Material Approaches to Roman Magic: Occult Objects and Supernatural Substances: 2 (TRAC Themes in Archaeology)

145 Pages·2018·10.884 MB·English

by  Adam Parker (editor), Stuart McKie (editor)

MATERIAL APPROACHES
TO ROMAN MAGIC
Occult Objects and Supernatural Substances

MATERIAL APPROACHES
TO ROMAN MAGIC
OCCULT OBJECTS AND SUPERNATURAL SUBSTANCES
Edited by
Adam Parker and Stuart Mckie
TRAC THEMES IN ROMAN ARCHAEOLOGY
VOLUME 2
Series Editor: Sergio González Sánchez
Oxford & Philadelphia
Published in the United Kingdom in 2018 by
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Hardcover Edition: ISBN 978-1-78570-881-7
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Front cover: Anthropomorphic amber amulet, from Colchester. COLEM: 1986.66.693.1 ©Colchester Museums.
Contents
Series Foreword vii
Sergio González Sánchez
1. Introduction: Materials, Approaches, Substances, and Objects 1
Stuart McKie and Adam Parker
2. The Medium Matters: Materiality and Metaphor in Some Latin Curse Tablets 9
Celia Sánchez Natalías
3. Phallic Magic: A Cross Cultural Approach to Roman Phallic Small Finds 17
Alissa Whitmore
4. Little Bottles of Power: Roman Glass Unguentaria in Magic, Ritual, and Poisoning 33
Thomas Derrick
5. Victory of Good over Evil? Amuletic Animal Images on Roman Engraved Gems 45
Idit Sagiv
6. ‘The Bells! The Bells!’ Approaching Tintinnabula in Roman Britain and Beyond 57
Adam Parker
7. Rubbing and Rolling, Burning and Burying: The Magical Use of Amber in Roman London 69
Glynn Davis
8. Linking Magic and Medicine in Early Roman Britain: The ‘Doctor’s’ Burial, Stanway, Camulodunum 85
Nicky Garland
9. The Archaeology of Ritual in the Domestic Sphere: Case Studies from Karanis and Pompeii 103
Andrew Wilburn
10. The Legs, Hands, Head and Arms Race: The Human Body as a Magical Weapon in the Roman World 115
Stuart McKie
11. Amulets, the Body and Personal Agency 127
Véronique Dasen

Series Foreword
Sergio Gonzalez Sanchez
The Theoretical Roman Archaeology Conference (TRAC) Roman archaeology. Roman magic, or the beliefs and
and its Standing Committee are committed to evolving experiences of those who practised it in Roman times,
hand in hand with the demands of an ever-developing are better refl ected upon through the material evidence
archaeological community searching for new ways of available, examples of which are compiled in the different
approaching theory in Roman archaeology. New times and case-studies presented on these pages. We feel this second
new trends require new ways of sharing knowledge within volume of the series is a perfect follow up to the fi rst volume
academia and with the public. Honouring this commitment, and we are convinced it will meet everyone’s expectations.
we have recently launched two new publication platforms I am honoured to have acted as the series editor for this
of the highest quality: the brand new Theoretical Roman second volume, and I am certainly delighted with the result.
Archaeology Journal (an online, open-access journal hosted The release of this magnifi cent volume would not have been
by the Open Humanities Library) and the TRAC Themes in possible without the professionalism and commitment of
Roman Archaeology series, the second volume of which many people. Thus, thanks are owed to the team at Oxbow
you have in your hands right now. Books whose support and patience made its release possible;
This series intends to offer an attractive venue for to the authors whose papers are collected here for sharing their
publication of research monographs or thematically- research and knowledge on the topic, making it accessible for
coherent edited volumes showing a strong engagement all audiences; to the reviewers whose expertise and advice
with theory in Roman archaeology. The fi rst volume of have elevated the quality of this volume. Last but most
this series, edited by Alexandra Guglielmi and myself, was defi nitely not least, to the volume editors, Adam Parker and
dedicated to the analysis of different theoretical approaches Stuart McKie, the real gears behind this project, for your
to Roman–‘barbarian’ interactions in the Northern frontiers constant efforts to make this volume a true reference on
of the Roman Empire and beyond. The response to that the topic and for making my job way too easy. I hope you
fi rst volume was extremely positive and encouraging, and as a reader enjoy these pages as much as we have enjoyed
reassured the TRAC team of the benefi t and importance producing them. May this series sustain its success based on
of producing thematic approaches to specifi c topics within high quality theoretical research for many years to come.
University of Leicester
11 November 2017

1
Introduction: Materials, Approaches, Substances, and Objects
Stuart McKie and Adam Parker
The core of this book comes from a panel held at the Special thanks also go to Véronique Dasen, not just for her
Theoretical Roman Archaeology Conference (TRAC) 2015 paper but also for her thoughtful comments on the text of
entitled Charmed I’m Sure: Roman Magic – Old Theory, the whole volume.
New Approaches, which was organised by Adam Parker. One
of the most exciting features of that panel was the coming
Lie of the Land
together of university academics, postgraduate students,
professional archaeologists and museum curators in the There are two main issues that this volume seeks to address:
pooling of ideas and approaches to Roman magic. This (1) the relative lack of attention paid to the material evidence
volume has maintained that variety and energy, with papers for magical beliefs and practice in the Roman world and
from fi ve of the original contributors plus further articles (2) the relatively poor penetration of recent theoretical
from authors working in the same wide range of professions. discussions into the study of Roman magic, especially
Our aim with this collection of papers is to further develop around ideas of materiality and embodied experience.
some of the ideas presented at TRAC 2015, particularly the The theoretical study of magic in the ancient world,
focus on materiality and embodied experience of magic in the certainly since its re-emergence on the scene in the 1980s,
Roman world. At the core of this volume is the contention includes both conceptualist ideas, which have outlined,
that fi ne-grained artefact analysis has great potential to offer defi ned and engaged with broad areas of Greek, Hellenistic
new ways to understand ancient magic practices. and Egyptian magic (Luck 1985 and 2000; Graf 1997;
In this introduction we will set out the aims of the present Janowitz 2001; Styers 2004) as well as attempts to outline
volume, and the problems and gaps in existing scholarship the functional aspects of magic and the methodologies
that it intends to address. The study of ancient magic through which it may be used (Versnel 1991; Flint et al.
is a dynamic, growing fi eld, and there are considerable 1999; Thomassen 1999). The focus of most of these works
opportunities to drive the agenda in new directions. In has predominantly been on the more abundant Greek and
particular the material, embodied experiences of particularly Graeco-Egyptian material. The emergence of studies into
Roman magical practices have been relatively neglected, Roman magic contributing towards these grand ideas is a
and thus a volume of this nature is sorely needed. With relatively recent phenomenon, certainly until very recently
TRAC’s long pedigree of being a forum for exciting new with the emergence of specifi c works on Roman magic
approaches to established scholarship, it seems appropriate (Kropp 2008; Gordon and Marco Simón 2010).
that this collection of papers should be published under The study of Roman magical theory and thought has
its aegis. The editors would like to take this opportunity become entrenched in the study of Classics and literature
to thank past and present members of the TRAC Standing (Otto 2013: 308ff), with artefactual studies often given
Committee, especially Darrell Rohl, Sergio González only a cursory or secondary role in the interpretation of
Sánchez and Matthew Mandich, for their tireless efforts Roman magic. Andrew Wilburn’s (2012) Materia Magica
in helping them to prepare this volume for publication. is the only modern monograph that has attempted to