AHIS331 Prehistory to Pompeii: Introduction to Italian Archaeology 3 Credit Points

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

AHIS331 Prehistory to Pompeii: Introduction to Italian Archaeology 3 Credit Points AHIS331 Prehistory to Pompeii: Introduction to Italian Archaeology 3 Credit Points Unit Guide Semester 2, 2011 Department of Ancient History http://learn.mq.edu.au GENERAL INFORMATION Convenor and teaching staff Position: Convenor Name: Dr Peter Keegan Email: [email protected] Phone: +61 2 9850 8819 Office: W6A512 For general enquiries Position: Departmental Administrator Name: Ms Beth Norris Email: [email protected] Phone: +61 2 9850 8833 Office: W6A 540 Department of Ancient History For information about the Department of Ancient History (including Staff, Units Offered, Honours, Postgraduate and Continuing Education Opportunities, Research, Conferences and Seminars, Online Units, and Teaching Materials), see http://www.anchist.mq.edu.au Student Support Services Student Support Services Macquarie University provides a range of Academic Student Support Services. Details of these services can accessed at http://www.student.mq.edu.au - 2 - ACADEMIC CONTENTS Prerequisite 30cp or (6cp in AHIS or AHST units at 200 level) Co-badged status AHIS231 Unit Description This unit examines Italian archaeology from the Late Bronze Age until the early Imperial period. Topics selected for particular attention include the Villanovan phase; early Rome; the Etruscan civilization; the early Greek settlements in Italy; the interactions of Etruscans, Greeks, and Phoenicians; the impact of Greek and Roman culture on the indigenous peoples of the Italian peninsula, and the archaeology of Pompeii from prehistorical times until its burial in AD 79. Unit Outcomes By the end of this unit, we hope that you will be able to: 1. Find, analyse and interpret primary and secondary sources and present the information in a written format; 2. Work with and respond to the views of staff and other students in the unit in an oral form; 3. Actively participate in group discussion; 4. Plan and revise work according to the unit schedule; 5. Analyse and express your judgement about archaeological methods and techniques in an oral and written form; 6. Appreciate how historical information (in the broadest sense) may be extracted from ancient remains; 7. Understand the importance of proper formulation of aims and show knowledge of the modern techniques used to recover information; 8. Understand the place of archaeological study (including museums) in our own society; 9. Interpret archaeological evidence with appreciation and understanding (in AHIS units at 300 level) Graduate capabilities 1. Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems. 2. Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able - 3 - to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy. 3. Problem Solving and Research Capability Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations. 4. Creative and Innovative Our graduates will also be capable of creative thinking and of creating knowledge. They will be imaginative and open to experience and capable of innovation at work and in the community. We want them to be engaged in applying their critical, creative thinking. 5. Effective Communication We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate. 6. Engaged and Ethical Local and Global citizens As local citizens our graduates will be aware of indigenous perspectives and of the nation's historical context. They will be engaged with the challenges of contemporary society and with knowledge and ideas. We want our graduates to have respect for diversity, to be open-minded, sensitive to others and inclusive, and to be open to other cultures and perspectives: they should have a level of cultural literacy. Our graduates should be aware of disadvantage and social justice, and be willing to participate to help create a wiser and better society. 7. Socially and Environmentally Active and Responsible We want our graduates to be aware of and have respect for self and others; to be able to work with others as a leader and a team player; to have a sense of connectedness with others and country; and to have a sense of mutual obligation. Our graduates should be informed and active participants in moving society towards sustainability. 