History

The study of ancient history is a foundational pillar of classical scholarship. Historians of Greece, Rome, and other Mediterranean and Near Eastern cultures utilize a wide range of evidence: surviving and fragmentary literary texts, inscriptions carved into stone or metal, the images and legends found on ancient coins, and all the types of material evidence discovered by archaeologists (pottery, household items, built structures, grave goods, mosaics and wall paintings, etc.).

Comparative approaches with other times and places are also crucial for the interpretation of ancient history. Our faculty members maintain close ties with other units engaged in the study of the past, including History, the Medieval Institute, Political Science, and Theology. They also participate in international networks that promote collaborative approaches to broad thematic topics, such as Roman imperialism or Greek historical writing.

Ancient Greece and Rome have long been given a central place in American universities due to the contributions of those cultures to so many fundamental features of modern society. But we also value the study of the past more broadly as a means of providing examples for how humans have solved, or failed to solve, the problems posed by life. Such lessons are rarely straightforward. That is where the fascination of history resides.