Books by Dylan K Rogers
John J. Dobbins, Professor of Roman Art and Archaeology, taught at the University of Virginia in ... more John J. Dobbins, Professor of Roman Art and Archaeology, taught at the University of Virginia in the Department of Art from 1978 until his retirement in 2019. His legacy of research and pedagogy is explored in A Quaint & Curious Volume: Essays in Honor of John J. Dobbins. Professor Dobbins’ research in the field of Roman art and archaeology spans the geographical and chronological limits of the Roman Empire, from Pompeii to Syria, and Etruria to Spain. This volume demonstrates some of his wide-reaching interests, expressed through the research of his former graduate students. Several essays examine the city of Pompeii and cover the topics of masonry analysis, re-examinations of streets and drains, and analyses of the heating capacity of baths in Pompeii. Beyond Pompeii, the archaeological remains of bakeries are employed to elucidate labor specialization in the Late Roman period across the Mediterranean basin. Collaborations between Professor Dobbins and his former students are also explored, including a pioneering online numismatic database and close examination of sculpture and mosaics, including expressions of identity and patronage through case studies of the Ara Pacis and mosaics at Antioch-on-the-Orontes. A Quaint & Curious Volume not only demonstrates John Dobbins’ scholarly legacy, but also presents new readings of archaeological data and art, illustrating the impact that one professor can have on the wider field of Roman art and archaeology through the continuing work of his students.
This volume contains studies of the destruction, survival and recovery of cities in the ancient G... more This volume contains studies of the destruction, survival and recovery of cities in the ancient Greek World. After an introduction outlining the approach of the studies (Fachard, Harris), there are chapters on the contribution of microstratigraphy and micromorphology (Karkanas), on Miletus in 494 BC (Lohmann), Athens in 480/79 BC (Camp), Selinus in 409 BC (Marconi), Methone in 354 (Bessios, Athanassiadou, Noulas), the destruction of cities in Northern Greece (Gatzolis, Psoma), the destructions of Eretria (Ackermann), the earthquake at Rhodes around 227 B.C. (Bresson), Epeiros in 167 B.C. (Forsén), Corinth in 146 B.C. (Williams, Bookidis, Slane, Tracy), Athens in 86 B. C. (Rogers), the Herulian destruction of Athens in 267/8 AD (Chioti), and a comparison of military devastation in the Greek and Roman worlds (Binltliff). The volume is accompanied by an online catalogue of all literary evidence for destruction of Greek cities with summaries of archaeological evidence.
Athens was an ancient city like no other. Named for a goddess, epicenter of the first democracy, ... more Athens was an ancient city like no other. Named for a goddess, epicenter of the first democracy, birthplace of tragic and comic theater, locus of the major philosophical schools, artistically in the vanguard for centuries, it looms larger than any other ancient polis in contemporary thought from historical scholarship to tourist attractions. The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Athens is a comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to the ancient city, its topography and monuments, inhabitants and cultural institutions, religious rituals and politics. Chapters in the volume link the religious, cultural, and political institutions of Athens to the physical locales in which they took place, so that readers gain a sense of the life and realia of the ancient city. Discussion of the urban plan with its streets, gates, walls and public and private buildings will give readers a thorough understanding of how the city operated, how various people flowed through it, what they saw, heard, smelled and perhaps tasted. Drawing from the newest scholarship on various aspects of the city as well as on-going excavations of its Agora, sanctuaries, and cemeteries, this volume examines how the city was planned, how it functioned, and how it was transformed from a democratic polis into a Roman urbs.
