Current Epigraphy
ISSN: 1754-0909

In BMCR 2007.09.11 is a review of:

Christian Marek (ed.), Die Inschriften von Kaunos. Vestigia, 55.   München:  C.H. Beck, 2006.  Pp. 416; ills. 240, maps 3.  ISBN 978-3-406-55074-4.  €100.70.

Reviewed by Filippo Canali De Rossi, Rome

The review of this major publication concludes with the following summary and the final interesting comment:

Per concludere: si tratta certamente di un volume importante, sia per la eccellente pubblicazione di una grande quantità di rilevante materiale inedito, che per la presentazione di un quadro documentario completo, finalizzato ad una ricostruzione globale della storia della città, la quale si trova a fungere da cerniera fra mondi diversi (la Caria e la Licia, i Greci e i Persiani, gli Antigonidi e i Tolemei, i Rodii ed Eumene, fino all’arrivo dei Romani).

L’opera di Louis Robert, a cui l’autore si ispira, è certamente un modello più facile da ammirare che da imitare, ma egli in ogni caso è riuscito a produrre un ottimo lavoro, combinando una efficienza tipicamente teutonica con una più che valida erudizione.

In Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2007.08.46:

Joaquín Gómez-Pantoja, Hispania Epigraphica 1989-2000 (1 al 10). Madrid: Servicio de Publicaciones, 2006. Pp. CD-Rom. ISBN 84-95215-53-5. €50.00 (individuals). €66.00 (institutions).

Reviewed by David Noy, University of Wales Lampeter (d.noy@lamp.ac.uk)

In his review of this incredibly useful resource (ten issues in PDF on a single CD Rom rather than the hefty volumes which–as Noy points out–are only held by four libraries in the UK), Noy both discusses the advantages and limitations of this electronic format, and considers the quality of some of the contents. He concludes with this comment:

Anyone who has emerged with an aching back and covered with dust after a session with CIL will appreciate having inscriptions in a form accessible from a desktop anywhere, although we are still a long way from the epigraphic utopia of having all information about an inscription available at the click of a mouse, or even from easily knowing where to click for the information. It is not likely that anyone other than a reviewer will want to go through ten volumes of HEp page by page, but the convenience of being able to do so at home rather than in a library is clear. Electronic publication offers other advantages too: ease of searching; updatable bibliographies and concordances. The epigraphy of the Iberian provinces seems to be particularly well-served electronically, and although the CD-ROM version of HEp has some shortcomings, it will be extremely useful in conjunction with other resources.

This week in BMCR 2007.08.43:

Joan Breton Connelly, Portrait of a Priestess: Women and Ritual in Ancient Greece. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007. Pp. xv, 415; figs. 109, color pls. 27. ISBN 978-0-691-12746-0. $39.50.

Reviewed by Catherine M. Keesling, Georgetown University (keeslinc@georgetown.edu)

This very thorough review is broadly positive, but makes some very important critical observations, especially with regard to evidence outside of Connelly’s primary field of archaeology and iconography (see below). On the methodological approach generally, Keesling notes approvingly that:

Chapter 1 outlines possible approaches, both theoretical and pragmatic, to the role of women in Greek religion. In the end (16-17), the methodology of Christiane Sourvinou-Inwood is adopted, in practice a kind of thick description of every possible source of evidence, without unduly privileging some forms of evidence over others.

But later in the review, and of particular interest to the epigraphist reader, she concludes:

In my opinion, Connelly’s scholarly accomplishment in this book would emerge with greater clarity if she were willing to concede this point, and to accept the primacy of the epigraphical evidence in the book she has written: after all, how many of the 150 priestesses mentioned here would we know by name without inscriptions?

Reviewed today in BMCR 2007.08.06, a volume which includes detailed discussion of inscribed amulets and curse tablets:

Silke Trzcionka, Magic and the Supernatural in Fourth-Century Syria. London and New York: Routledge, 2007. Pp. 227. ISBN 0-415-39242-X. £17.99.

