Roman Context Research Articles

Citizens’ role and digitalisation in the participatory budgeting to create public value: the case of Rome

PurposeIn recent years, the public sector has faced the challenge of digitalisation. This has significantly impacted the relationships between citizens and public organisations and, thus, it widely affects participatory processes, such as participatory budgeting (PB); in fact, digital tools (DTs) have emerged as a solution, increasing citizen engagement whilst improving efficiency, reducing costs and saving time. This contribution analyses PB in Rome, which is also implemented with DTs, seeking to understand how DTs impact citizens’ role in creating public value.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on a qualitative approach, precisely by analysing a descriptive and exploratory single case study of PB’s first adoption in Rome in 2019. The information is obtained from multiple sources and examined through document analysis.FindingsIn the Roman context, DTs in PB primarily facilitated cost-effective information sharing, offering citizens basic participation. Unfortunately, the potential for more interactive DTs was overlooked, failing to enhance citizen engagement in critical phases like deliberation, evaluation or monitoring. Therefore, the tools did not fully support citizens becoming co-creators of public value instead of just users in governance.Originality/valueThe novelty of this study lies in exploring the difference between the use of DTs that assist citizens/users in improving service quality and those that support citizens in creating a public and shared value. It ventures further to assess various tiers of participation, meditating on the digital elements that stimulate active engagement and value creation instead of simply expanding the participant pool or process efficiency.

“If You Can Change Your Name, You Can Write”: Pseudepigraphy in Antiquity and Its Function in 1 Apocryphal Apocalypse of John

This article attempts to answer the following question: why did the author of the apocryphon called 1 Apocryphal Apocalypse of John choose to efface himself and adopt John as his pseudonym? Why not Peter or Paul? This paper argues that the author of 1 Apocryphal Apocalypse of John intended to harness the audience attached to John, the seer of Revelation, by taking his name as a pseudonym. This paper sustains this claim by demonstrating that, in antiquity, each author had a specific pool of readers, often made out of friends and accolades of the author. Thus, authors’ names evoke an audience attached to them. When an author takes another person’s name to write under, he does so out of necessity, because he does not have an audience. But, when he takes another’s person name, he does so hoping to trick the audience of the impersonated into reading him. Based on this insight, this article concludes that the author of 1 Apocr. Apoc. John wanted the readers of canonical Revelation to engage with his work and that he achieved his purpose as evinced by the fact that the titles of both works share an uncanny resemblance, ranging from identical titles to similar wording. Since titles in antiquity were given to the works by their readers, the most logical explanation for canonical Revelation and 1 Apocr. Apoc. John having the same titles is that they both shared the same readers. Finally, this article argues that, in line with recent research on the use of pseudepigraphy in Jewish, Christian, and Roman contexts, the author of 1 Apocr. Apoc. John wanted to be read by CR’s readers because he wanted to expand, criticize, rework, and update CR’s eschatological discourse, exemplified by a close reading of how 1 Apocr. Apoc. John criticized, reworked, and updated CR’s presentation of the resurrection to bring it in harmony with late Christian reflection on the subject.

The Singular Brick Vault by Slices in Tower J17 from the Aurelian Walls in Rome

The lower chamber of tower J17 from the Aurelian Walls in Rome is covered by a singular brick vault by slices that is almost completely preserved. This kind of vault is unusual in a Roman context and specifically in Aurelian Walls. Brick vaults by slices were extensively studied by the French engineer Auguste Choisy, who mainly scrutinized their ease of construction that doesn’t require formwork and can adapt to different plans to achieve lowered vaults. The best-known examples are in Byzantium and generally in the Eastern Roman Empire, while we don’t know many cases dating from late Roman antiquity on the Italian peninsula. Based on a rigorous photogrammetric survey and thorough data management, a detailed analysis of this vault allows us to establish a hypothesis about its construction process and to deepen the knowledge of this type of structure.

Understanding the Lost: Reconstruction of the Garden Design of Villa Peretti Montalto (Rome, Italy) for Urban Valorization.

