Ray Laurence – författare

Rome, Ostia, Pompeii: Movement and Space demonstrates how studies of the Roman city are shifting focus from static architecture to activities and motion within urban spaces. This volume provides detailed case studies from the three best-known cities from Roman Italy, revealing how movement contributes to our understanding of the ways different elements of society interacted in space, and how the movement of people and materials shaped urban development.The chapters in this book examine the impressions left by the movement of people and vehicles as indentations in the archaeological and historical record, and as impressions upon the Roman urban consciousness. Through a broad range of historical issues, this volume studies movement as it is found at the city gate, in public squares and on the street, and as it is represented in texts. Its broad objective is to make movement meaningful for understanding the economic, cultural, political, religious, and infrastructural behaviours that produced different types and rhythms of interaction in the Roman city.This volume's interdisciplinary approach will inform the understanding of the city in classics, ancient history, archaeology and architectural history, as well as cultural studies, town planning, urban geography, and sociology.

Rome, Ostia, Pompeii: Movement and Space demonstrates how studies of the Roman city are shifting focus from static architecture to activities and motion within urban spaces. This volume provides detailed case studies from the three best-known cities from Roman Italy, revealing how movement contributes to our understanding of the ways different elements of society interacted in space, and how the movement of people and materials shaped urban development.The chapters in this book examine the impressions left by the movement of people and vehicles as indentations in the archaeological and historical record, and as impressions upon the Roman urban consciousness. Through a broad range of historical issues, this volume studies movement as it is found at the city gate, in public squares and on the street, and as it is represented in texts. Its broad objective is to make movement meaningful for understanding the economic, cultural, political, religious, and infrastructural behaviours that produced different types and rhythms of interaction in the Roman city.This volume's interdisciplinary approach will inform the understanding of the city in classics, ancient history, archaeology, and architectural history, as well as cultural studies, town planning, urban geography, and sociology.

This provocative and often controversial volume examines concepts of ethnicity, citizenship and nationhood, to determine what constituted cultural identity in the Roman Empire. The contributors draw together the most recent research and use diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives from archaeology, classical studies and ancient history to challenge our basic assumptions of Romanization and how parts of Europe became incorporated into a Roman culture.Cultural Identity in the Roman Empire breaks new ground, arguing that the idea of a unified and easily defined Roman culture is over-simplistic, and offering alternative theories and models. This well-documented and timely book presents cultural identity throughout the Roman empire as a complex and diverse issue, far removed from the previous notion of a dichotomy between the Roman invaders and the Barbarian conquered.

The Roads of Roman Italy offers a complete re-evaluation of both the evidence and the interpretation of Roman land transport. The book utilises archaeological, epigraphic and literary evidence for Roman communications, drawing on recent approaches to the human landscape developed by geographers. Among the topics considered are:* the relationship between the road and the human landscape* the administration and maintenance of the road system* the role of roads as imperial monuments* the economics of road construction and urban development.

Throughout history, every culture has had its own ideas on what growing up and growing old means, with variations between chronological, biological and social ageing, and with different emphases on the critical stages and transitions from birth to death.This volume is the first to highlight the role of age in determining behaviour, and expectations of behaviour, across the life span of an inhabitant of ancient Rome. Drawing on developments in the social sciences, as well as ancient evidence, the authors focus on the period c.200BC - AD200, looking at childhood, the transition to adulthood, maturity, and old age. They explore how both the individual and society were involved in, and reacted to, these different stages, in terms of gender, wealth and status, and personal choice and empowerment.

Throughout history, every culture has had its own ideas on what growing up and growing old means, with variations between chronological, biological and social ageing, and with different emphases on the critical stages and transitions from birth to death.This volume is the first to highlight the role of age in determining behaviour, and expectations of behaviour, across the life span of an inhabitant of ancient Rome. Drawing on developments in the social sciences, as well as ancient evidence, the authors focus on the period c.200BC - AD200, looking at childhood, the transition to adulthood, maturity, and old age. They explore how both the individual and society were involved in, and reacted to, these different stages, in terms of gender, wealth and status, and personal choice and empowerment.

