Overview
This volume explores Rome's northern provinces through the portable artefacts people used and left behind. Objects are crucial to our understanding of the past, and can be used to explore interlinking aspects of identity. For example, can we identify incomers? How are exotic materials (such as amber and ivory) and objects depicting 'the exotic' (e.g. Africans) consumed? Do regional styles exist below the homogenizing influence of Roman trade? How do all these aspects of identity interact with others, such as status, gender, and age? In this innovative study, the author combines theoretical awareness and a willingness to engage with questions of social and cultural identity with a thorough investigation into the well-published but underused material culture of Rome's northern provinces. Pottery and coins, the dominant categories of many other studies, have here been largely excluded in favour of small portable objects such as items of personal adornment, amulets, and writing equipment. The case studies included were chosen because they relate to specific, often interlinking aspects of identity such as provincial, elite, regional, or religious identity. Their meaning is explored in their own right and in depth, and in careful examination of their contexts. It is hoped that these case studies will be of use to archaeologists working in other periods, and indeed to students of material culture generally by making a small contribution to a growing corpus of academic and popular books that develop interpretative, historical narratives from selected objects.
Full Product Details
Author: Hella Eckardt (Associate Professor in Roman Archaeology, Associate Professor in Roman Archaeology, University of Reading)
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Dimensions:
Width: 14.80cm
, Height: 2.20cm
, Length: 22.50cm
Weight: 0.556kg
ISBN: 9780199693986
ISBN 10: 0199693986
Pages: 292
Publication Date: 27 November 2014
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Tertiary & Higher Education
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.
Reviews
This well-written yet nuanced and critical study makes an important contribution to this debate and to the integration of small finds into the wider narrative. Carol van Driel-Murray, Antiquity a fascinating, thought-provoking read Current Archaeology
This well-written yet nuanced and critical study makes an important contribution to this debate and to the integration of small finds into the wider narrative. Carol van Driel-Murray, Antiquity
Author Information
Hella Eckardt is an Associate Professor in Roman Archaeology at the University of Reading.
