Although the text begins with a common funerary formula (vivus fecit), Fagan argues against accepting it as an irreverent sepulchral inscription. Rather, he would see a humorous commercial sign for an inn. As evidence, Fagan considers the illustration, the possibility of reading personal names as puns (L. Calidius Eroticus et Fannia Voluptatis = Lucius Hotstuff Lover and Fannia Fuck), and a common literary and visual trope of associating enjoyment and relaxation with death and the brevity of life. Fagan notes that the stone is thin enough (31 cm) to have been fitted into a wall or over a lintel. For comparison, Fagan introduces EDR 030788 = CIL 6.10036(1) — a shop sign from Rome possibly depicting prostitutes for an establishment named “sorores IIII” (the four sisters).

The event will be held on Thursday 19 January, 19:00 at the Megaron (Concert Hall) of Athens, Level “N. Skalkotas”, Room MC2.

Speakers include:

• Yannis Kazazis, Professor of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and Chair of the Centre’s Board
• Lina Mendoni, General Secretary of the Ministry of Culture
• Michalis Tiverios, Professor of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and Member of the Academy of Athens
• Yannis Tzifopoulos, Associate Professor of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

The work is funded by the Greek Ministry of Education and the European Union and will be available online in a few weeks: http://www.greek-language.gr/greekLang/portal/blog/archive/2012/01/10/4039.html

For further information, please contact: glossologia@komvos.edu.gr.

The middle of the Bagradas vallley is located southwest of Carthage, between roughly sixty and eighty kilometers from the northern Mediterranean coast, in the region of northern Tunisia known as the Tell interieur. The term Tell designates those areas in Algeria and Tunisia subject to a Mediterranean climate, that is, to at least 400 mm of rainfall each year, sufficient to allow the cultivation of grain and olives without irrigation. The area has been an agricultural zone for thousands of years, and most intensively, with the escalation of Roman agriculture in period between 100 and 500 AD.

Within the region are found many of the most important legal inscriptions relating to the practice of agriculture and tenant farming, all of which provide a window into the how land and estates were managed and how tenant farmers made a living during this time of rapid growth in the Roman population. Inscriptions such as those found at Henchir-Mettich and Souk-el-Khmis provide us with information about the legal system under which this agriculture operated, and also, and perhaps more importantly, gives us hints into the geography and extent of Roman agriculture in North Africa when it was the ‘bread basket’ of the empire.

In this talk will Hessler will discuss his travels in Tunisia and Algeria in search of these and other legal inscriptions, and also talk about what these seemingly dry fragments of Roman law tell us about how the Romans managed their estates and environment, and how sharecroppers took advantage of the Roman system of petition and response to maintain their rights to the land.

A poster version of the above, in PDF format, is attached: Hessler 2012 Lecture.

Dr George Bevan and Prof Daryn Lehoux (Queen’s University, Canada) will lead a workshop demonstrating the use of ‘reflectance transformation imaging’* in the study of inscribed objects (on metal and stone). The aim of the day is both to provide a general introduction to the technique and its potential, and to provide opportunities for hands-on practice (using material from the collections of the Manchester Museum).

There is no charge for the workshop and all are very welcome, but places are limited: please contact Peter Liddel (peter.liddel@manchester.ac.uk) if you would like to attend (or if you would like any more information).

(*For an overview of reflectance transformation imaging, see http://www.hpl.hp.com/research/ptm/ri.html, and the case-study of its use on the Antikythera Mechanism: http://www.hpl.hp.com/research/ptm/antikythera_mechanism/index.html)

The Epigraphy and History of Boeotia:
New Finds, New Developments

September 2-3, 2011
University of California, Berkeley
370, Dwinelle Hall

Friday, September 2

Session 1: The New Epigraphy of Thebes

9.10-9.20                     N. Papazarkadas, Welcome and introduction

9.20-10.00                   V. Aravantinos, Inscriptions from the temenos of Herakles at Thebes

10.00-10.40                 A. P. Matthaiou, Two new bronze tablets from Thebes

10.40-11.00                 Discussion

11.00-11.40                 V. Aravantinos & N. Papazarkadas, New Theban epigrams

11.40-12.20                 M. Bonanno-Aravantinos, New inscribed funerary stelai from Thebes