The remains of Roman roads are a powerful reminder of the travel and communications system that was needed to rule a vast and diverse empire. Yet few people have questioned just how the Romans - both military and civilians - travelled, or examined their geographical understanding in an era which offered a greatly increased potential for moving around, and a much bigger choice of destinations.This volume provides new perspectives on these issues, and some controversial arguments; for instance, that travel was not limited to the elite, and that maps as we know them did not exist in the empire. The military importance of transport and communication networks is also a focus, as is the imperial post system (cursus publicus), and the logistics and significance of transport in both conquest and administration.With more than forty photographs, maps and illustrations, this collection provides a new understanding of the role and importance of travel, and of the nature of geographical knowledge, in the Roman world,

This provocative and often controversial volume examines concepts of ethnicity, citizenship and nationhood, to determine what constituted cultural identity in the Roman Empire. The contributors draw together the most recent research and use diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives from archaeology, classical studies and ancient history to challenge our basic assumptions of Romanization and how parts of Europe became incorporated into a Roman culture.Cultural Identity in the Roman Empire breaks new ground, arguing that the idea of a unified and easily defined Roman culture is over-simplistic, and offering alternative theories and models. This well-documented and timely book presents cultural identity throughout the Roman empire as a complex and diverse issue, far removed from the previous notion of a dichotomy between the Roman invaders and the Barbarian conquered.

In this fully revised and updated edition of Roman Pompeii, Dr. Laurence looks at the latest archaeological and literary evidence relating to the city of Pompeii from the viewpoint of architect, geographer and social scientist.Enhancing our general understanding of the Roman world, this new edition includes new chapters that reveal how the young learnt the culture of the city and to investigate the role of property development and real estate in Pompeii’s growth. Showing how Pompeii has undergone considerable urban development, Dr. Laurence emphasizes the relationship between the fabric of the city and the society that produced it. Local activities are located in both time and space and Pompeii’s cultural identity is defined. This book is invaluable for students and scholars in the fields of archaeology and ancient history, as well as being rewarding reading for the many people who visit Pompeii.

In this fully revised and updated edition of Roman Pompeii, Dr. Laurence looks at the latest archaeological and literary evidence relating to the city of Pompeii from the viewpoint of architect, geographer and social scientist.Enhancing our general understanding of the Roman world, this new edition includes new chapters that reveal how the young learnt the culture of the city and to investigate the role of property development and real estate in Pompeii’s growth. Showing how Pompeii has undergone considerable urban development, Dr. Laurence emphasizes the relationship between the fabric of the city and the society that produced it. Local activities are located in both time and space and Pompeii’s cultural identity is defined. This book is invaluable for students and scholars in the fields of archaeology and ancient history, as well as being rewarding reading for the many people who visit Pompeii.

Roman Archaeology for Historians provides students of Roman history with a guide to the contribution of archaeology to the study of their subject. It discusses the issues with the use of material and textual evidence to explain the Roman past, and the importance of viewing this evidence in context. It also surveys the different approaches to the archaeological material of the period and examines key themes that have shaped Roman archaeology. At the heart of the book lies the question of how archaeological material can be interpreted and its relevance for the study of ancient history. It includes discussion of the study of landscape change, urban topography, the economy, the nature of cities, new approaches to skeletal evidence and artefacts in museums. Along the way, readers gain access to new findings and key sites - many of which have not been discussed in English before and many, for which, access may only be gained from technical reports.Roman Archaeology for Historians provides an accessible guide to the development of archaeology as a discipline and how the use of archaeological evidence of the Roman world can enrich the study of ancient history, while at the same time encouraging the integration of material evidence into the study of the period’s history. This work is a key resource for students of ancient history, and for those studying the archaeology of the Roman period.

Roman Archaeology for Historians provides students of Roman history with a guide to the contribution of archaeology to the study of their subject. It discusses the issues with the use of material and textual evidence to explain the Roman past, and the importance of viewing this evidence in context. It also surveys the different approaches to the archaeological material of the period and examines key themes that have shaped Roman archaeology. At the heart of the book lies the question of how archaeological material can be interpreted and its relevance for the study of ancient history. It includes discussion of the study of landscape change, urban topography, the economy, the nature of cities, new approaches to skeletal evidence and artefacts in museums. Along the way, readers gain access to new findings and key sites - many of which have not been discussed in English before and many, for which, access may only be gained from technical reports.Roman Archaeology for Historians provides an accessible guide to the development of archaeology as a discipline and how the use of archaeological evidence of the Roman world can enrich the study of ancient history, while at the same time encouraging the integration of material evidence into the study of the period’s history. This work is a key resource for students of ancient history, and for those studying the archaeology of the Roman period.

The Roads of Roman Italy offers a complete re-evaluation of both the evidence and the interpretation of Roman land transport. The book utilises archaeological, epigraphic and literary evidence for Roman communications, drawing on recent approaches to the human landscape developed by geographers. Among the topics considered are:* the relationship between the road and the human landscape* the administration and maintenance of the road system* the role of roads as imperial monuments* the economics of road construction and urban development.

