<p>This thesis analyses the Roman mosaic of Neptune and the Seasons from La Chebba in North Africa (Africa Proconsularis). The mosaic was excavated in 1902 in a seaside villa at La Chebba which is about 10 km. south of El Alia. The mosaic has received but brief mention in publications since the beginning of the century, in spite of its fascinating subject matter.</p> <p>Chapter 1 gives a detailed description of the mosaic, which depicts in a central medallion, Neptune standing in a frontal chariot attended by two members of the marine thiasos. Four female Seasons appear in the corner diagonals of the pavement. They are flanked by seasonal animals and little scenes of seasonal activity. These seasonal vignettes and the combination of Neptune with Seasons are unique features of this mosaic.</p> <p>Chapter 2 deals with the subject of the "triumph"; its modern art historical terminology, its symbolism, and the iconography of Neptune's "triumph". Some very interesting parallels appear.</p> <p>In Chapter 3 the iconography of the Seasons in North African mosaics is discussed. Of particular significance is the frequent combination of the Seasonal theme with a divine personage. The uniqueness of the La Chebba mosaic is acknowledged again with the discovery that it is the only mosaic pavement that portrays the god Neptune in the company of the Seasons.</p> <p>The discussion in Chapter 4 revolves around chronology, style, architectural location and the interpretation of the composition's motifs.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>For too long, scholars have neglected and misunderstood the architectural terminology of the Roman theatre. The problem scholars face today is that they are forced to apply ancient terminology to our modern ideas of what they believe the people of the Roman world meant when they used these terms. The terminology has been approached minimally in the past by authors including Ch. Daremberg and E. Saglio in their <em>Dictionnaire des Antiquites grecques et romains d'apres les textes et les monuments</em> written in 1877 and, more recently in 1985 and 1992, by R. Ginouves and R. Martin in their <em>Dictionnaire Methodique de l'architecture greque et romaine </em>(2 vols), who have examined the archaeological record and literary evidence. These stuclies have shed some light on the architecture of the theatre, but unfortunately, the ambiguous meanings of the terms still persist.</p> <p>To date, few scholars have investigated the terminology from the point of view of the epigraphy. This thesis focuses on an epigraphic approach to Roman theatre architecture of the West. It is a study which primarily uses inscriptional evidence and only considers archaeology and ancient literary material for clarification. Fifteen architectural terms are considered presently. The core of the thesis follows the format of a lexicon, one which first lists the inscriptional evidence of each term, and then offers possible meanings of the term. Innovative definitions are developed for terms such as <em>locus, proscaenium</em> and <em>frons scaenae</em> demonstrating the value of inscriptional evidence for studies in terminology and the need to combine literary, archaeological, and epigraphic approaches in an attempt to better understand architecture in the theatre. In the future, this approach may be applied to the study of other building types.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>Grottoes were incorporated into private domestic Roman architecture in the Republican era, and the popularity of the form continued into the Imperial period. As places of refuge from the strains of public life, artificial and structurally altered natural grottoes equipped with nymphaea provided a cool and refreshing escape for the Roman aristocrat. Chapter 1 summarizes the physical evidence for the role of the grotto in the Classical and Hellenistic Greek world, and examines the association of the grotto with the god Dionysus. In Chapter 2 the motif of the grotto in Roman literature is briefly discussed, with emphasis on references to decorated grottoes. The majority of the chapter considers the construction, decoration and function of the grotto-nymphaeum, an architectural type which appears in many Republican and early Imperial villas. Chapter 3 examines the triclinium and its changing role in the Roman house plan, a role which reflects a wider movement in the evolution of domestic Roman architecture. The arrangement and decoration of outdoor and nymphaea triclinia are considered in this context. The nature of the stibadium and its Dionsiac and secular connections are also discussed. Chapter 4 is devoted to an examination of the triclinium-grotto of the praedia of Julia Felix at Pompeii, in which the elements of grotto, nymphaeum and triclinium are combined and fully integrated into the fabric of domestic architecture.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>Modem researchers struggle to ascertain spatial use in order to understand more fully the behavior of the inhabitants of the Roman house. As an artifact, the house has the potential to offer the most intimate glimpses of the interactions of the Roman family and Roman society. The artifactual, architectural, and decorative evidence which is preserved in Pompeian houses can provide insight into how the rooms and spaces of the Roman household functioned; room function itself can in tum tell more about the everyday lives of the people who inhabited the domus. But what is the value of the evidence found within the house? How much can the extant archaeological remains communicate to the modem researcher about the Roman family and how they used the spaces of the their homes? This thesis explores the potential of each type of evidence for evaluating room function and shows that only when all kinds of evidence are taken into account can the most informative picture of the Roman house emerge.