Oxford Handbook of Roman Epigraphy

Epigraphy, or the study of inscriptions, is critical for anyone seeking to understand the Roman world, whether they regard themselves as literary scholars, historians, archaeologists, anthropologists, religious scholars or work in a field that touches on the Roman world from c. 500 BCE to 500 CE and beyond. The Oxford Handbook of Roman Epigraphy is the fullest collection of scholarship on the study and history of Latin epigraphy produced to date. Rather that just a collection of inscriptions, however, this volume seeks to show why inscriptions matter and demonstrate to classicists and ancient historians how to work with the sources. To that end, the 35 chapters, written by senior and rising scholars in Roman history, classics, and epigraphy, cover everything from typograph to the importance of inscriptions for understanding many aspects of Roman culture, from Roman public life, to slavery, to the roles and lives of women, to the military, and to life in the provinces. Students and scholars alike will find the Handbook a crritical tool for expanding their knowledge of the Roman world.

Christer Bruun is Professor of Classics at the University of Toronto.
Jonathan Edmondson is Professor of History at York University.

- Preface
- List of Contributors
- Abbreviations
- Map 1. Italy
- Map 2. The Roman Empire under M. Aurelius and Commodus
- PART I Roman Epigraphy: Introduction and History of the Discipline
- 1. The Epigrapher at Work, Christer Bruun and Jonathan Edmondson
- 2. Epigraphic Research since its Inception: Epigraphic Manuscripts, Marco Buonocore
- 3. Forgeries and Fakes, Silvia Orlandi, Maria Letizia Caldelli, and Gian Luca Gregori
- 4. The Major Corpora and Epigraphic Publications, Christer Bruun
- 5. Epigraphy and Digital Resources, Thomas Elliott
- PART II Inscriptions in the Roman World
- 6. Latin Epigraphy: The Main Types of Inscriptions, Francisco Beltrán Lloris
- 7. Inscribing Roman Texts: officinae, layout, and carving techniques, Jonathan Edmondson
- 8. The Epigraphic Habit in the Roman World, Francisco Beltrán Lloris
- PART III The Value of Inscriptions for Reconstructing the Roman World
- Inscriptions and Roman Public Life
- 9. The Roman Republic, Olli Salomies
- 10. The Roman Emperor and the Imperial Family, Frédéric Hurlet
- 11. Senators and Equites: Prosopography, Christer Bruun
- 12. Local Elites in Italy and the Western Provinces, Henrik Mouritsen
- 13. Local Elites in the Greek East, Christof Schuler
- 14. Government and Administration, Christer Bruun
- 15. Laws, Lawmaking, and Legal Documents, Greg Rowe
- 16. The Roman Army, Michael A. Speidel
- 17. Roman History and Inscriptions: Political and Military Events, David Potter
- 18. Late Antiquity, Benet Salway
- Inscriptions and Religion in the Roman Empire
- 19. Religion in Rome and Italy, Mika Kajava
- 20. Religion in the Roman Provinces, James Rives
- 21. The Rise of Christianity, Danilo Mazzoleni
- Inscriptions and Roman Social and Economic Life
- 22. The City of Rome, Christer Bruun
- 23. Social Life in Town and Country, Garrett Fagan
- 24. Urban Infrastructure and Euergetism outside the City of Rome, Marietta Horster
- 25. Spectacle in Rome, Italy, and the Provinces, Michael Carter and Jonathan Edmondson
- 26. Roman Family History, Jonathan Edmondson
- 27. Women in the Roman World, Maria Letizia Caldelli
- 28. Slaves and Freed Slaves, Christer Bruun
- 29. Death and Burial, Laura Chioffi
- 30. Communications and Mobility in the Roman Empire, Anne Kolb
- 31. Economic Life in the Roman Empire, Jonathan Edmondson
- Inscriptions and Roman Cultural Life
- 32. Local Languages in Italy and the West, James Clackson
- 33. Linguistic Variation, Language Change, and Latin Inscriptions, Peter Kruschwitz
- 34. Inscriptions and Literacy, John Bodel
- 35. Carmina Latina Epigraphica, Manfred Schmidt
- APPENDICES
- I Standard Epigraphic Conventions (Leiden Conventions)
- II Common Epigraphic Abbreviations
- III Roman Onomastics
- IV Roman Kinship Terms
- V Roman Voting Tribes
- VI Numbers
- VII Digital Resources for Roman Epigraphy
- ART CREDITS
- INDICES
- Index of sources
- General Index