12.20-12.40                 Discussion

[Lunch Break]

Session            2:  Boeotian Epigraphy: Beyond Thebes (part 1)*

3.10-3.50                     C. Grenet, The chronology of the Chaironeian slave-dedications: new considerations

3.50-4.30                     I. Pernin, Land administration and property law in the proconsular edict from Thisbe, Syll.³ 884

4.30-4.50                     Discussion

4.50-5.30                     F. Marchand, The Theos Tauros in Thespiai

5.30-5.40                     Discussion

* A. Schachter will participate in this session in absentia with his paper ‘Tlepolemos in Boiotia’. The paper will be circulated.

Saturday, September 3

Session 3: Boeotian Epigraphy: Beyond Thebes (part 2)

9.20-10.00                   Y. Kalliontzis, Digging in storerooms of antiquities: unpublished inscriptions from the Archaeological Museum of Thebes

10.00-10.40                 A. Robu, The epigraphy of Hellenistic Megara: towards a new chronology

10.40-11.00                 Discussion

11.00-11.40                 R. Pitt, Contractors and temple builders at Lebadeia

11.40-11.50                 Discussion

[Lunch Break]

Session 4: Boeotian History: New Interpretations

2.10-2.50                     E. Mackil, Creating a common polity: religion, economy, and politics in the making of the Boiotian koinon

2.50-3.30                     C. Müller, A koinon after 146? Reflections on the political and institutional situation of Boeotia in the second half of the 2nd century B.C.

3.30-3.50                     Discussion

3.50-4.30                     H. Beck, The language of (dis)unity. Ethnic identity and integration in Boeotian epigraphy

4.30-5.10                     D. Knoepfler, ΕΧΘΟΝΔΕ ΤΑΣ ΒΟΙΩΤΙΑΣ. The expansion of the Boiotian koinon towards Central Euboia in the beginning of the 3rd century B.C

5.10-5.30                     Discussion

5.30-6.30                     End of the Symposium – Drinks

Organization: Sara B. Aleshire Center for the Study of Greek Epigraphy (University of California, Berkeley) in collaboration with the Collège de France, with the generous financial support of the France-Berkeley Fund and the Doreen B. Townsend Center for the Humanities.

* For further information please contact Nikolaos Papazarkadas (papazarkadas@berkeley.edu)

The British Epigraphy Society is pleased to announce a number of student travel bursaries to help with attendance at the BES Autumn Colloquium on 19 November 2011. The value of each bursary is £50. To apply for one of the bursaries, please write to the BES Secretary by e-mail at u.roth@ed.ac.uk, providing the following information:

1. Your name and institutional affiliation
2. Degrees awarded and current programme of study/research
3. A brief description of how attendance at the Autumn Colloquium would benefit your studies/research
4. The name and e-mail address of one referee whom the BES may contact
5. An estimate of travel costs to and from London

The deadline for applications is 1 September 2011.

The programme for the colloquium, and the registration form, can be found on the Society’s website: http://www.csad.ox.ac.uk/BES/Events.htm

The BES gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, and the Classical Association towards these bursaries.

Ulrike Roth
Honorary Secretary, The British Epigraphy Society

An EpiDoc training workshop will be offered by the Department of Digital Humanities, King’s College London, and the Institute of Classical Studies in September this year. The workshop is free of charge and open to all, but spaces are limited and registration as soon as possible is essential.

This workshop is an introduction to the use of EpiDoc, an XML schema for the encoding and publication of inscriptions, papyri and other documentary Classical texts. Participants will study the use of EpiDoc markup to record the distinctions expressed by the Leiden Conventions and traditional critical editions, and some of the issues in translating between EpiDoc and the major epigraphic and papyrological databases. They will also be given hands-on experience in the use of the Papyrological Editor tool implemented by the Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri, which facilitates the authoring EpiDoc XML via a ‘tags-free’ interface.

The course is targeted at scholars of epigraphy and papyrology (from advanced graduate students to professors) with an interest and willingness to learn some of the hands-on technical aspects necessary to run a digital project. Knowledge of Greek and/or Latin, the Leiden Conventions and the distinctions expressed by them, and the kinds of data that need to be recorded by philologists and ancient historians, will be assumed. No particular technical expertise is required.

