This thesis is concerned with how the Greek peoples, of primarily the classical period, collectively commemorated the Persian Wars. The data studied within this project are public monuments, which include both physical and behavioural commemorations. A quantitative methodology is employed within this thesis and is a novel approach by which to study Persian War public monuments. This method of analysis allows for a more holistic approach to the data. Through analysing commemorative monuments quantitatively this project, figuratively, re-joins object and context. Studies on Persian War commemoration tend to focus on singular monument types, individual commemorative places, a particular commemorating group, or a specific battle. To think plurally about the ancient Greek commemorative tradition is to refocus attention on the whole incorporating all known commemorative monuments, places, and groups. What emerges from this study is a varied commemorative tradition expressed over space and time. Commemoration of conflict is presented here as a process of exchange, a dialogue between the past and the present. This thesis challenges the idea that a unified pan-Hellenic memory of the Persian Wars existed from the culmination of the conflict and illustrates the varied collective memories and narratives that could be created about the past.

This dissertation presents a discussion on the Late Antique (fifth to eighth centuries AD) landscapes of Cyprus based on the archaeological, environmental and historical records. This dissertation argues that apart from being an economically well-integrated province, Cyprus was also well-integrated into the large social and strategic trajectories of the Late Antique east Mediterranean. This study also uses archaeological data generated by the Sotira Archaeological Project (SAP) to examine the Late Antique landscapes in the south coast urban settlement of Kouion's hinterland. Interestingly, the majority of the loci recorded by the SAP are interpretable as either estate centres or farmsteads. Analysis of these loci revealed the existence of a comparatively complex Late Antique landscape that embodied aspects of the manifold relationships between the productive, commemorative, and authoritative landscapes of Kourion's hinterland during this period.

This work discusses change and continuities taking place in the transition from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Ages in Greece. The geographical range will cover the eastern mainland (including Euboea), Naxos and Knossos, in a period starting from the final palatial culture of LH IIIB2/13th century and ending with the Proto-Geometric/10th century burial evidence. In order to collect and observe the archaeological evidence several tombs assemblages have been researched from both original reports and visits to relevant Greek museums. Finds have been tabulated, and continuities, innovations and losses have been identified. The major categories of material evidence analysed included pottery, metalwork and jewellery but also the form of the tombs and the manner of the burials were considered. The final analysis of these categories of evidence refutes theories of major and or abrupt change, whether caused by invasion or natural phenomena. It rather indicates social modifications following the loss of the palatial centres and their administration and culminating in their gradual replacement by new forms of social structure. Although not directly demonstrable from the existing evidence, a possible scenario is proposed to explain the frequent indications of influence from SE and Central Europe during this transition.

This thesis explores the mechanisms of relations between the Aegean (focusing on Crete and Aegean islands such as Thera) and Egypt (including the Hyksos) from 1900 to 1400 BC. A fundamental tool has been the creation of a searchable database of the portable finds (at the moment, a unique resource) classified as Aegean, Egyptian, Aegeanising, Egyptianising, etc. In addition, the Avaris frescoes and the Aegean processional scenes in Thebes were examined in detail. Two approaches were applied to this evidence of Aegean-Egyptian interactions: World Systems Theory, applied here consistently and in depth (as opposed to earlier, broader discussions of Eastern Mediterranean interactions) and, for the first time in this field, Game Theory. The principles of this approach have been tested and found valid for this data. In contrast to World Systems Theory, Game Theory highlights the role of individuals in Aegean-Egyptian interactions, and not solely the roles of states. It has also enabled the exploration of the causes behind historical events and the mutual benefits of contact, as well as emphasising the factors that promoted mutual stability in the Eastern Mediterranean. As a result it has been possible to show that the Aegeans were key players in Eastern Mediterranean relations.

