Souvenirs and the experience of empire in ancient Rome : shaping cultural memory and social identity

In this book, Maggie Popkin offers an in-depth investigation of souvenirs, a type of ancient Roman object that has been understudied and that is unfamiliar to many people. Souvenirs commemorated places, people, and spectacles in the Roman Empire. Straddling the spheres of religion, spectacle, leisure, and politics, they serve as a unique resource for exploring the experiences, interests, imaginations, and aspirations of a broad range of people - beyond elite, metropolitan men - who lived in the Roman world. Popkin shows how souvenirs generated and shaped memory and knowledge, as well as constructed imagined cultural affinities across the empire's heterogeneous population. At the same time, souvenirs strengthened local identities, but excluded certain groups from the social participation that souvenirs made available to so many others. Featuring a full illustration program of 137 color and black and white images, Popkin's book demonstrates the critical role that souvenirs played in shaping how Romans perceived and conceptualized their world, and their relationships to the empire that shaped it. "This book offers the first in-depth investigation of souvenirs from the Roman Empire commemorating places, people, and spectacles. Straddling spheres of religion, spectacle, leisure, and politics, souvenirs offer a unique resource for exploring the experiences, interests, imaginations, and aspirations of people living in the Roman world beyond elite, metropolitan men. Popkin shows how souvenirs generated and shaped memory and knowledge and constructed imagined cultural affinities across the empire's heterogeneous population. At the same time, souvenirs strengthened local and regional identities and excluded certain groups from the social participation they afforded so many others. Adopting a fundamentally multidisciplinary approach, this book demonstrates how souvenirs-affordable, portable, and widely accessible-were critical to shaping how Romans perceived and conceptualized their world and their relationships to the empire that shaped it"-- Provided by publisher. Cover 1 Half-title page 3 Title page 5 Copyright page 6 Dedication 7 Contents 9 List of Illustrations 10 Acknowledgments 16 1 Introduction: Souvenirs of the Roman Empire 25 PART I 47 2 Souvenirs of Cult Statues 49 3 Souvenirs of Cities and Sites 84 4 Memory, Knowledge, and Cultural Affinities 117 PART II 141 5 Souvenirs of the Circus and Arena 143 6 Souvenirs of the Theater 189 7 Imagining the Roman Empire 231 8 Conclusion: Rethinking Rome 268 Notes 277 References 308 Index 344