Urbanization and urban regeneration can significantly impact cultural heritage, but a greater knowledge of the past natural and historical features is needed to value the past and understand the present. The lost Villa Peretti Montalto in Rome, once located in the area that corresponds to the current front side of Termini station, deserves great attention due to its cultural value. This work aimed to provide a floristic and functional reconstruction of the gardens of the villa during the XVI and XVII Centuries. From several bibliographic and iconographic sources, a critical analysis and interpretation of plant names was conducted. A list of 87 species and their location in the different garden sectors, during different periods with their specific uses, is provided. The arboreal design was made by classical species in the Roman context, like Cupressus sempervirens, Pinus pinea, Quercus ilex, and Ulmus glabra. In addition, ancient lost varieties of fruit trees (mainly Pyrus communis and Ficus carica) and several species of conservation interest were found. The knowledge of the ancient flora in historical gardens could be a key tool in urban greenery planning and touristic and cultural valorization.

Samian Ware in Early Roman Contexts at Capidava

The present paper is part of a series of publications related to the research carried out in the last decade in the early Roman contexts from Capidava (Constanța County), as well. The subject of the article is a batch of 17 fragmentary ceramic vessels, belonging to the terra sigillata category. Of these, the first 16 items (Cat. nos. 1-16) are fragments of imported vessels produced in the famous ceramic production centre of La Graufesenque, in South Gaul. The last vessel, Cat. no. 17, is of local production, from the category called Pontic sigillata decorated by the barbotine technique. The entire batch of ceramic material was discovered during the archaeological excavation carried out at the Late Roman headquarters building (principia), during which the foundations of this building were also excavated. Beneath these foundations were discovered the ruins of an early Roman habitation level represented by military barracks-type buildings, a stone-paved street, a well, a rubbish pit and a waste drain that led to that pit. The material presented by us comes from this earliest context, respectively from all the urban planning elements listed above, especially from the waste drain and the rubbish pit. The dating of the material is early, namely the Flavian era until the end of Trajan’s reign. From this point of view, the ceramic material presented here completes the picture provided by other categories of material previously published from the same archaeological context.

Pyre wood fuel and food remains in a necropolis of Barcino (Barcelona, NE Iberian Peninsula): The case of Sant Antoni Market site (1st century CE)

Funerary cremations in Roman times were important rites of passage that involved the use of fire to accompany the dead into the afterlife. In the present study, we investigated the wood fuel that was used to build cremation pyres and the foodstuffs involved in offerings and funerary feasts in a necropolis of Barcino (present-day Barcelona), dated to the 1st century CE and located at the Sant Antoni Market site. Our approach began with the analysis of wood charcoal and fruit/seed remains, which were preserved over time through carbonisation. These archaeobotanical remains offer valuable insights into the selection of woody species and the condition of wood logs used for cremations. Additionally, they shed light on the food composition of offerings and feasts in this area of the Mediterranean coast, where data on such practices are scarce.The anthracological analysis of different combustion structures revealed that the principal taxon used for the stacks was evergreen oak, with deciduous oak playing a significant role during the initial use of the necropolis. Dendro-anthracological analysis indicated that medium to large diameters wood logs of deciduous oak obtained from mature individuals were commonly employed. Moreover, charcoal analysis suggested the use of pruning remains from fruit trees such as olive, grapevine, walnut, plums, and members of the apple family, providing evidence of arboriculture practices in the city. Additionally, various minor woody species (Aleppo and mountain pines, juniper, cypress, mastic, and rockroses) may have had several functions, including symbolic sensory aspects relating to smell and good flammability, the constitution of small objects or furniture placed on the stack (boxwood), and fire kindling or decoration (mastic, rockroses, honeysuckle, and laurustinus).Carpological analysis indicated that the most abundant offerings and/or feast remains consisted primarily of cultivated fruits such as figs, walnuts, and grapes, while pulses and cereals were comparatively scarce or absent. Finally, a noteworthy quantity of Arbutus berry remains was recorded, marking the first occurrence of such findings in similar Roman contexts to date.

Author's Response: Favor and Gratitude: Reading Galatians in Its Greco- Roman Context.

Author's Response: Favor and Gratitude: Reading Galatians in Its Greco- Roman Context.

