University of British Columbia
The Archaeology of Mithraism
Description and organization
To harness the possibilities of archaeological approaches to Mithraism, this colloquium will bring together scholars from across Europe and North America who have excavated or worked closely with the material remains from mithraea. Many of these sites remain un- or only partially published; the opportunity to share and discuss this material is thus doubly important for moving Mithraic studies forward. Alba Iulia, the site of a newly discovered mithraeum (and the first to be scientifically excavated in the province of Dacia), will host the gathering.
The key questions we will pose include:
- What does the archaeology of each site reveal about the practice of Mithraic cult? What did worshippers actually do in (and around) mithraea? How often did they use such sanctuaries?
- How consistent are the archaeologically attested rites practiced in mithraea through time and space? How do we explain observed similarities and differences?
- What do these rites reveal about Mithraic communities’ engagements with one another, and about religious networks in the Roman world more broadly?
The conference will take place from October 26-28, 2017, at the Universitatea “1 Decembrie 1918” in Alba Iulia, Romania. October 26-27 will be two full days of conference papers and a poster session featuring the work of graduate students, followed by a day-long archaeological excursion on October 28. Sponsorship is provided by the Muzeul Naţional al Unirii (Alba Iulia), Universitatea “1 Decembrie 1918” (Alba Iulia), Babeş-Bolyai University (Cluj-Napoca), The Institute of Archaeology and the History of Art of the Romanian Academy (Cluj-Napoca Branch), and the University of British Columbia (Vancouver), with the generous financial support of Alba County.
Programme
25 October 2017
Arrival of participants – accommodation at Parc Hotel or Mariss Hotel
16.00 – 19.00 – guided tour of the Vauban fortress and the Museum
19.30 – welcome dinner
26 October 2017
9.00 – 9.30 – Registration – Senate Hall (Apor Palace), 1 Decembrie 1918 University of Alba Iulia
9.30 – 10.00 – Official opening
Session 1 – chair Steven Hijmans
10.00 – 10.30 – Lucinda Dirven and Matthew M. McCarty – The mithraeum of Dura-Europos: glocalizing a Roman cult
10.30 – 11.00 – Michał Gawlikowski – The mitraeum in Hawarte in Syria
11.00 – 11.20 – Coffee break
11.20 – 11.50 – Artur Kaczor – Snake technique pottery in Mithraic cult
11.50 – 12.20 – Alexandra Ratzlaff – The Caesarea Mithraeum
12.20 – 12.50 – Andreas Hensen – Templa et spelaea Mithrae
13.00 – 15.00 Lunch break
Session 2 – chair Sorin Nemeti
15.00 – 15.30 – Jean Brodeur – Le mithraeum d’Angers (France)
15.30 – 16.00 – François Wiblé – Quelques particularités du mithraeum de Forum Claudii Vallensium / Martigny / Suisse
16.00 – 16.30 – Regula Ackermann, Sabine Deschler-Erb and Sarah Lo Russo – The Mithraeum at Kempraten (Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland): the interdisciplinary analysis project and initial results
16.30 – 16.50 – Coffee break
16.50 – 17.20 – Marleen Martens – Reconstructing cult practices and events from the evidence of finds and features from the mithraeum of Tienen (Belgium)
17.20 – 17.50 – Martin Henig and Penny Coombe – The Inveresk Mithraic altars in context
17.50 – 18.20 – Nicole Iu – Funerary Rituals in the Cult of Mithras
18.20 – 18.50 – Discussions
19.30 – Dinner
27 October 2017
Session 3 – chair Martin Henig
09.30 – 10.00 – Massimiliano David – The newly discovered Mithraeum of the Multi-Coloured Marbles at Ostia
10.00 – 10.30 – Anna Danilova – Mithraism in Ostia: the Spatial Perspective
10.30 – 11.00 – Alessandro Melega – The Ostian mithraea. New archaeological investigations about last Mithraism
11.00 – 11.20 – Coffee break
11.20 – 11.50 – Attilio Mastrocinque – Mithras in Tarquinia
11.50 – 12.20 – Francesco Sirano – The Mithraeum of ancient Capua as archaeological context
12.20 – 12.50 – Philippe Chapon – La découverte d’un mithræum à Mariana
13.00 – 15.00 Lunch break
Session 4 – chair Ian Haynes
15.00 – 15.30 – Nataša Kolar – Ptuj Mithraea in Archives
15.30 – 16.00 – Mojca Vomer Gojkovič – Mithraism in Slovenia and the mithraea of Poetovio
16.00 – 16.30 – Gabriel Sicoe – On the production and distribution of Dacian tauroctonies
16.30 – 16.50 – Coffee break
16.50 – 17.20 – Mariana Egri, Matthew M. McCarty and Aurel Rustoiu – Mithraeum III at Apulum (Alba Iulia, Romania)
17.20 – 17.50 – Andreea Drăgan – Life in a mithraeum. The pottery discovered during the investigation of the Mithraeum III at Apulum (Alba Iulia, Romania)
17.50 – 18.20 – Beatrice Ciută and Georgeta El Susi – Reconstructing ancient diet: the case of the Mithraeum III in Apulum (Alba Iulia, Romania)
18.20 – 18.50 – Concluding discussions
19.30 – Farewell dinner at a local winery
28 October 2017
9.00 – 18.00 – Field trip by bus to Roman city Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa
19.00 – Dinner
29 October 2017
Departure of participants
Contact
Classical, Near Eastern, and Religious Studies
Vancouver Campus
BUCH C228
1866 Main Mall
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z1
Tel 604 822 5613
(Text by the organizers)
Link