8. Capable of Professional and Personal Judgement and Initiative We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments. - 4 - 9. Commitment to Continuous Learning Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially. Student Workload Activity: Teaching Week: Student Weeks: Per Semester: Per Week: Lecture 2 11 1.47 Tutorial 1 10 0.67 Participation Tutorial 2 10 1.33 Worksheet Essay 3.5 10 2.33 Private Study 2 12 1.60 Examination 2 12 1.60 Total: 9.00 - 5 - ASSESSMENT IN THIS UNIT Assessment at a glance Task: Weight: Due Date: Linked Unit Linked Brief Outcomes: Graduate Description: Capabilities: Participation 5% Every tutorial 2, 3, 5 1, 4, 5, 6, Discussion based on tutorial questions; see below for details Report 5% Every tutorial 1,2,3,4,5 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Written report based on tutorial questions; see below for details Worksheet 10% Every tutorial 1, 4, 6, 7, 8 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Worksheet based on tutorial exercise; see below for details Essay 40% Week 8 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, Written 9 assignment based on individual research study; see below for details Examination 40% End of 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 2, 3, 4, 5, 2-hour exam in Semester 2 9 three sections; exam period see below for details Assessment Tasks Participation (5%) Participation refers to much more than simply being in attendance. In order to receive full marks for participation, students must consistently demonstrate their commitment to the course by being punctual and well-prepared for all classes, and completing any required homework. Participation marks are also gained through active involvement during the lesson, demonstrated by asking and answering questions, participating constructively in pair or group work as required, and showing consideration for their fellow classmates and lecturer by behaving in a considerate and mature manner. Report (5%) AHIS331 students will submit a brief report based on the questions set for discussion in tutorials 1-4. This report will consist of direct written responses to each question. The word limit for each - 6 - report is 750 words. Tutorial Discussion 1: Mycenaean Pottery Read: Vagnetti, L., 'Mycenaean pottery in the Central Mediterranean: imports and local production in their context', in Crielaard, J. ed., The Complex Past of Pottery. Production, Circulation and Consumption of Mycenaean and Greek Pottery (1999), 137-61 (a copy of the article is available on eReserve). Answer the following questions: 1. Why and how has Mycenaean pottery been used as evidence for trade and exchange between the Aegean and the Central Mediterranean? What has been the most recent contribution to this work and why is it significant? 2. Outline the diverse nature of the evidence for Mycenaean pottery in the Central Mediterranean. 3. What are the reasons Vagnetti discusses Broglio di Trebisacce in detail? What information does the site provide that there was a relationship with the Aegean? What desirable feature does it NOT provide? 4. What conclusions does Vagnetti draw about links between the Aegean and the Central Mediterranean as a result of the study of Broglio di Trebisacce and other sites with similar evidence? Tutorial Discussion 2: Etruscan Tomb Painting Read: R. Leighton, 'House Urns and Etruscan Tomb Painting: Tradition versus Innovation in the ninth-seventh centuries BC', Oxford Journal of Archaeology 24 (1995), 363-80 (a copy of the article is available on eReserve). Answer the following questions: 1. What attitude towards Italian Iron Age archaeology is Leighton seeking to combat in studying connections between hut urns and tomb paintings? What view does he wish to promote? 2.
Recommended publications
  • Umbria from the Iron Age to the Augustan Era
    UMBRIA FROM THE IRON AGE TO THE AUGUSTAN ERA PhD Guy Jolyon Bradley University College London BieC ILONOIK.] ProQuest Number: 10055445 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest. ProQuest 10055445 Published by ProQuest LLC(2016). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract This thesis compares Umbria before and after the Roman conquest in order to assess the impact of the imposition of Roman control over this area of central Italy. There are four sections specifically on Umbria and two more general chapters of introduction and conclusion. The introductory chapter examines the most important issues for the history of the Italian regions in this period and the extent to which they are relevant to Umbria, given the type of evidence that survives. The chapter focuses on the concept of state formation, and the information about it provided by evidence for urbanisation, coinage, and the creation of treaties. The second chapter looks at the archaeological and other available evidence for the history of Umbria before the Roman conquest, and maps the beginnings of the formation of the state through the growth in social complexity, urbanisation and the emergence of cult places.