The Accusations of Misanthropy Against the Jews in Antiquity

Abstract: This article argues that the origin of the accusation of misanthropy against the Jews is Greek—not Egyptian, as other scholars have thought—and reflects a Greek interpretative framework. The depiction of the Jewish way of life as misanthropic may go back to Hecataeus of Abdera, at the very beginning of the Hellenistic era, or it may have developed later, in the context of Ptolemaic Egypt or during the Judeo-Seleucid conflict of the second century BCE. Accusations of misanthropy are often found to appear during conflicts between Jews and Greeks—be it in the Seleucid kingdom, in Alexandria at the beginning of the first century CE, or in Syria during the first century. Moreover, several authors who depict the Jews as misanthropes share a Stoic or at least a universalist ideological background. Finally, in a Roman context, the accusation of misanthropy becomes associated with an aversion to the phenomenon of Judaization or conversion to Judaism.

The Accusations of Misanthropy Against the Jews in Antiquity

Abstract: This article argues that the origin of the accusation of misanthropy against the Jews is Greek—not Egyptian, as other scholars have thought—and reflects a Greek interpretative framework. The depiction of the Jewish way of life as misanthropic may go back to Hecataeus of Abdera, at the very beginning of the Hellenistic era, or it may have developed later, in the context of Ptolemaic Egypt or during the Judeo-Seleucid conflict of the second century BCE. Accusations of misanthropy are often found to appear during conflicts between Jews and Greeks—be it in the Seleucid kingdom, in Alexandria at the beginning of the first century CE, or in Syria during the first century. Moreover, several authors who depict the Jews as misanthropes share a Stoic or at least a universalist ideological background. Finally, in a Roman context, the accusation of misanthropy becomes associated with an aversion to the phenomenon of Judaization or conversion to Judaism.

The Rabbinic Courtroom Oath in Its Roman Context

Abstract In this article the argument is made that the rabbinic courtroom oath reflects the influence of Roman law. Despite substantial differences, the rabbinic courtroom oath, like its Roman counterpart, represents, in part, a product of negotiation between the litigants – owed by one party to another; capable of modification at the parties’ discretion, and even of forgiveness; comparable to the litigant-driven process of judicial selection – and an arbitration-like tool for dispute resolution.

Diet and mobility in Late Antique Sicily: Isotopic data from the catacombs of Santa Lucia, Siracusa (Italy)

The catacombs of Santa Lucia were built during the 3rd century CE in Siracusa, Sicily, Italy, as a burial site for members of the local Christian community until the early 8th century CE. This site is an important cemeterial context of the Late Roman and Byzantine periods. The tombs and artifacts found suggest that individuals of varying wealth were buried in the catacombs. Historical accounts also confirm the presence of a significant Christian community from Syria and the Levant in Siracusa during this period. The objective of this research is to investigate the life histories of the Late Antique community interred in the catacombs using stable isotope analysis. This technique aimed to clarify the dietary differences between individuals of different social status and geographical origins, in order to re-evaluate the data from historical documents. To achieve this, we conducted stable carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotope analyses on skeletal samples from 25 individuals recovered from the catacombs of Santa Lucia, using established methods. The results revealed significant dietary diversity among the individuals buried in the catacombs, with evidence of the consumption of both C3 and C4 plants, as well as fish from both freshwater and sea sources.The oxygen isotopes show a particularly broad range in both the small sample set of bones and the larger set of teeth, suggesting a significant degree of mobility for most of the individuals tested. The high variability found in the diet and the evidence of mobility for most of the individuals tested not only between early age and adulthood, but also throughout their lives. It raises new questions and calls for the consideration of the archaeological and historical implications of these novel discoveries.

Between Land and Sky—A Study of the Orientation of Roman Centuriations in Italy

The centuriations were public lands delimited and divided in regular lots by Rome as a result of the conquest but also the conceptual appropriation of new territories, which were transformed according to particular ideas of space. Despite previous works rejecting the astronomical hypothesis for the orientation of Roman centuriations, recent publications have supported the role of particular astronomical phenomena in the design of Roman land and urbanism in Italy. The aim of this work is to determine whether the orientation of the centuriations follows any pattern, and to determine the precepts, if any, underlying the election of privileged directions. We present a statistical study of the orientation of 67 centuriations in Italy—the largest sample of this type ever studied in this region—that considers the conditions of the surrounding environment together with a comparative analysis with a dataset of the same type that includes 52 Italian Roman towns. The results show interesting patterns shared by both centuriations and towns, some of them coinciding with relevant astronomical events in the Roman context, together with others in which differentrequirements would have been prioritized. In summary, we should consider the sky as an element involved in the creation of Roman urban and rural spaces.

