LECTURE

Morgan Library
Last Words: Roman Epitaphs

Last Words: Roman Epitaphs and their "afterlife"

The Anthony Hecht Lecture Series
Mary Beard

Grave Words: reconstructing a Roman tomb from the Appian Way to Laurel Hill, Philadelphia 

Bringing Roman society to life using their own words, eminent scholar Mary Beard (Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town), Professor of Classics, Newnham College, University of Cambridge, will talk about Roman epitaphs and the Roman sensibilities they reveal. Professor Beard will explore one of the most famous Roman tombs of all, the family mausoleum of the Scipio family, which included some of the most famous figures and ruthless soldiers of ancient Rome.

The epitaphs throw a vivid light onto the lives and ideology of aristocratic Romans as far back as the third century BCE, some of the other contents can help us recreate the lives and appearance of these men, right down in one case, to the ring he wore on his finger. But the story of the tomb's excavation in the 18th century, the experiences of modern visitors, and the replication of some of it grandest coffins in cemeteries across the West tell us as much about ourselves as about the Romans. This program is in collaboration with The Anthony Hecht Lectures in the Humanities at Bard College.