The remains of Roman roads are a powerful reminder of the travel and communications system that was needed to rule a vast and diverse empire. Yet few people have questioned just how the Romans - both military and civilians - travelled, or examined their geographical understanding in an era which offered a greatly increased potential for moving around, and a much bigger choice of destinations.This volume provides new perspectives on these issues, and some controversial arguments; for instance, that travel was not limited to the elite, and that maps as we know them did not exist in the empire. The military importance of transport and communication networks is also a focus, as is the imperial post system (cursus publicus), and the logistics and significance of transport in both conquest and administration.With more than forty photographs, maps and illustrations, this collection provides a new understanding of the role and importance of travel, and of the nature of geographical knowledge, in the Roman world,

The city is widely regarded as the most characteristic expression of the social, cultural and economic formations of the Roman Empire. This was especially true in the Latin-speaking West, where urbanism was much less deeply ingrained than in the Greek-speaking East but where networks of cities grew up during the centuries following conquest and occupation. This well-illustrated synthesis provides students and specialists with an overview of the development of the city in Italy, Gaul, Britain, Germany, Spain and North Africa, whether their interests lie in ancient history, Roman archaeology or the wider history of urbanism. It accounts not only for the city's geographical and temporal spread and its associated monuments (such as amphitheatres and baths), but also for its importance to the rulers of the Empire as well as the provincials and locals.

The city is widely regarded as the most characteristic expression of the social, cultural and economic formations of the Roman Empire. This was especially true in the Latin-speaking West, where urbanism was much less deeply ingrained than in the Greek-speaking East but where networks of cities grew up during the centuries following conquest and occupation. This well-illustrated synthesis provides students and specialists with an overview of the development of the city in Italy, Gaul, Britain, Germany, Spain and North Africa, whether their interests lie in ancient history, Roman archaeology or the wider history of urbanism. It accounts not only for the city's geographical and temporal spread and its associated monuments (such as amphitheatres and baths), but also for its importance to the rulers of the Empire as well as the provincials and locals.

This book, built around the study of the representation of age and identity in 23,000 Latin funerary epitaphs from the Western Mediterranean in the Roman era, sets out how the use of age in inscriptions, and in turn, time, varied across this region.Discrepancies between the use of time to represent identity in death allow readers to begin to understand the differences between the cultures of Roman Italy and contemporary societies in North Africa, Spain and southern Gaul. The analysis focuses on the timescapes of cemeteries, a key urban phenomenon, in relation to other markers of time, including the Roman invention of the birthday, the revering of the dead at the Parentalia and the topoi of life’s stages. In doing so, the book contributes to our understanding of gender, the city, the family, the role of the military, freed slaves and cultural changes during this period. The concept of the timescape is seen to have varied geographically across the Mediterranean, bringing into question claims of cultural unity for the Western Mediterranean as a region.Mediterranean Timescapes is of interest to students and scholars of Roman history and archaeology, particularly that of the Western Mediterranean, and ancient social history.

This book, built around the study of the representation of age and identity in 23,000 Latin funerary epitaphs from the Western Mediterranean in the Roman era, sets out how the use of age in inscriptions, and in turn, time, varied across this region.Discrepancies between the use of time to represent identity in death allow readers to begin to understand the differences between the cultures of Roman Italy and contemporary societies in North Africa, Spain and southern Gaul. The analysis focuses on the timescapes of cemeteries, a key urban phenomenon, in relation to other markers of time, including the Roman invention of the birthday, the revering of the dead at the Parentalia and the topoi of life’s stages. In doing so, the book contributes to our understanding of gender, the city, the family, the role of the military, freed slaves and cultural changes during this period. The concept of the timescape is seen to have varied geographically across the Mediterranean, bringing into question claims of cultural unity for the Western Mediterranean as a region.Mediterranean Timescapes is of interest to students and scholars of Roman history and archaeology, particularly that of the Western Mediterranean, and ancient social history.