    [Show full text]
  • The Unification of Italy and Germany
    EUROPEAN HISTORY Unit 10 The Unification of Italy and Germany Form 4 Unit 10.1 - The Unification of Italy Revolution in Naples, 1848 Map of Italy before unification. Revolution in Rome, 1848 Flag of the Kingdom of Italy, 1861-1946 1. The Early Phase of the Italian Risorgimento, 1815-1848 The settlements reached in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna had restored Austrian domination over the Italian peninsula but had left Italy completely fragmented in a number of small states. The strongest and most progressive Italian state was the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont in north-western Italy. At the Congress of Vienna this state had received the lands of the former Republic of Genoa. This acquisition helped Sardinia-Piedmont expand her merchant fleet and trade centred in the port of Genoa. There were three major obstacles to unity at the time of the Congress of Vienna: The Austrians occupied Lombardy and Venetia in Northern Italy. The Papal States controlled Central Italy. The other Italian states had maintained their independence: the Kingdom of Sardinia, also called Piedmont-Sardinia, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (ruler by the Bourbon dynasty) and the Duchies of Tuscany, Parma and Modena (ruled by relatives of the Austrian Habsburgs). During the 1820s the Carbonari secret society tried to organize revolts in Palermo and Naples but with very little success, mainly because the Carbonari did not have the support of the peasants. Then came Giuseppe Mazzini, a patriotic writer who set up a national revolutionary movement known as Young Italy (1831). Mazzini was in favour of a united republic.
    [Show full text]
  • A Stroll in Ancient Cori Foreword
    A stroll in ancient Cori Foreword This little guide to the ancient part of Cori is meant to contribute simple and clear information to any visi- tor about the city’s many attractions. Consequently, I have chosen to divide old Cori into four or five easily manageable walks, each of which passes important historical sites, monuments and buildings. Thus, one can also choose to combine multiple routes or just a simple route, one at a time. Since the vast majority of illustrations and descriptions are numbered, you will easily be able to locate each scene on the route. Final- ly, you can, of course, choose to walk the length and breadth, as the important thing is the interesting and exciting experience you will have by moving around in this very exciting part of the city. The Danish text is drawn up on the basis of a local Ital- ian publisher, and then translated into Italian by Diletta Ferri and into English by Billie Fraser in collaboration with the undersigned. I especially thank Ivana Ferri for information and guidance about old Cori, Diletta Ferri for help with the organization and practical review of routes and Mette Brandt for professional critique of illustrations and extended patience during the process. Should there be any error the responsibility is mine. Have a good stroll and enjoy. Athena created the olive tree. Jan Dybdahl - www.cori-vista.com 2 Legends and historical track According to ancient various legends, it was said the construction of the Roman temple of Jupiter After the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth that the origin of the Latins were created by mixing (‘Giove Optimo Maximo’).
    [Show full text]
  • By Filippo Sabetti Mcgill University the MAKING of ITALY AS AN
    THE MAKING OF ITALY AS AN EXPERIMENT IN CONSTITUTIONAL CHOICE by Filippo Sabetti McGill University THE MAKING OF ITALY AS AN EXPERIMENT IN CONSTITUTIONAL CHOICE In his reflections on the history of European state-making, Charles Tilly notes that the victory of unitary principles of organiza- tion has obscured the fact, that federal principles of organization were alternative design criteria in The Formation of National States in West- ern Europe.. Centralized commonwealths emerged from the midst of autonomous, uncoordinated and lesser political structures. Tilly further reminds us that "(n)othing could be more detrimental to an understanding of this whole process than the old liberal conception of European history as the gradual creation and extension of political rights .... Far from promoting (representative) institutions, early state-makers 2 struggled against them." The unification of Italy in the nineteenth century was also a victory of centralized principles of organization but Italian state- making or Risorgimento differs from earlier European state-making in at least three respects. First, the prospects of a single political regime for the entire Italian peninsula and islands generated considerable debate about what model of government was best suited to a population that had for more than thirteen hundred years lived under separate and diverse political regimes. The system of government that emerged was the product of a conscious choice among alternative possibilities con- sidered in the formulation of the basic rules that applied to the organi- zation and conduct of Italian governance. Second, federal principles of organization were such a part of the Italian political tradition that the victory of unitary principles of organization in the making of Italy 2 failed to obscure or eclipse them completely.