National HelIenic Research Institute, Athens, 2018
The volume What’s New in Roman Greece? Recent Work on the Greek Mainland and the Islands in the R... more The volume What’s New in Roman Greece? Recent Work on the Greek Mainland and the Islands in the Roman Period brings together the papers presented at an international conference held in Athens between 8–10 October 2015 and organized by the Roman Seminar Research Group in collaboration with the Institute of Historical Research of the National Hellenic Research Foundation. The volume includes 43 contributions by scholars specializing in all facets of the history and archaeology of the Roman provinces in the territory of modern Greece, arranged in six broad subject groups: 1. Town and Country, 2. Economy and Exchange, 3. Urban Spaces, Infrastructures and the Archaeology of Buildings, 4. Visual Culture, 5. Cults, Sanctuaries and Mortuary Practices, and 6. The Roman Past in the Present. In addition to providing synthetic approaches and up-to-date accounts of individual research conducted in the last 25 years, the papers aim to shed light onto various questions that are important in order to understand how the societies of Greece responded in socioeconomic and cultural terms to becoming part of the Roman Empire.
Brill's Research Perspectives in Ancient History, 2018
Water played an important part of ancient Roman life, from providing necessary drinking water, su... more Water played an important part of ancient Roman life, from providing necessary drinking water, supplying bath complexes, to flowing in large-scale public fountains. The Roman culture of water was seen throughout the Roman Empire, although it was certainly not monolithic and it could come in a variety of scales and forms, based on climatic and social conditions of different areas. This article seeks to define ‘water culture’ in Roman society by examining literary, epigraphic, and archaeological evidence, while understanding modern trends in scholarship related to the study of Roman water. The culture of water can be demonstrated through expressions of power, aesthetics, and spectacle. Further there was a shared experience of water in the empire that could be expressed through religion, landscape, and water’s role in cultures of consumption and pleasure.
Papers by Dylan K Rogers
Going against the flow. Wells, cisterns and water in ancient Greece, 2023
Collecting water in the ancient Greek world was an inherently social activity in public and priva... more Collecting water in the ancient Greek world was an inherently social activity in public and private contexts. Using archaeological evidence of water collection, especially wells, cisterns, and fountain-houses, we can piece together numerous elements of the daily lives of the ancient Greeks. The present chapter explores the sociological nature of Greek water collection using the depictions of wells and fountain-houses on vases and the archaeological remains of fountain-houses themselves to understand better social relations in- and outside the domestic sphere, paying close attention to issues surrounding gender in the ancient Greek world. Further, contexts with wells and cisterns, such as brothels and religious sanctuaries, are also explored to shed light on new ways that scholars today can use water infrastructures in these spaces to prompt new questions about life in Greece in the past. By examining Greek water collection points more closely, we can repopulate these spaces and understand how individuals in the past used and interacted with these structures—and others around them—in addition to the impact of collecting water in the daily life of the Greeks.
Whole volume Open Access: https://ecsi.se/actaath-8-23/
Antiquité tardive, 2020
Narratives on late antique Greece over the last few decades have begun to shift from a time of co... more Narratives on late antique Greece over the last few decades have begun to shift from a time of collapse and decline to one of renewed vitality, especially at the site of Corinth. With its ancient origins and floruit in the Roman period, Corinth has a unique mytho-historical past that fueled its collective identity. In the 4th-6th c., the city continued to thrive particularly in regards to water maintenance and consumption. This article uses Corinth’s late antique fountains to argue for a shared sense of water culture that was tied to memory, identity, the senses, and social experiences within the city and its periphery. After discussions of trends in late antique fountains in Greece and Asia Minor, along with an introduction to late antique Greece and Corinth, the fountains of Peirene and those in the adjacent forum area, along with a large nymphaeum in the Lechaion villa, are discussed in detail. The display and consumption of water in and around these structures demonstrates the vibrant nature of late antique Corinth, which placed it in wider network of urban centers across the eastern Mediterranean that also were flourishing in this period.
American Journal of Archaeology, 2021
The water displays in Roman Greece in the villa of Herodes Atticus at Eva-Loukou and in the forec... more The water displays in Roman Greece in the villa of Herodes Atticus at Eva-Loukou and in the forecourt of the sanctuary of Demeter and Kore at Eleusis demonstrate diverse uses and contexts of flowing water. By focusing on the sensorial experience an ancient individual had with these structures, especially through the framework of a sensorial assemblage, we can highlight how sensory elements had the power to create immersive encounters. This permits further understanding of how an ancient Roman experienced a monument and created memories in the surrounding built environment and natural landscape. The two water displays at Eva-Loukou and Eleusis in Greece, one in a domestic context and one in a religious context, can then be placed in relation to the empire-wide phenomenon of constructing fountains for their sensorial effects. Examinations of the two sites suggest the motivations that moved patrons to install innovative water displays and help elucidate a common Roman sense of identity connected to the display of water.
