Grote culturele veranderingen brengen ook grote religieuse veranderingen. Dionysos groeide van een angstaanjagende natuurgod uit tot het middelpunt van sociale beschaving en persoonlijk genot. Wat...Show moreGrote culturele veranderingen brengen ook grote religieuse veranderingen. Dionysos groeide van een angstaanjagende natuurgod uit tot het middelpunt van sociale beschaving en persoonlijk genot. Wat zat hier achter?Show less
The state is a social phenomenon which first appeared only several thousand years ago. In fact, the period that states have existed for is brief in comparison with the period of stateless societies...Show moreThe state is a social phenomenon which first appeared only several thousand years ago. In fact, the period that states have existed for is brief in comparison with the period of stateless societies. Nevertheless, the theoretical debate surrounding state formation and collapse has generated a large and continuous fascination within both academic and non-academic circles. Scholars have attempted to unravel the causes and processes of state formation and collapse, which is not only essential for ancient history, archaeology, anthropology and related disciplines, but also for a more comprehensive understanding of the modern world. One might ask: why produce another work in addition to an already enormous amount of scholarship addressing these topics? Yet, it will become clear that there is no general consensus on these topics. Neither is there a theory of state formation or collapse which can be applied individually and globally through different spatial and temporal settings. This thesis is set out to create a new theory of state formation and collapse, based upon a critical assessment of the most important theories of state formation of collapse, and tested to a case study. In this way, a new approach is taken to answer the following question: “What are the causes and processes behind state formation and collapse and what are the mechanisms that facilitate the process of state formation and collapse?” This will be done for the Old Babylonian state formed by Hammurabi of Babylon (1792-1750 BCE) and which collapsed during the Late Old Babylonian Period.Show less
In this thesis Roman tombstone inscriptions and letters are investigated. Two views on death are used for analysis of tombstone texts. The one, is a view of death as the slowly exiting of the soul...Show moreIn this thesis Roman tombstone inscriptions and letters are investigated. Two views on death are used for analysis of tombstone texts. The one, is a view of death as the slowly exiting of the soul from the world of the living to the other-worldly, called expiration. The other is a view of death as the ultimate final moment in which nothing exists, called termination. What can tombstone inscriptions –complemented with letters – tell us about how mourning worked for individuals in Roman society? What does mourning mean to Romans? In what way are mourning, display of grief and bereavement – expressed through burial rituals and on gravestones – typically Roman and in what way is it timeless? Romans tried to preserve memory of the deceased with elaborate funerals, with appealing inscriptions and with a very large variety of different tombstone inscriptions, in this way respect was paid to the dead.Show less
Historical investigation into the meaning and use of terms of abuse in the Greek and Roman world, especially in the plays of Aristophanes and the epigrams of Martial. The first chapter is a summary...Show moreHistorical investigation into the meaning and use of terms of abuse in the Greek and Roman world, especially in the plays of Aristophanes and the epigrams of Martial. The first chapter is a summary of the two main historical works that already exist, both only scratch the surface. The second chapter gives examples of words of abuse out the works of Martial. The second chapter gives examples of the same in the plays of Aristophanes. The fourth gives other examples from Homer, graffito and other sources. The Fifth chapter shows what we can tell from words of abuse concerning the Greek-Roman world.Show less
This theses contains the basics of the Roman domestic religion of the first century b.c. and the first century a.d. The paper contains a lot of primairy sources as well as some archeological...Show moreThis theses contains the basics of the Roman domestic religion of the first century b.c. and the first century a.d. The paper contains a lot of primairy sources as well as some archeological evidence from Pompeii, Herculaneum and Ostia.Show less
De Grieks-Romeinse droomtraditie waar het in dit stuk over gaat, is slechts een onderdeel van de Grieks-Romeinse cultuur. Net als andere tradities, was de droomtraditie onderhevig aan acculturatie....Show moreDe Grieks-Romeinse droomtraditie waar het in dit stuk over gaat, is slechts een onderdeel van de Grieks-Romeinse cultuur. Net als andere tradities, was de droomtraditie onderhevig aan acculturatie. Waar het dus om gaat is te onderzoeken hoe Grieks-Romeins de beschreven droomtradities wel niet waren. Jaren-, zelfs eeuwenlange contacten binnen de mediterrane wereld vormden de culturen die zich in de oudheid ontwikkelden.Show less
Na de kerstening van Constantijn de Grote in 312 is het christendom de officiele godsdienst van het Romeinse Rijk. De invloed van de christelijke kerk op de wetgeving van de keizers van 312 tot 429...Show moreNa de kerstening van Constantijn de Grote in 312 is het christendom de officiele godsdienst van het Romeinse Rijk. De invloed van de christelijke kerk op de wetgeving van de keizers van 312 tot 429 die de joden betrof wordt onderzocht.Show less