The present study synthesiszes archaeological and historical evidence concerning Attica (Greece), the hinterland of Athens, in the Early and Middle Byzantine periods (4th-12th c.). Although the Byzantine monuments of Attica have been thoroughly studied, no coherent picture of how these relate to broader patterns of occupation and land usage has thus far been presented. In the main, the period under discussion is generally interpreted in three ways: Regarding Late Antiquity, research has often focused on the transition from paganism to Christianity, and to the characterisation of Attica as a ‘stronghold of paganism’. During the so-called ‘Dark-Ages’, Attica is most often presented as being ‘desolate’. Regarding the Middle Byzantine period, archaeological research is dominated by architectural and art-historical study of churches. The present study presents Attica within wider trends which took place in the Byzantine Empire, and which caused its transformation in terms of demography, settlement pattern, administration, road networks, economy, defense and ecclesiastical institutions. After a detailed catalogue and interpretation of all available archaeological material, Attica appears less ‘exceptional’ in Late Antiquity, less ‘desolate’ in the ‘Dark-Ages’, while in the Middle Byzantine period, emergence of a strong local elite matches the erection of monuments of high artistic quality.

When an ancient Near Eastern city was besieged and looted the statues and cultic appurtenances of the gods were often confiscated by the conquerors. Their loss was more than a heavy blow to the defeated people: the statue was the god‘s representation on earth and watched over and protected the city so his abandonment of his city was thought to have a lasting devastating effect. From the point of view of the conqueror the statue could be used not only as a tool of intimidation but for bribery and a crude form of diplomacy and as propaganda for his might and glory. In this thesis the history of the phenomenon of godnap is explored for the first time and there is also an investigation of related problems in religion and cultural history. At the outset a detailed investigation of the numinous character of an ancient Mesopotamian statue is given including an account of the ritual that imbued it with this divine quality. Special attention is given to Marduk of Babylon and the episodes in which even he found himself the victim of theft. The thesis includes an excursus on evocatio and parallels between Hittite and ancient Roman practices are drawn.

My Ph.D. dissertation examines the history and archaeology of the monastic institutions of Thrace between the tenth and the late fourteenth centuries. Primarily concerned with the fundamental aspects of monastic life and its modes of interaction with lay society, I sought to investigate the life-cycle, topography and spatial composition of monastic communities in the western hinterland of the imperial capital of Byzantium, the city of Constantinople. My second objective was the investigation of the cultural, economic, and social aspects of the relationship between Thrace and Constantinople as evidenced in the surviving material culture, which consists mainly of architecture and decorative programmes. I followed an interdisciplinary methodology that brings together the systematic analysis of a large corpus of texts associated with monastic institutions -namely wills, monastic foundation documents, monastic archives, letters and imperial laws- with the results of three seasons of archaeological fieldwork. I conducted extensive surveys and recorded remains of monastic complexes including churches and refectories on Mount Ganos (Turkey), on the southern Rhodope Mountains (Greece) and in the cities of Sozopolis and Mesembria (Bulgaria), and explored the cultural ties with Constantinople and other meaningful centers of the Byzantine world.