People and Institutions in the Roman Empire: Essays in Memory of Garrett G. Fagan, 2020
Since its publication in 1999, Garrett Fagan’s Bathing in Public in the Roman World has become a ... more Since its publication in 1999, Garrett Fagan’s Bathing in Public in the Roman World has become a seminal work on the role of bathing in Roman society. Using examples of bathing in public contexts in urban areas, Fagan demonstrated the pervasiveness of this activity in all aspects of the daily lives of the Romans. Building upon the momentum of the study of Roman baths of the 1980s and 1990s, Fagan’s monograph was poised to spur further inquiry into the practice of bathing in the Roman world. Indeed, in the last two decades, the field related to Roman baths has burgeoned—and has changed our notions of Roman bathing culture, particularly its development, ubiquity, and its role in helping to shape identity throughout the Roman Empire. This essay, attempts to survey the archaeological evidence and scholarship of the field, in order to understand the evolution of our conceptions of Roman baths and bathing, while understanding Fagan’s important impact on the field writ large.
Arts, 2020
Roman painting is full of items associated with religious practice. Garlands, in particular, are ... more Roman painting is full of items associated with religious practice. Garlands, in particular, are found represented in Roman frescoes, often draped over different panels to enliven the painted surface with the semblance of abundant fresh flowers. There are indications, however, that in Roman domestic spaces, latrines, and streets, physical garlands were actually attached to the frescoes as votive offerings that mimic the painted garlands behind them. This paper considers how Roman paintings worked in tandem with garlands and other physical objects, and how Pompeiians engaged in mimetic acts. The two-dimensional painted surface depicting "mimetic votives" should be viewed within a three-dimensional space inhabited by people and objects. The mimetic act of hanging a garland was part of ancient lived religion, and, as such, enables us to examine past religious experiences, focusing on the individual and communication with the divine. The relationship between these various visual media would have created unique experiences in the daily lives of ancient Romans that are rarely considered today.
The Power of Urban Water, 2020
The Forum Romanum in Rome is a space that was constructed on an aquatic landscape – and subsequen... more The Forum Romanum in Rome is a space that was constructed on an aquatic landscape – and subsequent built structures there reminded ancient Romans of that landscape, in addition to mythical, historical, and mytho-historical figures and events of the past. This paper demonstrates how the city centre of Rome, replete with numerous monuments that did not actually have running water like subsequent grand fountains of the Imperial period, were the products of the commemorative practices of the Romans, tied directly to sensorial experiences, memory, and identity. The monuments explored here represent the power of the Romans, in addition to their naval victories and mythical past predicated on water. The metaphysical topography of the Forum Romanum provided a space intimately tied to water, which also had the potential to be replicated in other parts of the Empire, tying its inhabitants to the capital.
https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/569075?tab_body=toc-62810
Great Waterworks in Roman Greece: Aqueducts and Monumental Fountain Structures, Function in Context, edited by G.A. Aristodemou and Th.P. Tassios, Oxford, Archeopress, 2018
The study of Roman water-displays is constantly evolving, with research being conducted on the te... more The study of Roman water-displays is constantly evolving, with research being conducted on the terminology of the structures, their typologies, their aesthetic programs, and their impact on the social and physical landscapes surrounding them. The water-displays of Roman Greece have received various treatments over the last four decades, including catalogues, their artistic programs, their ties to identity, and their placement in wider Empire-wide schemes of imperial and civic patronage. While much has been done on the Roman fountains of Greece, it is the aim of this essay to survey the terminology used and the historiography therein, in order to consider water-displays that have not received a great deal of attention, in religious, civic, and entertainment-related contexts. We will then posit several ways to advance the study of public Roman water-displays in Greece.
