Classics and Ancient History Research Seminar - Miguel John Versluys
Global Rome. Empire Formation in an Afro-Eurasian Perspective (250 BCE–14 CE) - Miguel John Versluys (Leiden)
Global Rome. Empire Formation in an Afro-Eurasian Perspective (250 BCE–14 CE) - Miguel John Versluys (Leiden)
| A Department of Classics and Ancient History seminar | |
|---|---|
| Speaker(s) | Miguel John Versluys |
| Date | 23 January 2026 |
| Time | 15:30 to 17:00 |
| Place | Building:One Syndicate Room B Option to join online via MS Teams |
| Registration information | For any enquiries to attend remotely, please email CAHRT@exeter.ac.uk |
| Organizer | Rebecca Flemming |
Event details
Abstract
The rise of Rome in the final centuries BCE has traditionally been narrated as a linear progression “from village to empire.” This lecture adopts a fundamentally different point of departure by examining the emergence and consolidation of the Roman Empire through a comparative, Afro-Eurasian lens. From approximately 200 BCE onward, a renewed phase of intensifying connectivity reshaped societies across Afro-Eurasia, synchronizing them within novel and increasingly complex networks of interaction. Rome proved particularly adept at navigating and exploiting these emerging modes of connectivity, integrating them into the structural foundations of its imperial project. What form did this process take in practice? By what methodological approaches can it be meaningfully analyzed? And why is the adoption of a world-historical perspective essential for a fuller understanding of the Roman Empire?
Global Rome. Empire Formation in an Afro-Eurasian Perspective (250 BCE–14 CE) - Miguel John Versluys (Leiden)
There will be a bonus research seminar on Friday January 23rd at 3.30pm, in Syndicate Room B /Building:One, sponsored by the Centre for Motion and Connectivity in the Ancient World (title and abstract below).
Location:
Building:One Syndicate Room B