A Cultural History of Shopping was a Library Journal Best in Reference selection for 2022. Covering the period from 500 BCE to 500 CE, this is the first book to address the cultural history of shoppers and shopping in antiquity. Evidence for the existence of shops has been found across many archaeological sites in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East but the study of shops and retailing in antiquity is a relatively new subject. From Classical Greece through to the Late Roman Empire, shopping shifted from being a means to an end – a method of supplementing the family diet or providing material goods the household could not manufacture itself – to a form of experience where the processes of browsing and not purchasing became as important as buying. This dramatic transformation is a reflection of the changing material desires of these societies and their perspectives on the ways in which the fulfilment of those desires could be achieved. Recurring themes in this interdisciplinary volume include the lives of 'ordinary' people; the relationship between gender and shopping; the contrast between Greece and Rome; the attitudes towards shopkeepers; the placing of shops in the cityscape; and the zoning of particular crafts and products. A Cultural History of Shopping in Antiquity presents an overview of the period with themes addressing practices and processes; spaces and places; shoppers and identities; luxury and everyday; home and family; visual and literary representations; reputation, trust and credit; and governance, regulation and the state.

Immerse yourself in the sensual delights of Rome in all their guises. By the time of the emperors, the Romans had created the world's first global empire, and plundered the provinces for produce to be eaten, planted or displayed as novelties. At the same time the aesthetics of the city of Rome was being transferred to the provinces, establishing towns with public buildings, baths and the Latin language. With these attributes of civilisation came other trappings of Roman culture: lavish entertainments, elaborate dinner parties and vice. The world of pleasure became a defining feature of the Romans, and this book explores how they pursued sensual delights - from steamy bathhouses to stately country villas; the excesses of the festivals to the rich culture of music, dance and song and sex, as both unrestrained and puritanical.

This title offers a new approaches to the study of the family in antiquity. The family has been recognised in the ancient world as the key social institution on which both society and the state are based. However, in the pre-Classical and Classical world the family was constructed in dissimilar ways and provides the means to explaining why the civilizations of the ancient Mediterranean, although sharing many cultural features, in fact differed greatly. This volume draws on the most recent work of leading scholars in the field with the aim of establishing a new understanding of the ancient family for the 21st century. In so doing, this book includes new approaches to social institutions, depictions of women and children, the Seleucid dynasty as a negative model of family, the inclusion of Etruscan societies, and a fundamental re-assessment of the family in antiquity.

The family has been recognised in the ancient world as the key social institution on which both society and the state are based. However, in the pre-Classical and Classical world the family was constructed in dissimilar ways and provides the means to explaining why the civilizations of the ancient Mediterranean, although sharing many cultural features, in fact differed greatly. This volume draws on the most recent work of leading scholars in the field with the aim of establishing a new understanding of the ancient family for the 21st century. In so doing, the book includes new approaches to social institutions, depictions of women and children, the Seleucid dynasty as a negative model of family, the inclusion of Etruscan societies, and a fundamental re-assessment of the family in antiquity.

Childhood and families had a ubiquitous and central presence in the ancient world, but one which is often hidden from us. Underlying our understanding of childhood and the family in Antiquity are the key thinkers and writers of the period. Their ideas on children, growing up, and the stages of life have shaped thinking on these subjects right up to the present day. Focusing on the cultures of the Mediterranean from 800 BCE to 800 CE, A Cultural History of Childhood and Family in Antiquity covers the rise of democratic Athens, the Hellenistic World, and the evolution and transformation of the Roman Empire.A Cultural History of Childhood and Family in Antiquity presents essays on family relations, community, economy, geography and environment, education, life cycle, the state, faith and religion, health and science, and world contexts.

This volume explores the creation of ‘written spaces' through the accretion of monumental inscriptions and non-official graffiti in the Latin-speaking West between c.200 BC and AD 300. The shift to an epigraphic culture demonstrates new mentalities regarding the use of language, the relationship between local elites and the population, and between local elites and the imperial power. The creation of both official and non-official inscriptions is one of the most recognisable facets of the Roman city. The chapters of this book consider why urban populations created these written spaces and how these spaces in turn affected those urban civilisations. They also examine how these inscriptions interacted to create written spaces that could inculcate a sense of ‘Roman-ness' into urban populations whilst also acting as a means of differentiating communities from each other. The volume includes new approaches to the study of political entities, social institutions, graffiti and painting, and the differing trajectories of written spaces in the cities of Roman Africa, Italy, Spain and Gaul.

Immerse yourself in the sensual delights of Rome in all their guises. By the time of the emperors, the Romans had created the world's first global empire and plundered the provinces for produce to be eaten, planted or displayed as novelties. At the same time the aesthetics of the city of Rome was being transferred to the provinces, establishing towns with public buildings, baths and the Latin language. With these attributes of civilisation came other trappings of Roman culture: lavish entertainments, elaborate dinner parties and vice. The world of pleasure became a defining feature of the Romans and this book explores how they pursued sensual delights - from steamy bathhouses to stately country villas; the excesses of the festivals to the rich culture of music, dance and song and sex, as both unrestrained and puritanical.