body constructed through different writings? How do shifting cultural norms around gender manifest in the contemporary landscape and how might this have related to living individuals? My hypothesis stipulates that while on the one hand, earlier portrayals of Thecla construct her body as gender fluid, but on the other, she is rapidly domesticated into a binary framework, close attention to the manuscript tradition reveal that the debates over gender norms for whose changing nature Thecla’s presentation is a rhetorical weathervane are non-linear and constantly negotiated. They seem to both anticipate notions of patriarchal, heteronormative discourse while also challenging notions that gender transgressive behaviours were simply a counter-cultural phenomenon. By shedding light on the historical and cultural construction of gender, the findings can contribute to a deeper understanding of how gender identity has been represented and contested over time. Ultimately, this project aims to create a usable past for feminine and queer individuals, illustrating how historical narratives can provide insights into contemporary issues of identity and representation. Through the lens of Thecla's story, this research hopes to demonstrate that discussions of gender are not merely contemporary concerns but have deep historical roots that continue to influence modern society.–

My PhD thesis researches the evolution of Graeco-Roman ideas of space within early Christian thought. I utilize recent postcolonial theories of space as a framework to consider the third-century ‘Acts of Thomas’ as a case study, which tells the story of the apostle Thomas’ adventures in India. This text is filled with a diverse ensemble of spaces – including cities, villages, seas, roads, forests, deserts, and mountains – and serves as a prime case study for how early Christians were thinking about space and their relationship with it. Previous scholarship suggests that the Acts of Thomas – along with the broader group it belongs to, the so-called 'Apocryphal Acts' – exemplifies an early Christian reimagining of space, aimed at subverting and deconstructing elite Roman conventions. My research teases out the multivalency of early Christian attitudes to Roman space, arguing that associations of threat and security sat side by side. More importantly, I demonstrate how early Christian texts sought to appropriate contemporary spatial norms to their own benefit, in ways that complement the comparable manoeuvres of countless other minority groups under the empire.–

This study aims to reveal Isocrates’ originality in fourth-century BC Athens by exploring how he projects himself to his audience and constructs his identity as a public figure, with an emphasis on the historical and cultural context. Special attention is given to his speeches directed at sole rulers, analyzing how these speeches contribute to or alter the image and authority of Isocrates as presented in his works explicitly addressed to a broader audience.–

My project aims to reinsert Roman patronage, clientela, into the workings of the Roman Republic. Once considered the standard explanation for Roman politics as well as the essential relationship between ruler and ruled, clientela has now largely disappeared from scholarly focus. Yet, this concept and its language is traceable in our sources throughout Roman history; it persisted as a particular way of how to relate to others in the Roman mind. I argue that clientela in the Late Republic provided a moral system which facilitated interaction and exchange of resources among the members of the wider social elite. As a code of conduct in social exchanges, it advocated certain role models and, thus, was designed to safeguard reciprocal obligations in various sectors of Roman society . By looking at Cicero’s letters, I aim to show that clientela can still be a useful analytical tool to better understand the behaviour and decision-making process of Roman politicians.–

My PhD is part of the 'Roman Emperor as Seen from the Provinces' project. It researches the portraits of Augustus and his heirs on sculpture and coins which were created in the provinces during Augustus' reign 27 BC to 14 AD. It specifically focuses on the portraits that defer from the centralised metropolitan type that is so well known throughout the ancient and modern world. My research assesses these variations or non-canonical types, which are more frequent than the current scholarship tends to accept. Questioning why and how these non-canonical types occur is a vital question for understanding how the image of the emperor, in a newly formed dynasty, was received, communicated and disseminated in Roman provinces. My thesis, therefore, has three aims: 1, To compare the provincial portraits to the imperial portraits and assess why there is such a large disparity between them. 2, To assess how production methods of coins and sculpture have affected the way imperial portraits created in the provinces look. 3, To examine the visual messages the provinces were trying to portray when depicting Augustus and his heirs in ways that differ from the centralised types.–