Interviews with Mary Beard Posted on October 25th, 2007 by

Brought to you by BLDGBlog, here are two interviews with renowned and engaging classicist Mary Beard complete with some great photos.
Mary Beard and some of her books for the ‘Wonders of the World’ series

Of the two, the second one deals the most specifically with Classics. Thought-provoking topics include: modern conceptions of authenticity vs. imitation, the intellectual and cultural dynamics of tourism, the continuity of mass consumption of ancient culture, what we actually don’t know about Pompeii, and the usefulness of ‘Gladiator’ and ‘300’ to the field of classics.
The Elephants of Rome: An Interview With Mary Beard (Pt. 2)

Part one begins with a fascinating discussion of the production of the Wonders of the World series and the relationship of archeological artifacts to politics, space, and cultural identity.
Wonders of the World: An Interview with Mary Beard (Pt. 1). There’s some especially interesting stuff toward the end of the post about Mussolini’s investment in ancient archaeology for his own self-aggrandizement and the perspectives of the archaeologists who benefitted from that political agenda.

 

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