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69148-01 - Seminar: The Severans: Devolution from the Roman Empire's Golden Age to an Imperial Crisis (3 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2023 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Brandon McDonald (brandon.mcdonald@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | The goal of this course is to evaluate the Roman Empire's transition from the heights of economic dynamism to a period of Imperial turmoil through the lens of the Severan Dynasty (193-235 CE). Good attention will also be given to the periods before and after the Severans for a proper longue durée approach to our analyses. The evidentiary bases we will draw on include literary and documentary evidence, archaeological evidence, numismatic and epigraphic evidence, and paleoscientific data. Using these tools we will assess what role(s) the Severans played in destabilising Imperial securities, and whether or not we have assigned them appropriate blame for the Empire's third-century phase of degeneration. |
| Learning objectives | In class and in readings we will review all of the evidence at our disposal, including written evidence (from ancient authors and documenters), archaeological evidence (architectural, ceramic, etc.), numismatic and epigraphic evidence, skeletal and zooarchaeological evidence, palaeoscientific evidence (palaeoclimatological and palaeoenvironmental data and research in ancient DNA analysis/archaeogenetics), and the secondary literature. With the knowledge we gain from the primary source evidence, we will engage with scholarly discussion, and determine who, if anyone, is on the right track, but we will evaluate this period of history largely on our own terms. |
| Bibliography | The following is a selection secondary literature we will read in this course: Abdy, Richard. (2012). The Severans, in William E. Metcalf (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Coinage, Oxford Handbooks. Ando, C. (2016). Cassius Dio on imperial legitimacy, from the Antonines to the Severans. Cassius Dion: Nouvelles Lectures 2, pp. 567-577. Benario, H. W. (1961). Severan Rome and the Historia Augusta. Latomus, 20(Fasc. 2), 281-290. Bertrand, E. (2020). Cassius Dio and the Roman Empire: The Impact of the Severan Wars on Dio’s Narrative. In C. H. Lange and A. G. Scott (eds.), Cassius Dio: The Impact of Violence, War, and Civil War, Brill, pp. 120-137. Brennan, T. Corey and De Sena, Eric C. (2013). The Roman Empire during the Severan Dynasty: Case Studies in History, Art, Architecture, Economy and Literature, Piscataway, NJ, USA: Gorgias Press. Crawford, M. (2016). Finance, coinage and money from the Severans to Constantine. In Band 2 Politische Geschichte (Kaisergeschichte), De Gruyter, pp. 560-593. Grant, M. (1996). The Severans: The Changed Roman Empire. Psychology Press. Lamare, N. (2022). Memory and the urban environment: experiencing the streets of Severan Timgad. Libyan Studies, 53, 129-141. Madsen, J. M. (2016). Criticizing the benefactors: the Severans and the return of dynastic rule. In C. H. Lange, & J. M. Madsen (Eds.), Cassius Dio: greek intellectual and roman politician (pp. 136-158). Historiography of Rome and Its Empire Vol. 1. Brill. Marsden, A. B. (1997). Between Principate and Dominate: Imperial Styles Under the Severan Dynasty and the Divine Iconography of the Imperial House on Coins, Medallions, and Engraved Gemstones AD 193–235 The Reginald Taylor and Lord Fletcher Prize Essay, 1996. Journal of the British Archaeological Association, 150(1), 1-16. Rowan, C. (2011). The public image of the Severan women. Papers of the British School at Rome, 79, 241-273. Rowan, C. (2012). Under Divine Auspices: Divine Ideology and the Visualisation of Imperial Power in the Severan Period. Cambridge University Press. Ward-Perkins, J. B. (1948). Severan Art and Architecture at Lepcis Magna. The Journal of Roman Studies, 38, 59-80. Wypustek, A. (1997). Magic, Montanism, Perpetua, and the Severan Persecution. Vigiliae Christianae, 51(3), 276-297. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Tuesday | 16.15-17.45 | Rosshofgasse (Schnitz), Sitzungsraum S 181 |
Dates
| Modules |
Modul: Aufbau Alte Geschichte (Bachelor's degree subject: History) Modul: Epochen der europäischen Geschichte: Alte Geschichte (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Modul: Kulturtechnische Dimensionen (Master's degree program: Cultural Techniques) Modul: Römische Geschichte BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Römische Geschichte BA (Bachelor's degree program: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Römische Geschichte MA (Master's degree subject: Ancient History) Modul: Theorie und Methoden der Alten Geschichte (Bachelor's degree subject: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Theorie und Methoden der Alten Geschichte (Bachelor's degree program: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Vertiefung in Alter Geschichte (Master's degree subject: Ancient History) Modul: Vertiefung in Geschichte und Altertumswissenschaften BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Vertiefung in Geschichte und Altertumswissenschaften BA (Bachelor's degree program: Ancient Civilizations) Modul: Vertiefung in Geschichte und Altertumswissenschaften MA (Master's degree subject: Ancient History) Wahlbereich Master Geschichte: Empfehlungen (Master's degree subject: History) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Attendance Class participation 30-minute presentation |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Alte Geschichte |