Places on the EpiDoc training week are limited so if you are interested in attending the workshop or have any questions, please contact charlotte.tupman@kcl.ac.uk and gabriel.bodard@kcl.ac.uk as soon as possible with a brief statement of qualifications and interest.

Saturday, 19 November 2011
Institute of Classical Studies
Senate House, London (G22/26)

10.00-11.00 Registration and Morning Coffee
11.00-12.00 Morning Session I
Prof. Robin Osborne (Cambridge), The epigraphic history of Thespiai

12.00-13.00 Morning Session II
Prof. Silvia Orlandi (Rome), Re-editing CIL VI, Inscriptiones in Amphitheatro Flavio repertae: new methods and results

13.00 Lunch Break

14.00 Epigraphic talks in the British Museum (choice of one):
a) The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, 9th c. BC (Dr K. Radner)
b) The bronze mirror showing Herekele and Mlacuch, 5th c. BC (Dr J. Clackson)
c) The Oscan inscription from the Porta di Nola at Pompeii, 2nd c. BC (Prof. M. Crawford)
d) The ossuary of Nikanor of Alexandria, c. 1st c. BC/ 1st c. AD (Dr M. Williams)
e) Two imperial letters to Ephesus, 2nd c. AD (Dr B. Salway)

14.30 AGM (Members only)

15.00 Afternoon Session I
Prof. Thomas Corsten (Vienna), Epigraphic sidelights on the history of Lycia
16.00 Virtual Epigraphy
- Dr Karen Radner (UCL): ‘SAA Online’
- Prof. Silvia Orlandi (Rome): ‘EAGLE/EDR’
- Dr Gabriel Bodard (KCL): ‘IOSPE (Black Sea)’
16.30 Afternoon Tea

17.00 Afternoon Session II
Prof. Michael Crawford (UCL), Does Diocletian’s Prices Edict tell us anything about the ancient economy?

18.00 Field Epigraphy
- Dr Nicholas Milner (Beckenham): ‘News from Oinoanda’
- Prof. Thomas Corsten (Vienna): ‘Epigraphic news from the Kibyratis’

18.30 Finale: Young epigraphy – Posters and drinks

Programme and registration form

Course fees will be in the region of £70 – £90 but, as in previous years, we hope to be able to offer a number of generous bursaries. Participants on the course will stay in Bed & Breakfast accommodation in Corbridge (we will book this for you but regret that the cost is not included in the course fee).

If you wish to apply for a place on this course, or for further details, please contact Charlotte Tupman by e-mail as soon as possible: charlotte.tupman@kcl.ac.uk

The closing date for applications is 6th May.

The Practical Epigraphy Workshop is sponsored by the British Epigraphy Society, an independent ‘chapter’ of the Association Internationale d’Épigraphie Grecque et Latine.

Hosted by the Faculty of Classics, the Celebration of Classics will see a remarkable line up of international scholars brought together in a novel format for such an event. There will, of course, be some very distinguished plenary lecturers, and there will also be two outreach evenings with well-known figures from the media and literary world. But the centre of the event is a set of seminars where leading classicists will be presenting their cutting edge work in a seminar format with extensive opportunities for discussion (each paper will have at least 45 minutes for comment and questions). Each day has only two such seminar slots, but there will be papers of interest and relevance to epigraphers on every day:

• Jonathan Prag ‘The spread of epigraphic culture in the Hellenistic West’.
• Kristina Milnor ‘The Epistolary Habit: Letters and Letter-writing in Pompeian Graffiti’.
• Robin Osborne ‘The citizen club and other myths about classical Athens’.
• Peregrine Horden ‘Charity begins at Rome?’.
• Peter van Dommelen ‘Connected Communities: Migration and Rural Settlement in the Ancient Western Mediterranean’.
• Catherine Steel ‘The Senate in late Republican Rome: who, what and why?’.
• Dominic Rathbone ‘Roman economic history: the (ab)use of Egypt’.

There will also be plenty of time for debate as well as meeting old and new friends. We are hoping that you will want to come to Cambridge and participate in this event.

For more information about the conference please go to http://www.classics.cam.ac.uk/faculty/seminars_conferences/triennial_conference/.

Professor Stephen Oakley
Chair, Organising Committee