Reviewed by Thomas J. Kraus, Hilpoltstein (t.j.kraus@web.de)

The very positive (but not uncritical) review summarises the contents (for a summary of which see this post at the Papyrology blog), and shows how the geographically, chronologically, and topically constrained subject matter makes for a more thorough and rigorous study of ancient magic than is normally possible in the general tomes that abound in this field. The reviewer concludes with the words:

Without doubt T.’s meticulous work is very welcome and a significant contribution to the field of research on (late) antique magic. T. approaches magic in two geographical regions and in a historical period, both of which are usually not in the main focus of scholarly work. This is done in an unbiased and sound way. Very impressive is her skillful narrative account and her fluent style of writing. With her fine and concise observations at hand the readers, no matter if they are specialists in the field, beginning students of (late) antiquity, or just readers interested in the subject matters, are enabled to develop some further insights in some very specific topics that could only be touched in the book. T. must be thanked for having written that fascinating book.

In this months Books Received list in BMCR 2007.08.01, the following titles appear that may be of interest to epigraphers:

Titles marked by an asterisk are available for review. Qualified volunteers should indicate their interest by a message to classrev@brynmawr.edu, with their last name and requested author in the subject line. They should state their qualifications (both in the sense of degrees held and in the sense of experience in the field concerned) and explain any previous relationship with the author.

*Benoist, Stéphane (ed.), Mémoire et histoire: les procédures de condamnation dans l’antiquité romaine. Publications du Centre Régional Universitaire Lorrain d’Histoire, Site de Metz, 31. Metz: Centre Régional Universitaire Lorrain d’Histoire, 2007. Pp. xvii, 360. EUR 35.00 (pb). ISBN 2-85730-035-2.

*Heinen, Heinz (ed.), Handwörterbuch der antiken Sklaverei. CD-ROM Lieferung 1. Forschungen zur antiken Sklaverei, 5. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag 2006. EUR 175.00. ISBN 978-3-515-08919-7.

*Ramsby, Teresa R., Textual Permanence. Roman Elegists and the Epigraphic Tradition. London: Duckworth, 2007. Pp. ix, 197. $81.00. ISBN 978-0-7156-3632-9.

*Ray, John, The Rosetta Stone and the Rebirth of Ancient Egypt. Wonders of the World. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2007. Pp. 199. $19.95. ISBN 978-0-674-02493-9.

*Rhodes, P.J., The Greek City States. A Source Book. Second Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Pp. xiii, 339; maps 2. $29.99 (pb). ISBN 978-0-521-61556-3.

Robert, Louis, Choix d’écrits. Édité par Denis Rousset avec la collaboration de Philippe Gauthier et Ivana Savalli-Lestrade. Paris: Les Belles Lettres, 2007. Pp. 799; figs. 77. EUR 85.00. ISBN 978-2-251-38083-4.

*Schumacher, Leonhard (ed.), Corpus der römischen Rechtsquellen zur antiken Sklaverei (CRRS). Teil VI. Stellung des Sklaven im Sakralrecht. Forschungen zur antiken Sklaverei, Beiheft 3. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag 2006. Pp. xxiii, 126. EUR 36.00. ISBN 978-3-515-08977-7.

*Eiteljorg, Harrison, II, and W. Fredrick Limp, Archaeological Computing. Bryn Mawr: Center for the Study of Architecture, 2007. Pp. 244.

*Fourrier, Sabine, and Antoine Hermary, Amathonte VI: Le sanctuaire d’Aphrodite. des origines au début de l’époque impériale. Études Chypriotes XVII. Paris: De Boccard, 2006. Pp. 218; figs. 508, pls. 50, plan 1. EUR 100.00 (pb). ISBN 2-86958-220-X.

A review in BMCR 2007.07.63 of:

Sviatoslav Dmitriev, City Government in Hellenistic and Roman Asia Minor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Pp. xiii, 428. ISBN 0-19-517042-3. GBP 45.00.

Reviewed by Andrea Raggi, Dipartimento di Scienze Storiche del Mondo Antico, Università di Pisa. 1803 words

The reviewer summarises a useful work and makes some serious and convincing criticisms, including evidence of over-generalisation, use of epigraphic databases for searching and listing comparanda without enough attention to detail and local variation, and sometimes atypical conclusions. An epigraphic index, inventory of city offices, and bibliography seem to be particularly useful.