Storage Pits from the Late Roman Fort by the Rákos Stream Data on the Supply of the Late Roman Army

The paper analyses fourteen storage pits unearthed in a Roman fort established by the Danube in the Barbaricum, at the estuary of the Rákos Stream, in today’s District 13 of Budapest. Two types of storage pits were unearthed; their find material and context dated both to the second half of the 4th century AD. The pits, which were most probably used for storing cereals, were not established for commercial purposes but for keeping produce that was part of the supply of the garrison by the Rákos Stream. Similar storage pits (in a Late Roman context and established for keeping military supplies) were also unearthed at the forts of Paks-Dunakömlőd (Lussonium), Ságvár, and Alsóhetény.

What constitutes the virtual: representation and memory in ancient Roman frescos

This paper examines a specific historical context of the virtual reality (VR), commonly associated with contemporary society, in order to consider its lineage. It sets up an argument that identifies archaeological examples, which worked with subjective perceptions of space, as predecessors to the digital technologies familiar in the 21st century context. While the paper acknowledges the use of VR representation throughout history and around the world, the focus will be on key Roman villas, specifically on their frescos, and the importance of these immersion spaces in Roman society for reasons that approach both the social and introspective. As technology is not a term merely beholden to the digital, encompassing major revolutionary human advancements such as language or agriculture, the paper examines the historical technologies, i.e. the representational techniques, that produced virtual realities and immersive environments of the past. It uses the Ancient Roman context to illustrate the relationship between representation, subject(s), and society, which can be examined from a historical context and further applied to the contemporary.

Undocumented Prudent Immigrants: De-Centering Romans 13 and Rule of Law in Immigration Ethics

Romans 13:1-7, which commands subjection to governing authorities, can be given too much weight in the moral analysis of undocumented immigrants. This article considers Romans 13 in the broader context of Romans and of the biblical canon to show biblical reasons for permitting civil disobedience toward immigration law. Rather than viewing undocumented immigrants as universally immoral lawbreakers, these biblical factors combined with analysis of civil disobedience for the preservation of life, legal ambiguities arising from competing jurisdictions, and other socio-political factors show that it may be a prudent action for undocumented immigrants to disobey immigration law.

Archaeometric analysis of the ‘greco scritto’ marble slabs from the Edificio dei Triclinii at Murecine (Pompeii, Italy)

AbstractThis paper presents the results of the archaeometric analysis of the greco scritto marble slabs from the Edificio dei Triclinii, an inn or statio negotiatorum discovered at Murecine in Pompeii’s suburbs in 1999–2000. A total of 14 samples were collected and subjected to standard X‐ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy (OM) on thin sections and stable isotope ratio analysis (SIRA) to assess the stone’s identity and provenance. The results of this study substantiate the hypothesis (already put forward and based on a macroscopic identification by Perna and Scognamiglio) that the stone originates from the Hasançavuşlar quarries near Ephesus in Asia Minor, and represent the first step towards a systematic contextual and geochemical study of Ephesian greco scritto in Roman contexts and its respective contribution to the Roman stone trade.

A Greek Rome


 
 
 
 This essay takes the reader on a virtual walk through Rome to illustrate the city’s deep immersion in Greek culture between Augustus and Hadrian. The five sections discuss the Palatine Apollo library as presented in Galen’s Peri alypias, the Pinax ton didaskalon inscription viewed in its Roman context, the Tabulae Iliacae and their ties with Lycophron’s Alexandra, the Hypogaeum of the Porta Maggiore, and the testimo- nies on the career and literary output of Lucius Iulius Vestinus.
 
 
 

Hellenistic and Roman Gerasa: The Archaeology and History of a Decapolis City. Edited by Achim Lichtenberger and Rubina Raja. Turnhout: Brepols 2020. Pp. xviii + 390. €110. ISBN 978-2-503-58504-8 (paper).