As chamadas teorias pós-coloniais iniciaram, na década de 1980, uma revisão histórica que levou ao resgate da história de povos conquistados e ao questionamento de teorias estabelecidas, como é o caso da teoria de aculturação. A arqueologia, influenciada pelas revisões pós-coloniais, começou a reformular a história do Império Romano e das províncias a ele incorporadas, entre elas, e de especial interesse no presente trabalho, as províncias estabelecidas em territórios “celtas” e no norte da Grã-Bretanha. Além de questionamentos sobre a teoria de romanização, arqueólogos como Simon James constataram que estas populações possuíam culturas de base local, mostrando que os inúmeros povos rotulados como “celtas” pertenciam a tradições múltiplas e autônomas. No entanto, a cultura popular e inclusive alguns acadêmicos divulgam uma imagem consistente de uma “civilização celta”, habitante de regiões que iam da Espanha aos Balcãs e do norte da Itália às Ilhas Britânicas, para a qual eram as similaridades e não as diferenças que importavam. Mesmo tendo permanecido por muito tempo como um povo à parte, desde a década de 1950, os pictos (ou bretões do norte) também têm sido incluídos nesta grande civilização. Porém, embora autores gregos e romanos colocassem um grande número de povos continentais antigos sob um único rótulo – celtas -, o mesmo não é verdade com relação aos antigos habitantes das ilhas britânicas: para estes, os autores utilizavam o nome bretões, diferenciando-os dos bárbaros continentais. Ainda assim, iniciada no século XVII, a construção da história de uma civilização celta, à qual os bretões (habitantes da província romana, em um primeiro momento, e, mais tardiamente, também os bretões do norte) foram incluídos, encontra suporte nos autores clássicos: a similaridade das caracterizações de celtas, gálatas ou gauleses com as dos bretões é notável. De acordo com David Rankin, a cristalização da imagem destes bárbaros deve-se, em grande medida, ao sistema de educação retórico, o qual punha considerável ênfase no aprendizado de lugares-comuns. Seguindo o raciocínio de Rankin, o presente trabalho se propõe a analisar as descrições sobre o modo de fazer guerra de bretões do norte, comparando-as com aquelas dos povos chamados de celtas do continente europeu. Esta comparação se dá ainda à luz das considerações sobre o papel da influência da retórica na história, a inventio, as digressões etnográficas e os lugares-comuns – utilizando para esse fim, as indicações de antigos manuais retóricos. A definição de lugar-comum, um conceito chave para a análise, foi extraída do manual Da Invenção, de Cícero. Além disso, essas caracterizações foram entendidas como representações, seguindo a teoria proposta pelo historiador Franklin Rudolf Ankersmit que define uma representação enquanto uma operação de três lugares. / The so-called postcolonial theories began a historical review, in the 1980s, which led to the rescue of the history of conquered peoples and to the questioning of established theories, such as the acculturation theory. Archaeology, influenced by postcolonial reviews, began to reformulate the history of the Roman Empire and of the provinces the Empire had incorporated. Among these provinces, and of particular interest in this study, the ones established in “Celtic” territories and in North Britain. In addition to questions about the Romanization theory, archaeologists as Simon James found that these people had locally based cultures, showing that countless people labeled as “Celtic” belonged to multiple and autonomous traditions. However, popular culture and even some academics disseminated a consistent image of a “Celtic civilization”, inhabitant of areas ranging from Spain to the Balkans and from Northern Italy to the British Isles, to which were the similarities, and not the differences, that mattered. Even having stayed long as a people apart, since the 1950s, the Picts (or North Britons) have also been included in this great civilization. But, although Greek and Roman authors placed a large number of ancient continental peoples under a single label - Celtic - the same is not true for the former inhabitants of the British Isles: for these, the authors used the name Britons, differentiating them from the continental barbarians. Still, started in the seventeenth century, the construction of the history of a Celtic civilization, in which the Britons (the inhabitants of the Roman province, first, and later also the Britons of the North) were included, is supported by the classic authors: the similarity between the the characterization of the Celts, Galatians or Gauls with that of the Britons is remarkable. Still, started in the seventeenth century, the construction of the history of a Celtic civilization, in which the Britons (inhabitants of the Roman province, at first, and later also the Britons of the North) were included, is supported by the classic authors: the similarity between the characterization of the Celts, Galatians or Gauls with that of the Britons is remarkable. According to David Rankin, the crystallization of the image of these “barbarians” is due largely to the rhetorical education system, which put considerable emphasis on commonplaces learning. Following Rankin’s argument, this study aims to analyze the descriptions about the North Britons’ way of making war, comparing it with that of the so-called Celtic people of Europe. This comparison is done with the support of considerations about the role of the influence of rhetoric in history, the inventio, the ethnographic digressions and the commonplaces - using for this purpose, instructions given by ancient rhetorical manuals. The definition of commonplace, a key concept for the analysis was taken from Cicero’s manual, On Invention. Moreover, these characterizations were understood as representations, following the theory proposed by the historian Franklin Rudolf Ankersmit, who defines a representation as a three places operation.

