Lectures to focus on an ancient shipwreck, map of Roman roads

The legal and ethical tangles of excavating and preserving submerged cultural heritage and an important Roman map will be discussed by scholars this spring at Texas A&M’s College of Architecture.

Elizabeth Greene , associate professor in the Department of Classics at Ontario’s Brock University, will present "Law, Ethics, and Deep-Water Archaeology: The Wreck of Cesnola’s Napried" at 7 p.m. Feb. 2 in room C105 of the Langford Architecture Center.

In 1872, the Napried, an Austro-Hungarian vessel carrying a trove of early Cypriot artifacts assembled by soldier, diplomat and antiquarian Luigi Palma di Cesnola sank in deep water after departing Beirut. Although the collection was exported within the legal framework of what was then an Ottoman province, the collection, lying at the bottom of the Mediterranean, raises a tangled web of issues relating to the ownership of cultural heritage.

The 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, which entered into force for signatory parties in January 2009, stipulates that member states should preserve and protect material from shipwreck sites and prohibit commercial exploitation.

Greene's lecture will discuss how a wreck like the Napried fits within these guidelines and what rules govern the search and salvage of shipwrecks ancient and modern. As archaeologists and salvage companies seek new forms of deep-water technology, the Napried provides a powerful example of the legal and ethical complexities inherent in the search for and recovery of cultural material in the historic, multinational environment of the Mediterranean.

Greene’s research interests include the ancient economy, maritime connectivity and archaeological ethics. She is studying Archaic and early Classical shipwreck and harbor sites off the Turkish coast. Greene's interest in the Mediterranean maritime environment extends to legal and ethical issues associated with the excavation and preservation of submerged cultural heritage.

Richard Talbert , professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will discuss the [Peutinger Map] (http://www.cambridge.org/us/talbert/index.html) , the only known surviving map showing the cursus publicus , or Roman roads, 7 p.m. March 6 in room C105 of the Langford Architecture Center.

The map is a 13th century medieval copy of an original map last revised in approximately 400 A.D. Talbert considers it a pivotal moment in Western cartography. He will explore its long-term cultural impact and influence on Christian mapmaking throughout the Renaissance.

For the Romans such a map was much more than a factual record, it was a valuable document that could promote and reinforce values such as pride in conquest and entitlement to world-rule that were integral to maintaining public support for Roman rule.

Talbert completed his undergraduate studies at The Kings School in Canterbury and earned a Ph.D. at Corpus Christi College at Cambridge University. His work focuses on Greek and Roman spatial perceptions and historical cartography. He has authored numerous volumes on the Roman Empire, including “ [Rome’s World: The Peutinger Map Reconsidered] (http://www.cambridge.org/gb/knowledge/isbn/item2713851/?site_locale=en_GB) ” (Cambridge University Press, 2010).

Both lectures are sponsored by Texas A&M’s Department of Architecture , the History of Art, Architecture, and Visual Culture Working Group at the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research and the Archaeological Institute of America . For more information, contact Kevin Glowacki, kglowacki@tamu.edu, or 979.845.8194.