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>Although the study of public statuary has often overshadowed sculptural pieces discovered in the private context, an examination of domestic sculpture has much to contibute to our knowledge of Roman private life. This thesis examines the sculptural repertoires of Venus, Hercules, Dionysus and his thiasos in an effort to understand the nature of mythological figures in private collections of statuary. The artistic antecedents, sculptural types, placement and function are examined in Pompeii's private context, revealing some interesting commonalities. The religious function of statuary is also addressed, with emphasis on those examples associated with aediculae, niches, and altars.</p> <p>Chapter 1 examines the goddess Venus' connection with the garden, focusing on sculptural representations of the deity in the gardens of Pompeii. Although the Italic goddess was associated with vegetation, it is the Greek form of the deity which appears in the context of the garden. Semi-draped versions of Venus at Pompeii often depict the goddess in connection with her bath. Several of the statuary types found in the gardens of Pompeii are adaptations of Hellenistic prototypes.</p> <p>Chapter 2 briefly discusses the hero Hercules' Greek background and transition to Rome. Despite an extremely large atiistic repertoire, it was the Hellenistic prototype created by Lysippos which Roman copyists adapted for display in the Roman garden. Among the statuettes of the hero discovered at Pompeii are examples which may have functioned as religious images.</p> <p>Chapter 3 discusses representations of Dionysus and his thiasos in the gardens of Pompeii, outlining the god's Greek background and connection with the region. While only three representations of the deity have been discovered in the domestic context, there are numerous examples of his Hellenistic thiasos. The final chapter provides an analysis of all three sculptural repertoires, emphasizing the artistic trends, and placement as an indication of function.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>The period of Roman control in Greece has often been considered a time of deterioration of the traditional Greek culture, when Greek ideals were abandoned and the Greek way of life became inhibited due to the loss of independence. Roman rule had, on the contrary, brought prosperity to the Greek world, which continued to flourish under the Roman auspices. The topic of this thesis is the sanctuary of Demeter and Kore at Eleusis in the Roman world. The study of the Eleusinian sanctuary shows that, in fact, Greek traditional institutions could thrive, and even be enhanced in the Roman period. The sanctuary occupied a prominent position in the religious life of Athens and the Greeks in the Classical period and proceeded to prosper under the Roman authority.</p> <p>Roman individuals, including a number of Roman emperors, exhibited a personal interest in the Eleusinian Mysteries. Many were initiated into the cult and some chose to commemorate the event by erecting various monuments to Demeter and Kore in the sanctuary. The Athenians honoured the Romans in a number of ways connected to Eleusis. They set up statues to Romans, adlected them into the priestly families and awarded them honourary Eleusinian titles. Occasionally, the Eleusinian officials even modified the rules of the cult to accommodate the requests of the Romans. A mutually beneficial relationship was formed, whereby the Eleusinian sanctuary profited from the privilege of Roman protection and the Romans enjoyed the prestige associated with the Eleusinian cult.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>The economy of Imperial Rome relied heavily on agricultural production. Much of the grain, oil, and wine needed was supplied by the Roman provinces located in what are now Spain and North Africa. The prosperity of the provinces was reflected in the agricultural themes in the artwork of both public and private buildings in these areas. These works included many mosaics, dating from the second to the fifth centuries A.D., which portrayed vintaging motifs. Various aspects of wine production were illustrated on these mosaics: the harvest, the crushing of the grapes, and the tending of the wines. While vintaging mosaics have been included in catalogues and individual pavements have been studied, no detailed analysis of the iconography of the entire group has been undertaken.</p> <p>In this thesis the composition and context of these vintaging mosaics from Roman Spain and North Africa will be examined. Many of the vintaging mosaics were found in badly preserved structures. However, wherever possible, the function of both the building and room in which the mosaic was found will be examined. The majority seem to come from <em>triclinia</em>, and <em>oeci</em> within the living quarters and from <em>frigidaria</em> in both private and public baths.