<i>Hellenistic and Roman Gerasa: The Archaeology and History of a Decapolis City</i>. Edited by Achim Lichtenberger and Rubina Raja. Turnhout: Brepols 2020. Pp. xviii + 390. €110. ISBN 978-2-503-58504-8 (paper).

Late Roman Law and the Quranic Punishments for Adultery

Late Roman Law and the Quranic Punishments for Adultery

Power and Peril: Paul's Use of Temple Discourse in 1 Corinthians by Michael K. W. Suh

Reviewed by: Power and Peril: Paul's Use of Temple Discourse in 1 Corinthians by Michael K. W. Suh Eyal Regev michael k. w. suh, Power and Peril: Paul's Use of Temple Discourse in 1 Corinthians (BZNW 239; Berlin: de Gruyter, 2020). Pp. 363. $99.99. In this book, based on a doctoral dissertation submitted to Emory University (2018; supervised by Luke Timothy Johnson), Michael Suh examines 1 Cor 5:1–13, 10:1–22, and 11:17–34 in light of temple discourse in the Mediterranean world to describe the experience of the Corinthians. S. maintains that these three passages "unpack in greater detail the concept of the assembly as the Temple of God that is first noted in 1 Cor 3.16" (p. 25). Nonetheless, the reader may recall that the temple is not mentioned in 1 Cor 5:1–13, 10:1–22, and 11:17–34. The table on pp. 19–20 shows the themes common to the three passages: the assembly, language of power/spirit, the exodus tradition, evil forces, judgment, danger, consequences of actions, and christology. Although none of these themes is explicitly related to the temple, S. regards 1 Cor 1:16 ("Do you not know that you are the temple of God?") as the key to understanding the entire letter, and he attempts to show that the three passages "explain further what it means for the Corinthians to be the temple of God" (p. 29). He claims, therefore, to offer the first comprehensive study of all three passages. The first chapter serves as a methodological introduction to and survey of previous scholarship on Paul's temple discourse. S. criticizes as "overly simplified" the understanding of Paul's temple imagery as merely a rhetorical tool to maintain the unity of the Corinthian community (p. 11). [End Page 147] In chap. 2 ("Constructing Temple and Identity in 1 Corinthians"), S. discusses the exodus tradition in all three passages. Most of the chapter deals with the subject of power in 1 Corinthians as well as the themes of power and peril. He concludes that in the three passages the assembly's meal involves power, either harmful or beneficial. God's spirit resides inside the community, whereas Satan and his demons reside outside of it. Time and again S. associates meals with the temple of God (e.g., pp. 86, 104–8), but without any real justification apart from a reference to M. Douglas ("Deciphering a Meal," Daedalus 10 [1972] 61–81). One may argue that not every ritual is equivalent to sacrifice in a temple. He concludes that "the traditions about the tabernacle, participation in meals, experience of divine power, and potential for destruction all explicate the experience of the Corinthians' as God's temple" (p. 107). It should be noted, however, that the tabernacle is not really present in the relevant passages (with the possible exception of 1 Cor 10:18). In chap. 3 ("Accessing Sacred Spaces in Greek and Roman Contexts"), S. seeks parallels for this experience of the sacred, especially in relation to sacred spaces and rituals, in the Greco-Roman milieu. Surely there are many, including those in which salvation and punishment are linked to one's behavior within the sacred space, especially in the Greek world. Yet the differences that mark Paul's discourse as special are his stress on moral behavior and the effect of the individual on the community. It is scriptural authority that justifies the requirements in relation to the sacred. In chap. 4 ("Accessing Sacred Space in Jewish Contexts"), S. turns to Jewish parallels for the community as a sacred space. These are manifold, especially in the Qumran scrolls. The people of the scrolls, like Paul, apply the notion of sacred space to community gatherings. In the next chapter ("Temple Discourse in 1 Corinthians"), S. compares 1 Corinthians with the evidence collected earlier in chaps. 3 and 4. S. surveys the pagan cultic situation in Corinth during Paul's days and suggests that Paul resisted Qumranic self-exclusion, preferring to provide the Corinthians with guidelines for maintaining sanctity in their assembly, albeit with clear restrictions. To this end, Paul emphasized the community's cohesiveness and...