Celebrating the Divine: Roman Festivals in Art, Religion, and Literature
Friday-Saturday, August 30-31
Festivals are ubiquitous in the life of the Roman world, and so are their depictions in ancient art and texts. Reliefs, mosaics and paintings, but also coins all show scenes of festivity. Very often, these images reflect on the relationship of humans and gods and the special encounter between both spheres that takes place in a festive context. In literary texts, feast days often occupy a prominent position: they are crucial for the preservation of memory and identity, but they also mark fateful beginnings or momentous endings in a narrative and act as privileged sites of self-definition for individuals or the community.
This interdisciplinary conference aims to bring together scholars of literature, art, and religion to examine how Roman festivals are represented in different media and to explore the functions of such representations. FRIDAY, AUGUST 30 Gibson Room, Cocke Hall 9:15 Welcome 9:30–11:00 Session 1 - K. Sara Myers Presiding Angeline Chiu (University of Vermont): ‘Scandal Takes a Holiday: Redefining Festivals in Late Republican Rome’ Liv Mariah Yarrow (City University of New York) ‘Ludi Apollinares on the Republican Coin Series’ 11:00 Coffee Break 11:30–1:00 Session 2 - Tyler Jo Smith Presiding Niccolò Cecconi (Università degli Studi di Perugia)/ Maria Rosaria Luberto (Scuola Archeologica Italiana di Atene) ‘Illustrating Roman Imperial Festivals in Greece’ Abigail Graham (University of Warwick) ‘Come on Barbie let’s go party: The Role of Statues in Salutaris’ Procession at Ephesus’ 1:00 Lunch Sessions Resume in Minor Hall, Room 125 2:00–3:30 Session 3 - Anthony Corbeill Presiding James Aglio (Boston University) ‘A Horse for All Seasons: New Researches on the Equus October’ Krešimir Vuković (Catholic University of Croatia) ‘Is it all about sex? The Lupercalia in Religion, Literature and Archaeology’ 3:30 Coffee Break 4:00–5:30 Session 4 - Giulio Celotto Presiding Courtney Evans (Creighton University) ‘Fasti Horatiani: The Fasti in Horace, Horatian Festivals in the Fasti’ John F. Miller (University of Virginia) ‘Playing with the Matronalia’ 5:30 Reception (Classics foyer in Cocke Hall) 6:30–8:30 Buffet Dinner (Garden Room, Hotel E) SATURDAY, AUGUST 31 Gibson Room, Cocke Hall 9:30–11:00 Session 5 - Christine Boltsi Presiding Stephen Heyworth (Oxford University) ‘The Megalensia in Latin Literature’ Inger N. I. Kuin (Dartmouth College / University of Virginia) ‘Testing the Power of Festival in Lucian’s Saturnalia’ 11:00 Coffee Break 11:30–1:00 Session 6 - Vergil Parson Presiding Naomi Carless Unwin (University of Warwick) ‘Pompē and Paraphernalia: Epigraphic Insights into the Material Dimensions of Processional Roles in the Graeco-Roman East’ Anise K. Strong (Western Michigan University) ‘From Pride Parade to Walk of Shame: Prostitute Parades in Ancient and Medieval Italy’ 1:00–2:30 Lunch 2:30–4:30 Session 7 - Jovan Cvjetičanin and Nina Raby Presiding Zahra Newby (University of Warwick) ‘Festival Hierarchies—The View of Themides from Material Culture’ Anke Walter (Newcastle University) ‘Celebrating (in) Exile. Festive Days in Ovid’s Tristia’ Vassiliki Panoussi (College of William and Mary) ‘Celebrating Isis: Greece, Egypt, and Rome in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses 11’  
Tuesday Classics Luncheon
Tuesday, September 17, lunch at 12:30, talk at 1:00, and adjournment at 1:45
Room E1 of the Garden Room
Tuesday Classics Luncheon
Tuesday, September 24, lunch at 12:30, talk at 1:00, and adjournment at 1:45
Room E1 of the Garden Room
Dissecting Cultural Pluralism Lab Dan-el Pedilla Peralta, Princeton University
"From Pluralism to Epistemicide: Religions in the Imperial Roman Republic"
Wednesday, September 25, 5:00pm
Details TBA
Tuesday Classics Luncheon
Tuesday, October 1, lunch at 12:30, talk at 1:00, and adjournment at 1:45
Room E1 of the Garden Room
Tuesday Classics Luncheon
Tuesday, October 15, lunch at 12:30, talk at 1:00, and adjournment at 1:45
Room E1 of the Garden Room
Tuesday Classics Luncheon
Tuesday, October 22, lunch at 12:30, talk at 1:00, and adjournment at 1:45
Room E1 of the Garden Room
Constantine Lecture
Joshua Katz, Princeton University
Thursday, October 29 5:00pm
Cocke Hall, Gibson Room
Virginia Undergraduate Research Symposium in Classics
Friday, November 15
SPRING 2020 Stocker Lecture
Amy Richlin, UCLA
Wednesday, January 15, 5:00pm
Cocke Hall, Gibson Room
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