    [Show full text]
  • Italian Community Profile, Shepparton and the Goulburn Valley
    Italian Community Profile July 2016 Country Background Official Name Republic of Italy Location Italy is located in Southern Europe, between latitudes 35° and 47° N, and longitudes 6° and 19° E. To the north, Italy borders France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia, and is roughly delimited by the Alpine watershed, enclosing the Po Valley and the Venetian Plain. To the south, it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula and the two Mediterranean islands of Sicily and Sardinia, in addition to many smaller islands. The sovereign states of San Marino and the Vatican City are enclaves within Italy, while Campione d'Italia is an Italian exclave in Switzerland. The country's total area is 301,230 square kilometres (116,306 sq mi), of which 294,020 km2 (113,522 sq mi) is land and 7,210 km2 (2,784 sq mi) is water. Including the islands, Italy has a coastline and border of 7,600 kilometres (4,722 miles) on the Adriatic, Ionian, Tyrrhenian seas (740 km (460 mi)), and borders shared with France (488 km (303 mi)), Austria (430 km (267 mi)), Slovenia (232 km (144 mi)) and Switzerland (740 km (460 mi)). San Marino (39 km 1 (24 mi)) and Vatican City (3.2 km (2.0 mi)), both enclaves, account for the remainder. Population Italy has 60,656,000 inhabitants according to estimates current as of January 1, 2016 (ISTAT) Its population density, at 201 inhabitants per square kilometre (520/sq mi), is higher than that of most Western European countries. However the distribution of the population is widely uneven.
    [Show full text]
  • Italian Immigrants and Italy: an Introduction to the Multi-Media Package on Italy
    DOCUMENT RESUME ED 067 332 SO 004 339 AUTHOR Witzel, Anne TITLE Italian Immigrants and Italy: An Introduction to the Multi-Media Package on Italy. INSTITUTION Toronto Board of Education (Ontario). Research Dept. PUB DATE May 69 NOTE 16p. EDRS PRICE MF-$0.65 HC -$ 3.29 DESCRIPTORS Annotated Bibliographies; *Cultural Background; Elementary Education; *European History; Geography; History; *Immigrants; *Italian Literature; Resource Guides; Secondary Education IDENTIFIERS *Italy ABSTRACT The largest group of non-English speaking immigrants who come to Canada are Italians, the vast majority of whom are from Southern Italy. This paper furnishes information on their cultural background and lists multi-media resources to introduce teachers to Italian society so that educators may better understand their students. Immigrant children are faced with choosing between two conflicting life styles -- the values of Canadian society and family values and customs. When teachers are aware of the problem they can cushion the culture shock for students and guide them througha transitional period. The paper deals with history, geography, and climate, explaining and suggesting some ideas on why Southern Italy differs from Northern and Central Italy. Cultural differencescan be traced not only to the above factors, but also to ethnic roots and the "culture of poverty" -- attitudes of the poor which create a mentality that perpetuates living at a subsistence level. The low status of women as it affects society is discussed, since the family is seen as a society in microcosm. The last portion of the paper presents primary sources, annotated bibliographies, and audio-visual materials. A related document is SO 004 351.