This thesis looks at the nature and evolution of communal responses to socio-economic problems in imperial Italy and Gaul. Ancient analysis of this topic tended to view any popular expression of discontent as the result of the moral failings of the plebs, or, somewhat more generously, as being due to poverty. These two lines of thought have had an effect on modern scholarship, shaping opinion not only on how the Roman elite viewed the general population, but also influencing and distorting our view of the actual situation. In some cases, poverty certainly was the underlying cause of unrest, as it has so often been throughout human history; to see it as the sole cause (and to imagine that the Romans perceived it to be the sole cause) is, however, an oversimplification. This thesis aims to show that a complex array of factors was responsible for those popular actions (e.g. grain riots) traditionally seen as reactions to deprivation. It will be seen that not only the socio-economic problems that caused these actions, but also the underlying customs and social mores that dictated how people reacted to these problems were manifold. In addition to showing the socio-economic complexities that dictated popular response, this thesis will show that said response could take a variety of forms, and that just as we must steer ourselves away from simplistic adages like panem et circenses when searching for a cause, we must move beyond the more sensational instances of violence, crime and unrest when looking for a response. A number of reactions, from beggary to banditry, are therefore considered, in order to show the various communal responses available to those at the lower end of the socio-economic scale. Given the vast amount of time and space covered, this thesis will explore diachronic and geographical developments in the nature of communal response. By considering the wider socio-economic developments that precipitated the various responses considered, it will be shown that there was indeed a distinct evolution in the way in which the people reacted to specific stimuli, governed by factors such as the amount of imperial contact, adherence to pre-existing social structures, and, interestingly, a growing sense of popular political involvement.

The Olympic Movement has a constantly expanding mandate which has seen it venture into many fields other than simple staging of the Olympic Games. For example, it has extended its mandate into the equal representation of women in sport, but more importantly, this thesis examines its new mandate of building peace through sport, which is contained in the Olympic Charter’s 2nd Fundamental Principle of Olympism. It has also indirectly influenced the production of the UNGA Olympic Truce Resolutions, by calling on the UN to revive the ‘concept of ekecheiria’. However, the Olympic Truce Resolutions are frequently flouted, and more often than not, by the Host Nation itself, including the UK and the USA in recent years. This thesis examines a possible solution to this failing, which is the Olympic Truce Resolutions codification into a binding Treaty where states and the entire Movement are party to it. This thesis recognises that there is the inherent problem in this, in that the Olympic Movement is not comprised of states. Its core actors are the International Olympic Committee, National Olympic Committees, and International Sporting Federations (and to a lesser extent OCOGs). Hence this thesis submits the novel concept of Olympic Singularity, eight unusual features that amplify the EU doctrine of the specificity of sport on the Olympic playing field. These eight cumulative features unite to allow the Movement to be co-signatories to the Truce Treaty, alongside states. It also enables the Movement to govern the Truce Treaty and any sanctions thereof. Again, this is because of the features of Olympic Singularity, the most notable of which is that the Movement is unusual because of its universal singular webbed framework which necessitates its consideration as a single powerful organ capable of action on the international stage equivalent to states. Olympic Singularity justifies the Movement’s special treatment before law, in the form of an atypical international law subject, in that it unites independent actors into one organ, enabling them to have capacity on a par with those reserved to states and international governmental organisations. This would only take the form of governing and sanctioning a Truce Treaty. This thesis examines precedent for this in that the ancient Olympic Games were governed by a single state who dispensed real sanctions for the breach of ekecheiria. It also examines in a case study, South Africa which shows that the end of apartheid was assisted by the UN and the Movement uniting and using sport by way of a binding international Treaty, ICAAS 1985. Hence the capacity of the state system was required alongside the recognition of all involved that it was a Treaty.