In BMCR 2007.07.04 a review by Jean MacIntosh Turfa of:

Giovanni Colonna, Daniele F. Maras, Corpus Inscriptionum Etruscarum, Academiis Litterarum Borussica et Saxonica legatum, Carolus Pauli primum edidit. Voluminis secundi, Instituti Studiis Etruscis et Italicis Provehendis et Academiae Scientiarum Berolinensis et Brandenburgensis communi opera et studio resumpti prolatique, Instituto Studiis de Gentibus Italiae Marisque Mediterranei Antiqui Provehendis Italicis Scientiis Pervestigandis Consilii curante. Sectionis I, Fasciculum 5 (Tit. 6325-6723) et additamentum Sectionis II, Fasciculi 1 (Tit. 8881-8927). Inscriptiones Veiis et in agro veientano, nepesino sutrinoque repertae, additis illis in agro capenate et falisco inventis, quae in fasciculo CIE II, 2, 1 desunt, nec non illis perpaucis in finitimis sabinis repertis. Pisa-Rome: Istituti Editoriali e Poligrafici Internazionali, 2006. Pp. viii, 140; figs. 37, b/w pls. ISBN 10: 88-8147-452-3. ISBN 13: 978-88-8147-452-3. €800.00.

The review points out that this is a volume in the very traditional style of CIE, and summarises in some depth a few of the most exciting and new inscriptions and collections recorded. It is nice to see this vital work continuing to be prepared to this high standard.

• Sara Saba reviews (BMCR 2007.07.27) Katja Mueller, Settlements of the Ptolemies: City Foundations and New Settlement in the Hellenistic World, Studia Hellenistica 43, Leuven: Peeters, 2006, ISBN: 9789042917095 (WorldCat Record; NB: BMCR prints an erroneous ISBN).
• Ruth Scodel reviews (BMCR 2007.07.23) Ralph M. Rosen, City, Countryside, and the Spatial Organization of Value in Classical Antiquity, Mnemosyne Supplements 279, Leiden: Brill, 2006, ISBN: 9004150439 (WorldCat Record; Table of Contents from Library of Congress).

Thanks to rogueclassicism and What’s New in Papyrology for the heads up.

Over at ancienthistory.about.com, N.S. Gill has a short overview piece about:

• Rex Wallace, An Introduction to Wall Inscriptions from Pompeii and Herculaneum, Wauconda, IL: Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, 2005, ISBN: 086516570X [worldcat record]

A few titles of possible interest to epigraphers have been reproduced below: see the BMCR website for the full list of titles available this month.

BMCR 2007.05.44, BMCR Books Received (May).

Titles marked by an asterisk are available for review. Qualified volunteers should indicate their interest by a message to classrev@brynmawr.edu, with their last name and requested author in the subject line. They should state their qualifications (both in the sense of degrees held and in the sense of experience in the field concerned) and explain any previous relationship with the author.

• Orlandi, Silvia, Epigrafia anfiteatrale dell’occidente romano. VI. Roma. Anfiteatri e strutture annesse con una nuova edizione e commento delle iscrizioni del Colosseo. Vetera, 15. Roma: Quasar, 2004. Pp. 600; pls. 28. EUR 84.00 (pb). ISBN 978-88-7140-265-9.
• Panciera, Silvio, Epigrafi, epigrafia, epigrafisti. Scritti vari editi e inediti (1956-2005) con note complementari e indici. 3 vols. Vetera, 16. Roma: Quasar, 2006. Pp. 2187. EUR 270.00. ISBN 978-88-7140-306-9.
• *Tataki, Argyro B., The Roman Presence in Macedonia. Evidence from Personal Names. MELETHMATA, 46. Paris: De Boccard, 2006. Pp. 667; map 1. EUR 88.00 (pb). ISBN 960-7905-30-X.
• *Edmondson, Jonathan, Granite Funerary Stelae from Augusta Emerita. Monografi/as Emeritenses 9. Me/rida: Artes Gra/ficas Rejas, S. L., 2006. Pp. 303. (pb). ISBN 84-8181-313-3.
• *Fourrier, Sabine, and Antoine Hermary, Amathonte VI: Le sanctuaire d’Aphrodite. des origines au de/but de l’e/poque impe/riale. E/tudes Chypriotes XVII. Paris: De Boccard, 2006. Pp. 218; figs. 508, pls. 50, plan 1. EUR 100.00 (pb). ISBN 2-86958-220-X.