    [Show full text]
  • Mothers & Children in the Art of Ancient Italy
    Larissa Bonfante - October 22nd, 1988 Mothers & Children in the Art of Ancient Italy The statue type “kourotrophos” (mother holding or nursing a child or children) is widely distributed in Ancient Italy but not frequent in Ancient Greece, perhaps because of taboos on certain types of nudity. By 1000 BC (Villanovan culture) the Etruscans are already in Italy, their writing (non-Indo-European) by 800 BC. The Etruscans probably came into Italy not in one massive wave but over a long period of time, with a consequent merger with the Italic peoples (Indo-European) already there. Te Indo- Europeans hat migrated to Italy were part of the larger movement to of I-E peoples brought a sky- father religion that came into contact with the female earth divinities of the earlier peoples. In Greece the result was a marrying off of the female divinities to the I-E male divinities and a consequent diminished role for those female divinities in Greece as compared to those in Italy. (In Italy there was a multi-mix of languages but a basic unity of thought and religion.) The Etruscans taught the Italians to write and to represent the human figure. A pair of nude figures from Latium (c. 750 BC) shows a woman nursing a baby and a man having his eyes pecked out by birds (Aphrodite and Anchises, in some unknown variant?). This representation of husband and wife together is part of a general Italian tendency to show family relationships. A large (headless) statue from Syracuse shows a woman, wearing a robe which leaves her breasts exposed, nursing 2 babies (perhaps a mother who died in childbirth?).
    [Show full text]
  • Youth, Gender, and Education in Fascist Italy, 1922-1939 Jennifer L
    James Madison University JMU Scholarly Commons Senior Honors Projects, 2010-current Honors College Spring 2015 The model of masculinity: Youth, gender, and education in Fascist Italy, 1922-1939 Jennifer L. Nehrt James Madison University Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/honors201019 Part of the European History Commons, History of Gender Commons, and the Social History Commons Recommended Citation Nehrt, Jennifer L., "The model of masculinity: Youth, gender, and education in Fascist Italy, 1922-1939" (2015). Senior Honors Projects, 2010-current. 66. https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/honors201019/66 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors College at JMU Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Senior Honors Projects, 2010-current by an authorized administrator of JMU Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Model of Masculinity: Youth, Gender, and Education in Fascist Italy, 1922-1939 _______________________ An Honors Program Project Presented to the Faculty of the Undergraduate College of Arts and Letters James Madison University _______________________ by Jennifer Lynn Nehrt May 2015 Accepted by the faculty of the Department of History, James Madison University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Honors Program. FACULTY COMMITTEE: HONORS PROGRAM APPROVAL: Project Advisor: Jessica Davis, Ph.D. Philip Frana, Ph.D., Associate Professor, History Interim Director, Honors Program Reader: Emily Westkaemper, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, History Reader: Christian Davis, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, History PUBLIC PRESENTATION This work is accepted for presentation, in part or in full, at Honors Symposium on April 24, 2015.
    [Show full text]
  • As William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–63) Would Have Said
    CONCLUSIONS Everything has its end, so does this book. “Our play is played out,” as William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–63) would have said. Our peculiar journey in space and time to the sources of Indo-European cultures and languages is also over. It is left only to draw important conclusions. The world of Indo-European cultures and languages is really huge, diverse, and marvelous. The history of the ancient Indo-Europeans and the peoples with whom they communicated in prehistory in many aspects is still shrouded in mystery. We know for sure that the Indo-Europeans were not autochthones neither in Europe nor in India. Although the word Europe is originally a prominent concept of Greek civilisation, basically used in a large number of modern languages, its etymology (as well as that of Asia) is of unknown ultimate provenance, which also speaks in favour of the later appearance of the Indo-Europeans on this continent. We also know that other civilisations flourished before them, but the origins of these civilisations or the specific circumstances of the invasion of Indo-Europeans tribes there – all this is the subject of much speculation impossible to verify. According to the Kurgan hypothesis that seems the most likely, the tribes who spoke Proto-Indo-European dialects originally occupied the territory that stretched between the Pontic steppe (the region of modern southern Russia and eastern Ukraine) and the Ural Mountains, and between the upper reaches of the Volga and the foothills of the Caucasus. Approximately during the 5th and 4th millennia BC, they split into various parts and began their movements in three main directions: to the east into Central Asia and later farther, to the south through the Caucasus into Asia Minor, and to the west into Europe.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ancient People of Italy Before the Rise of Rome, Italy Was a Patchwork
    The Ancient People of Italy Before the rise of Rome, Italy was a patchwork of different cultures. Eventually they were all subsumed into Roman culture, but the cultural uniformity of Roman Italy erased what had once been a vast array of different peoples, cultures, languages, and civilizations. All these cultures existed before the Roman conquest of the Italian Peninsula, and unfortunately we know little about any of them before they caught the attention of Greek and Roman historians. Aside from a few inscriptions, most of what we know about the native people of Italy comes from Greek and Roman sources. Still, this information, combined with archaeological and linguistic information, gives us some idea about the peoples that once populated the Italian Peninsula. Italy was not isolated from the outside world, and neighboring people had much impact on its population. There were several foreign invasions of Italy during the period leading up to the Roman conquest that had important effects on the people of Italy. First there was the invasion of Alexander I of Epirus in 334 BC, which was followed by that of Pyrrhus of Epirus in 280 BC. Hannibal of Carthage invaded Italy during the Second Punic War (218–203 BC) with the express purpose of convincing Rome’s allies to abandon her. After the war, Rome rearranged its relations with many of the native people of Italy, much influenced by which peoples had remained loyal and which had supported their Carthaginian enemies. The sides different peoples took in these wars had major impacts on their destinies. In 91 BC, many of the peoples of Italy rebelled against Rome in the Social War.
