De Jong Irene J.F., Versluys Miguel J. (eds.) Reading Greek and Hellenistic-Roman Spolia: Objects, Appropriation and Cultural Change

Brill, 2024. — 310 p. — (Euhormos: Greco-Roman Studies in Anchoring Innovation 5).Plundering and taking home precious objects from a defeated enemy was a widespread activity in the Greek and Hellenistic-Roman world. In this volume literary critics, historians and archaeologists join forces in investigating this phenomenon in terms of appropriation and cultural change. In-depth interpretations of famous ancient spoliations, like that of the Greeks after Plataea or the Romans after the capture of Jerusalem, reveal a fascinating paradox: while the material record shows an eager incorporation of new objects, the texts display abhorrence of the negative effects they were thought to bring along. As this volume demonstrates, both reactions testify to the crucial innovative impact objects from abroad may have.Irene J.F. de Jong, Ph.D (1987), University of Amsterdam, is professor emeritus of Ancient Greek. She has published widely on Homer, tragedy, Herodotus, and ancient narrative. Recent publications include Narratology and Classics: a Practical Guide (OUP 2014) and (with M. de Bakker) Speech in Ancient Greek Literature (Brill 2022).Miguel John Versluys, Ph.D. (2001), is Professor of Classical & Mediterranean Archaeology at Leiden University and PI within the Gravity Grant program Anchoring Innovation. His research focuses on the cultural dynamics that characterise the global ancient world. Recent publications include Visual style and constructing identity in the Hellenistic world. Nemrud Dağ and Commagene under Antiochos I (Cambridge 2017) and the edited volume Canonisation as innovation. Anchoring cultural formation in the first millennium BCE (Leiden 2022).