As of today’s posting of BMCR 2007.05.01 the following titles of epigraphic interest are available for review (some of them not snapped up since last month). There must be epigraphers out there who want free books?

• Edmondson, Jonathan, Granite Funerary Stelae from Augusta Emerita. Monografías Emeritenses 9. Mérida: Artes Gráficas Rejas, S. L., 2006. Pp. 303. (pb). ISBN 84-8181-313-3.
• Minon, Sophie, Les inscriptions éléennes dialectales (VI-II siècle avant J.-C.). Volume I: Textes. Volume II: Grammaire et vocabulaire institutionnel. École Pratique des Hautes Études Sciences historiques et philogiques III. Hautes Études du Monde Gréco-Romain 38. Genève: Librairie Droz S.A., 2007. Pp. 280, pls. 22; 657. EUR 80.00 (pb) (each volume). ISBN 978-2-600-01130-3. ISBN 978-2-600-01131-0.
• Iplikcioglu, Buelent, Gueler Celgin, and A. Vedat Celgin, Epigraphische Forschungen in Termessos und seinem Territorium IV. Vienna: Verlag der Oesterreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2007. Pp. 320; ills. 242. EUR 79.00. ISBN 978-3-7001-3532-6.
• Nosch, Marie-Louise B., The Knossos Od Series. An Epigraphical Study. Vienna: Verlag der Oesterriechischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2007. Pp. 71. EUR 21.60. ISBN 978-3-7001-3605-7.

Guidelines on registering as a reviewer:

Titles marked by an asterisk are available for review. Qualified volunteers should indicate their interest by a message to classrev@brynmawr.edu, with their last name and requested author in the subject line. (PLEASE DO *NOT* REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE.) They should state their qualifications (both in the sense of degrees held and in the sense of experience in the field concerned) and explain any previous relationship with the author.

Reviewed in BMCR 2007.05.03:

Cesare Zizza, Le iscrizioni nella Periegesi di Pausania. Commento ai testi epigrafici. Pisa: Edizioni ETS, 2006. Pp. 518. ISBN 88-467-1598-5. €32.00.

Reviewed by Filippo Canali De Rossi, Liceo Classico Dante Alighieri, Rome (filippocanaliderossi@hotmail.com)
Word count: 1858 words

This book deals with inscriptions that are reported in Pausanias, rather than surviving on stone, so is slightly different from a typical epigraphic edition. It is a very interesting methodological and historiographical discussion, however.

Reviewed in BMCR 2007.04.22 (although not an epigraphic work itself, inscriptions and evidence from inscriptions are, as one would expect, discussed in several places):

David Mattingly, An Imperial Possession: Britain in the Roman Empire. London: Penguin, 2006. Pp. 622. ISBN 10: 0-713-99063-5. ISBN 13: 978-0-713-99063-8. GBP 30.00.

Reviewed by Renate Kurzmann, University College Dublin (renate.kurzmann@ucd.ie)
Word count: 3031 words

Reviewed in BMCR 2007.04.15:

Cédric Brélaz, La sécurité publique en Asie Mineure sous le Principat (Ier-IIIème s. ap. J.-C.). Basel: Schwabe, 2005. Pp. xii, 530. ISBN 3-7965-2200-9. €82.50.

Reviewed by Thomas Corsten, University of Heidelberg (thomas.corsten@urz.uni-heidelberg.de)
Word count: 2023 words

A review (en français) of a collection of essays (auf Deutsch) on one of the fathers of modern epigraphy in BMCR this morning:

Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2007.04.07

Josef Wiesehöfer (ed.), Theodor Mommsen: Gelehrter, Politiker und Literat, unter Mitarbeit von Henning Börm. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2005. Pp. 259. ISBN 3-515-08719-2. €48.00 (pb).

Reviewed by Corinne Bonnet, Université de Toulouse II Le Mirail (Corinne.bonnet@tele2.fr)