Session: #324

Theme & Session Format

Theme:
4. Polis, Empire, League and Beyond – Living in Interconnected Societies
Session format:
Session with keynote presentation and discussion

Title & Content

Title:
Roman Housing on the Shores of the Eastern Mediterranean. Global Trends, Local Responses?
Content:
In research on the Roman residential architecture in the East, scholars frequently refer to Roman and Greek (Hellenistic) traditions to be seen as derived from different socio-cultural contexts. In fact, analyses of plans and house décor (including pavements, paintings, and architectural and sculptural decorations) can be successfully used in the "Romanization debate" or in discussion on the scope of disseminating the Roman culture. The houses were quick and easy to read forms of self-presentation. Archaeologically, they have a potential to reveal different identities of their owners. Instead of applying bipolar interpretative schemes, we must be aware, however, that even in the globalized Roman world there were many local responses to global trends coming with Roman authorities, politics, administration and culture. In this respect, the evidence from each provincial context and even each urban context across the provinces can reveal peculiarities connected to specific local conditions, that turn out to be extremely reach in the East, were urban cultures had already found monumental developments since many centuries.
Within this framework, private architecture on the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean deserves special attention, as more susceptible to new ideas and the subject to dynamic exchange processes. The mingling between diverse inputs was the hallmark of a unitary and multi-faced Empire.
All papers exploring different features of the Eastern Mediterranean housing tradition and innovations, with a particular focus on the coastal cities are particularly welcome. The houses architectural language, assimilating new fashions by adapting local tastes and habits would serve as the basis for assessing Romanization. Reflections on individuals and society, expressed in their conscious or unconscious architectural choices would be an important voice in the discussion on the creation of glocal cultures in the global world.
Keywords:
Housing, Roman Empire, Eastern Mediterranean, Romanization
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:

Organisers

Main organiser:
Monika Rekowska (Poland) 1
Co-organisers:
Eleonora Gasparini (Italy) 2
Affiliations:
1. University of Warsaw
2. independent researcher