16 research outputs found
The Materiality of Magic
The Materiality of Magic is an exciting new book about an aspect of magic that is usually neglected. In the last two decades we have had many books and proceedings of conferences on the concept of magic itself as well as its history, formulas and incantations in antiquity, both in East and West. Much less attention, however, has been paid to the material that was used by the magicians for their conjuring activities. This is the first book of its kind that focuses on the material aspects of magic, such as amulets, drawings, figurines, gems, grimoires, rings, and voodoo dolls. The practice of magic required a specialist expertise that knew how to handle material such as lead, gold, stones, papyrus and terra cotta â material that sometimes was used for specific genres of magic. That is why we present in this well illustrated collection of studies new insights on the materiality of magic in antiquity by studying both the materials used for magic as well as the books in which the expertise was preserved. The main focus of the book is on antiquity, but we complement and contrast our material with examples ranging from the Ancient Near East, via early modern Europe, to the present time
Plautus and His Dramatic Successors in the Republican Period
This chapter discusses the standing of Plautus in the middle to late Republican period, when his plays were popular with audiences, were studied by scholars, and were points of reference for other dramatists. In particular, this contribution analyzes reactions by Plautus's dramatic successors in his own dramatic genre (fabula palliata) and related ones (fabula togata, fabula Atellana) to Plautine comedy, using the motif of the contrast between town and country as a paradigmatic case study
La fabrique internationale de la science
Au XIXe siĂšcle se dĂ©veloppĂšrent de nouveaux lieux de savoirs : les congrĂšs scientifiques internationaux. Entre 1850 et 1950, vĂ©ritables fabriques internationales de la science, ils font Ă©vĂ©nement bien au-delĂ des cercles savants. PlacĂ©s sous le patronage de grandes personnalitĂ©s politiques, ils investissent les villes organisatrices et font la une des journaux, a fortiori lorsquâils sont couplĂ©s Ă lâorganisation dâexpositions universelles. Les congrĂšs scientifiques internationaux offrent un bon observatoire de la construction de la science Ă lâĂ©chelle internationale. Dans un contexte de spĂ©cialisation et de disciplinarisation croissantes des domaines scientifiques, leur organisation pose des questions cruciales touchant Ă la dĂ©limitation et la structuration du champ concernĂ©. Ils favorisĂšrent ainsi la standardisation dâoutils disciplinaires, la reconnaissance de nouvelles thĂ©ories, la mise en place de projets internationaux ou lâĂ©mergence de nouvelles disciplines. Mais les congrĂšs tĂ©moignent aussi de la plasticitĂ© de pratiques scientifiques qui se comprennent tantĂŽt comme nationales, tantĂŽt comme universelles. JusquâĂ la PremiĂšre Guerre mondiale, lâAllemagne, principale puissance scientifique, cristallise les rivalitĂ©s. Le boycott dont elle fera lâobjet dans les rĂ©unions scientifiques de lâEntre-deux-guerres rĂ©vĂšle lâincidence du politique dans lâorganisation des congrĂšs. LâidĂ©al dâuniversalisme scientifique est en outre mis Ă mal par lâabsence quasi complĂšte de lâAsie, de lâAmĂ©rique du Sud, de lâAfrique et de lâOcĂ©anie
Molucrum bei Festus und die Zubereitung der mola salsa durch die Vestalinnen
Im Lemma molucrum gibt Festus fĂŒnf verschiedene BedeutungserklĂ€rungen, die bislang in der Forschung einzeln betrachtet wurden, hĂ€ufig unter der Annahme von Entlehnungen aus dem Griechischen. Es wird gezeigt, dass einige Bedeutungen in den Kontext der archaischen Getreideverarbeitung weisen, von der sich Spuren in der Herstellung der mola salsa durch die Vestalinnen finden. Bei molucrum handelt es sich um ein auf einer Vorstufe des
literarischen Lateins gebildetes Wort, dessen Basisbedeutungâ*GerĂ€t zum Mahlen, Mahlzeugâ ist