by Eugenio Tamburrino, Massimo Brando, Valentina Pica, Francesco Marco Paolo Carrera, dario rose, Gervasio Illiano, Davide Gangale Risoleo, Ugo Fusco, Daniele De Simone, Alka Starac, Paolo Bonini, Gatti Sandra, Mark Locicero, Sven Kühn, Dylan K Rogers, Diego Peirano, Saskia Kerschbaum, Santiago Sánchez de la Parra Pérez, Raffaella Iovine, Giovanni Polizzi, Eleonora Romanò, Fabiana Susini, Marina Marcelli, and Francesco Maria Cifarelli Libro degli abstract del convegno di studi "L'acqua e la città in età romana - Water and the Roma... more Libro degli abstract del convegno di studi "L'acqua e la città in età romana - Water and the Roman cities and settlements" - Feltre (BL - Italia), 3/4 Novembre 2017.
In the quest to uncover new material about previously excavated mosaics, one can turn to the arch... more In the quest to uncover new material about previously excavated mosaics, one can turn to the archives of an excavation. Excavations of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in Greece and elsewhere often kept sufficient records of their progress and discoveries, although, not in keeping with today’s archaeological standards. That being said, the resources of an excavation archive (e.g., notebooks, photographs, drawings, plans, etc.) are instrumental in efforts to reconstruct mosaics and their original context, and for learning about archaeological practices of the past. In early systematic excavations knowledge can be lost to time, even though properly recorded by its original excavators. This article uses the rich archival material of the American excavations at ancient Corinth to demonstrate how it is possible to reconstruct mosaics, the role of architects and artists in the early recording of mosaics, and the afterlives of mosaics at Corinth.
Atti dei Seminari di Antichità Classica e del Vicino Oriente Antico “Ricerche a Confronto.”, Nov 2013
Laurentina e l'altra in Toscana. Nella Lettera 2, 17, descrivendo la villa sulla costa Laurentina... more Laurentina e l'altra in Toscana. Nella Lettera 2, 17, descrivendo la villa sulla costa Laurentina nella zona sud di Ostia, Plinio non parla delle fontane artificiali presenti nella villa, mentre dà importanza alla vista del mare dalla dimora stessa. L'acqua corrente del mare vicino, afferma Plinio nella lettera (2, 17, 25), completa l'utilitas e l'amoenitas della villa: senza acqua, essa risulterebbe incompleta, nonostante la presenza di altri elementi architettonici, quali i triclini, le camere da letto, i cortili.
PhD Dissertation by Dylan K Rogers
This study examines public water-displays throughout the Early and High Roman Empire (first three... more This study examines public water-displays throughout the Early and High Roman Empire (first three centuries CE) to understand the meaning behind their placement in the built environment. There are two main goals of the dissertation: to explore ancient Roman perceptions of water and to investigate fully an individual's interaction and reaction to its display. In order to accomplish these goals, an approach that employs the framework of the archaeology of the senses, along with those of memory and identity. By
Book Reviews by Dylan K Rogers
Bryn Mawr Classical Review, Dec 2016
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Books by Dylan K Rogers
Papers by Dylan K Rogers
Whole volume Open Access: https://ecsi.se/actaath-8-23/
https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/569075?tab_body=toc-62810
ROMAN SEMINAR & INSTITUTE OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH (NHRF)
ΔΙΕΘΝΕΣ ΣΥΝΕΔΡΙΟ «ΝΕΟΤΕΡΑ ΑΠΟ ΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΑΔΑ ΤΗΣ ΡΩΜΑΪΚΗΣ ΕΠΟΧΗΣ»
Αθήνα, 8‐10 Οκτωβρίου 2015, ΕΙΕ, Αμφιθέατρο «Λεωνίδας Ζέρβας»
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “WHAT’S NEW IN ROMAN GREECE”
Athens, 8‐10 October 2015, NHRF, Amphitheatre «Leonidas Zervas»
Ελεύθερη Είσοδος/ Free Admission
