Module CLAS41430: Monumental Architecture of the Roman East

Department: Classics and Ancient History

CLAS41430: Monumental Architecture of the Roman East

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• In accordance with the general aims of the MA in Classics, to promote self-motivated and self-directed research in the sub-discipline of classical archaeology and the discipline of art history for students who have received appropriate grounding in their undergraduate studies.

Content

• Seminars will discuss a range of topics relating to buildings in the Greek-speaking areas of the Roman Empire, taken as including the eastern Roman provinces such as Tripolitania, Cyrenaica, Achaea, Syria, Arabia, or the provinces of Asia Minor. The seminars will usually include an introductory visual survey of a range of relevant buildings and a methodological seminar discussing concepts of monumentality. The subjects of the other seminars will vary, but may include topics such as (i) written sources on Roman architecture, (ii) supply and logistics of building stones, (iii) the epigraphy of Roman buildings in the East, (iv) the rediscovery of architectural remains of the Greek-speaking provinces from the seventeenth century onwards, (v) the associations of buildings in this area with “Baroque” aesthetics, (vi) Hadrianic ‘classicism’ in the province of Achaea and elsewhere, (vii) the impact of the Roman army on eastern provincial architecture, (viii) architectural patronage, (ix) cultural identity, (x) religious, (xi) public and (xii) private architecture in the Roman provinces of Greece, Asia Minor, the Levant, Egypt or eastern North Africa, or (xiii) the relation of the architecture of imperial Rome to buildings in the East. Specific topics reflecting students’ own research interests may be selected in consultation with students at the first meeting.

Learning Outcomes

• The module builds on previous knowledge of Roman architecture, focusing on the eastern, Greek-speaking provinces of the Roman Empire and on the theme of monumentality, as this affects issues of architectural patronage, urbanism, and cultural identity. By the end of the module, students should have acquired familiarity with the architecture of this period across a range of regions of the eastern Roman Empire from Greece to Syria, and should be capable of selecting and making comparisons from a wide range of material to answer broad questions about the role of architectural monuments for several different societies in these regions of the Roman Empire.

• Students will need to develop the analytical skills relevant to the handling of written literary and epigraphic evidence for the ancient Roman Empire of the second and third centuries A.D. and will need to develop skills in using theoretical tools from current architectural theory and sociological analysis to interpret ancient material and visual culture. In particular, they will work with a combination of ancient literary sources, epigraphic evidence, and material culture, in order to understand the significance of monumental architecture for peoples of this period.

• The analytical and interpretative skills required for the successful completion of this module are transferable to any field which requires analysis of a large and diverse body of material involving both written and visual elements, a sensitivity to aesthetic or design issues, and a capacity to make inferences about historical societies and their ideas on the basis of material culture. It also requires the effective use of library and IT resources; and good written presentation skills.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Teaching will be by fortnightly seminar, which will be structured around a student presentation on the topic for the week. This will ensure that individuals engage in independent research and thought (viz. on the topics for which they make a presentation), and that they gain practice in articulating their conclusions. The presentation will be followed by a discussion in which there is an onus on everyone to engage in thought about the scope of the evidence and the coherence of the interpretation presented, encouraging critical reflection. The seminars are fortnightly and 2 hours long rather than (e.g.) weekly and one hour sessions in order to allow and encourage significant preparation, and detailed discussion.
• Students will be encouraged to attend undergraduate lectures in appropriate subjects where available and where they provide an appropriate source of relevant material.
• Formative assessment will normally be an essay written up from the seminar presentations or on another topic of the student's choice from the material studied in Michaelmas term. Summative assessment will be by one 5,000 word essay to be submitted at the end of the year. These exercises will foster the ability to provide clear and detailed written analysis of visual material and art-historical issues and to make relevant inferences from written texts and archaeological or architectural evidence, will provide practice for the use of appropriate conventions and style in setting out written research and identification of suitable topics for further research at a doctoral level, and will ensure that research and assimilation of secondary literature is carried out at the appropriate level.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Normally an outline or draft of the summative.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University