</p> <p>The vintaging mosaics, whether illustrating a realistic portrait of a vineyard or an abstract display of vintaging Erotes working among vine rinceaux, include realistic elements of agricultural practice. The tools and farming implements used, the method of viticulture employed, and the various stages of wine production need to be carefully observed. These visual images will be compared to literary and archaeological evidence to determine to what extent the iconography of the vintage is realistic or how standardised the images had become by this period.</p> <p>Many of the pavements, in addition to the agricultural elements, contain scenes or figures connected to Roman mythology. Several of the mosaics contain Bacchic figures or scenes. The connection of the wine god to the vintaging motif is obvious, yet the choice of scenes needs to be examined. Questions arise as to whether or not these scenes reflect religious worship of Dionysus or whether the scenes have become standard images in the repertoire of the mosaicists of Spain and North Africa.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>The place of dining was the most important and the most lavish room of the ancient Greek house. This lavishness is demonstrated by the decoration on the walls, of which very little survives, and by the decorative mosaics on the floors. This thesis collects information on all known mosaic pavements from the Classical and Hellenistic private dining-rooms and analyzes them in relation to their architectural setting.</p> <p>The Classical andron is easily recognizable by its location within the house, its layout, elaborate decoration and individual architectural elements, of which the trottoir is by far the most revealing. The Hellenistic dining-room, however, is much more difficult to identify. For although some features of the andron continue to be used until the end of the Hellenistic period, the architecture of the dining-room undergoes a change, which results in a partial loss of its identity. The function of the room at this time is often revealed by the use of a plain edging band, which is placed between the walls and the mosaic of the central floor area and corresponds in size to the trottoir of the Classical andron.</p> <p>With the exception of a few chip pavements, almost all of the Classical mosaics are made of natural pebbles. This technique is occasionally still implemented during the Hellenistic period, but it generally gives way to the production of mixed and tessellated pavements.</p> <p>The architectural changes of the room precipitate a change in the composition and decorative schemes of the mosaics. As the square or nearly square-shaped andron changes into a broad rectangular room, the earlier compositional and decorative schemes cannot always be adapted to the specifications of the Hellenistic room.</p> <p>The identification of the dining-room would have been made easier, if the artists had chosen themes that were related to the ambience of the room. A study in the iconography of the mosaics, however, dismisses any suggestions of a clear relation between the theme and the function of the room.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>The purpose of this thesis is to examine two elements of popular Attic culture as they appear in Old Comedy: the so-called Attic scolia, and the ritualized abuse often associated with cult, which takes the form of the abuse-lyrics so prominent in the iambic scenes. This will be done primarily through a reexamination of an old article by Ernst Wust [Philologus 77 (1921)]. This is necessary in that Wust's arguments seem to have been accepted as valid. It will be shown that, although there are Attic scolia present in Old Comedy (in different forms, e.g. in partial citations and in parody), they are not as pervasive and do not play as formative role in the structure of Old Comedy as Wust asserted. As for the abuse-lyrics, it will be shown that they derive from several traditions of invective: primarily from the cultic aιοxρoλoyιa and the good-natured abuse frequently associated with religious celebrations, especially those peculiar to women, but also from the Iambographers, whose influence is explicitly attested by the comic poets themselves. In addition, in both parts of this thesis the frequent use of forms of folk-poetry, and the significance of this, will be demonstrated.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

<p>The earliest extant detailed accounts of the story of Heracles and Hylas date from the Hellenistic Age when it is treated Apollonius 1.1172-1272) and by Theocritus by (Id. 13) . While scholars, have discussed the episode in the Argonautica, no one, to my knowledge, has undertaken to investigate the passage in great detail. Rather Kohnken, for example, attempts to prove that Theocritus' Idyll was written first and that Apollonius' treatment is artistically superior and Lawall is specifically concerned with Apollonius' characterisation of Heracles.</p> <p>While this thesis does not neglect the relationship of the episode to the Argonautica as a whole, its greater concern is the episode itself: the mythological background to the Hylas myth, ~ 1.1172-1272, how characterisation of the structure, chronology and pace of Apollonius deals with setting, the both Hylas and Heracles, and finally a detailed critical appreciation of the whole passage.</p> <p>There is no attempt here to determine whether Apollonius or Theocritus wrote first or whose work is superior. Theocritus' account (Id. 13) as well as the later version by Propertius (1.20) are considered briefly at the end.</p> <p>It is hoped that this analysis will provide a greater understanding and Appreciation of the Hylas myth in Argonautica 1.1172-1272.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)