https://whatsnewinromangreece.wordpress.com/2015/06/10/programme%CF%80%CF%81%CF%8C%CE%B3%CF%81%CE%B1%CE%BC%CE%BC%CE%B1/
PhD Dissertation by Dylan K Rogers
Book Reviews by Dylan K Rogers
Whole volume Open Access: https://ecsi.se/actaath-8-23/
https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/569075?tab_body=toc-62810
ROMAN SEMINAR & INSTITUTE OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH (NHRF)
ΔΙΕΘΝΕΣ ΣΥΝΕΔΡΙΟ «ΝΕΟΤΕΡΑ ΑΠΟ ΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΑΔΑ ΤΗΣ ΡΩΜΑΪΚΗΣ ΕΠΟΧΗΣ»
Αθήνα, 8‐10 Οκτωβρίου 2015, ΕΙΕ, Αμφιθέατρο «Λεωνίδας Ζέρβας»
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “WHAT’S NEW IN ROMAN GREECE”
Athens, 8‐10 October 2015, NHRF, Amphitheatre «Leonidas Zervas»
Ελεύθερη Είσοδος/ Free Admission
https://whatsnewinromangreece.wordpress.com/2015/06/10/programme%CF%80%CF%81%CF%8C%CE%B3%CF%81%CE%B1%CE%BC%CE%BC%CE%B1/
Three second-century examples of fountains in a religious sanctuary (the fountain on the Inner Propylon at Eleusis), a private estate (Herodes Atticus’ villa at Loukou), and a public space (the nymphaea at the West Gate at Nikopolis) show diverse uses of water-display. The sensual nature of water usage in these examples and their surrounding landscape will be illustrated. By using the approach of archaeology of the senses, water-displays in Greece are placed in the empire-wide phenomenon of constructing fountains for their sensorial benefits, along with understanding the self-promotion of their patrons, tapping into a common Roman sense of identity connected to water-displays.
[1] Hamilakis, Y. 2013. Archaeology and the Senses: Human Experience, Memory, and Affect. Cambridge. Page 13.
The water-displays of Corinth, though, are part of an under-studied Empire-wide phenomenon of installing fountains in fora, the most public space of the Roman city. Just as the Corinthian fountains have mythical pasts, at other sites throughout the Empire, fountains in fora often take on ‘sacred’ meanings, such as the fountains renovated by Augustus in the Forum Romanum, the monopteros fountain of Argos, and the fountains associated with the Imperial Cult at the forum of Conìmbriga, Portugal. The ‘sacred’ nature of these water-displays is also tied to space, which can also be understood in this case in terms of performance and memory. This paper will attempt to pursue sacred landscapes in public spaces of the Roman world, created by water-displays. Thus, a similar vocabulary of fountain design, in a similar type of setting, allowed for a common Roman identity throughout the Empire.
The pavements of the chapel, however, also yield much in terms of influence and meaning. It has been previously thought that the flooring the chapel, based on its style and patterning could have derived from the Cosmatesque tradition of Rome, which was roughly contemporaneous with the Capella Palatina. The opus sectile flooring, however, was more specifically modeled on Middle Byzantine pavements, via Montecassino and the Byzantine East, both of which took much inspiration from early Christian floors.
Two curious inclusions of animals in the Capella offer two other exciting transfers of ideas: heraldic lions at the entrance to the choir and snakes flanking the altar. The lions warrant a closer examination in the examples of earlier floors, particularly early Christian, along with Near Eastern examples. Apotropaic snakes ‘guarding’ the altar might be indicative of the motif of Christus Victor (Christ treading on snakes and dragons), popular in Ravenna in fifth century and northern Europe during the eighth century.
The sacred space demarcated by these pavements reveals a great deal about the ever-reaching nature of the Norman court under the helm of Roger II. This paper aims to present the complicated nature of the pavements of the Chapel. Often overlooked, the flooring merits closer study, in order to understand the exchange of ideas in the Norman court of Palermo, a prominent capital in the Mediterranean basin.