Research Seminars

We pride ourselves on the regular research seminars which are held during each semester. It is a forum for staff and honours and postgraduate students to present their research in progress, and visitors from abroad address the group as a matter of course. Many published papers have their first appearance at this venue, and the friendly and constructive criticism which is encouraged is a considerable help in refining and improving the arguments. Presentations are usually given by members of staff, visiting academics and postgraduate students. Honours students have also found it very helpful to present aspects of their dissertations as short discussion papers. The seminar is seen as a model of research methodology and presentation, and for that reason regular attendance is required for Honours and postgraduate students.

Every year several scholars come as visitors from universities and other academic institutions in Australia and overseas. Most are here for at least a few days and enrich our activities through the opportunity for personal interaction. More specifically, it is common for visitors to share their current work with staff and research students at seminars, as mentioned above, and with the wider community through a public lecture usually for either the Classical Association or the Western Australian Friends of the Australian Archaeological Institute at Athens.

All staff and students (undergraduate and postgraduate), as well as members of the community, are welcome to attend our seminars.

Seminars will take place on Fridays at 11.30 am in Arts : LR9 (1.61)
unless otherwise indicated.

Semester 2 2009

Friday July 24:

Dr Chris Matthew (Macquarie University)
‘When Push comes to Shove: What was the Othismos of Hoplite Combat?’

Friday August 7:

Karen Henderson
The Works of the Old Men in Arabia: Spatiality, Forms, Chronology and Function of ‘Kites’, ‘Wheels’ and Associated Structures
PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF TIME:
1pm, not 11.30 am. Venue remains ALR 9.

Friday August 14:

Prof. Rita Copeland (University of Pennsylvania)
"Horace's Ars poetica in the Medieval Classroom and Beyond: The Horizons of Ancient Precept."

Friday August 28:

Prof. Yasmin Haskell
'From gondolas to good-time girls: Why did an eighteenth-century Dutch doctor write up his Italian journey in Latin?'

Friday September 4:

Dr Judith Maitland
ΜΗΝΙΝ ΑΕΙΔΕ ΘΕΑ: Alexander the Great and the Anger of Achilles'

Friday September18

Dr Andrew Stone
Theatron in Euthymios Malakes

Friday October 2

Michael Champion
Title to be advised

Friday October 16

Robert Sing
Title to be advised

Please contact the seminar convener, Lara O'Sullivan, with questions or offers of future papers.

Previous speakers include:

Dr John Dickson. "'Gospel' from Aristophanes to the Apostle Paul"

Jay McAnally, on *The date of the transfer of the Delian League treasury*

Kevin O'Toole, on *The Archon Basileus: the archaeological and epigraphic evidence*

Dr Neil O'Sullivan (title to be confirmed)

Leonard Goulds, *Marsyas: The evolution and problems of an unusual musician*

Fabian Lee, 'Alexander's campaign against Porus: the literary and numismatic evidence'

Jay McAnally, 'The Salmakis Inscription and Halicarnassian Coinage'

Lara O'Sullivan, 'History from comic hypotheses: the case of P.Oxy. 1235'

Neil O'Sullivan, 'The future optative in Greek documentary and grammatical papyri'

Judith Maitland, 'Who or what was Aiakos?'

David Kennedy, 'Thapsacus and Zeugma'

Smadar Gabrieli, 'The economy of a theatre in Hellenistic & Roman Cyprus. The excavations of the University of Sydney in Nea Paphos.'

Graeme Miles, 'Philosophy and Myth in Porphyry, Plotinus and Philostratus'

Steven Hughes, 'The public buildings of the Athenian Democracy: A tour of the Agora's west end'

Dr Judith Maitland, 'Peleus and Thetis: the plot thickens'

Lara O'Sullivan, ' Courtesans, Wives & Ruler-Cult: Some observations on divine honours in the age of Demetrius Poliorcetes'

Marta Kurpisz: 'Greeks and their heroes - Athletes and their social role in Greek cities of Asia Minor under Roman rule'

Professor Ernst Badian (Harvard) and Professor Keith Hopkins (Cambridge), the art historians Professor John Barron (Institute for Classical Studies, London), Professor John Boardman (Oxford) and Professor Erika Simon (Würzburg), and the archaeologists Professor Olga Palagia (Athens) and Professor Hermann Kienast (Athens), Professor George Bass (Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Texas) and Dr Mark Spigelman (University College, London), Professor Rosemary Morris and Dr John Papadopoulos (California) and Professor Richard Green (Sydney).