    [Show full text]
  • 9.4. South Italic Military Equipment and Identity: 229 9.5
    REFERENCE ONLY UNIVERSITY OF LONDON THESIS Degree py\D Name of Author Year 2bOfa flJdNS, N\. CO PYRIG HT This is a thesis accepted for a Higher Degree of the University of London. It is an unpublished typescript and the copyright is held by the author. All persons consulting the thesis must read and abide by the Copyright Declaration below. COPYRIGHT DECLARATION I recognise that the copyright of the above-described thesis rests with the author and that no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the priorwritten consent of the author. LOANS Theses may not be lent to individuals, but the Senate House Library may lend a copy to approved libraries within the United Kingdom, for consultation solely on the premises of those libraries. Application should be made to: Inter-Library Loans, Senate House Library, Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU. REPRODUCTION University of London theses may not be reproduced without explicit written permission from the Senate House Library. Enquiries should be addressed to the Theses Section of the Library. Regulations concerning reproduction vary according to the date of acceptance of the thesis and are listed below as guidelines. A. Before 1962. Permission granted only upon the prior written consent of the author. (The Senate House Library will provide addresses where possible). B. 1962 - 1974. In many cases the author has agreed to permit copying upon completion of a Copyright Declaration. C. 1975 - 1988. Most theses may be copied upon completion of a Copyright Declaration. D. 1989 onwards. Most theses may be copied.
    [Show full text]
  • Tommaso Astarita Naples Was One of the Largest Cities in Early Modern
    INTRODUCTION: “NAPLES IS THE WHOLE world” Tommaso Astarita Naples was one of the largest cities in early modern Europe and, for about two centuries, the largest city in the global empire ruled by the kings of Spain. Its crowded and noisy streets, the height of its buildings, the num- ber and wealth of its churches and palaces, the celebrated natural beauty of its location, the many antiquities scattered in its environs, the fiery volcano looming over it, the drama of its people’s devotions, and the size and liveliness—to put it mildly—of its plebs all made Naples renowned and at times notorious across Europe. The new essays in this volume aim to introduce this important, fasci- nating, and bewildering city to readers unfamiliar with its history. In this introduction, I will briefly situate the city in the general history of Italy and Europe and offer a few remarks on the themes, topics, and approaches of the essays that follow. The city of Naples was founded by Greek settlers in the 6th century BC (although earlier settlements in the area date to the 9th century). Greeks, Etruscans, and, eventually, Romans vied for control over the city during its first few centuries. After Rome absorbed the southern areas of the Ital- ian Peninsula, Naples followed the history of the Roman state; however, through much of that era, it maintained a strong Greek identity and cul- ture. (Nero famously chose to make his first appearance on the stage in Naples, finding the city’s Greek culture more tolerant than stern Rome of such behavior.) Perhaps due to its continued eastern orientation, Naples developed an early Christian community.
    [Show full text]