Ancient Worlds: A Conversation with Leading Historians

Join us for an extraordinary discussion with five internationally renowned historians of the ancient world. WashU’s own William Bubelis (Associate Professor of Classics) and Chris Erdman (Assistant Professor of Classics) will facilitate a lively conversation with our distinguished panel:

Panelists

Roger Bagnall (Washington University in St. Louis)
Roger Bagnall is one of the world’s foremost experts on papyrology and the social and economic history of the Hellenistic, Roman, and Late Antique East. Formerly Jay Professor of Greek and Latin at Columbia University and founding director of NYU’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, Bagnall has authored seminal works including Egypt in Late Antiquity and The Demography of Roman Egypt. His research has transformed our understanding of everyday life in antiquity. 

Suzanne Marchand (Louisiana State University)
Suzanne Marchand is Boyd Professor of European Intellectual History at LSU and a leading scholar of modern European cultural and intellectual history. Her acclaimed books—such as Down from Olympus and German Orientalism in the Age of Empire—explore the reception of antiquity and the history of the humanities. A Guggenheim Fellow and past president of the German Studies Association, Marchand’s current work examines the long afterlife of Herodotus. 

Elizabeth Meyer (University of Virginia; 2026 Biggs Family Resident in Classics)
Elizabeth Meyer, T. Cary Johnson Jr. Professor of History at UVA, specializes in Greek and Roman political and social history, ancient law, and epigraphy. Her influential books include Legitimacy and Law in the Roman World and The Inscriptions of Dodona. Meyer’s research illuminates documentary practices and legal culture in antiquity, bridging material and intellectual history. 

Jonathan Price (Tel Aviv University)
Jonathan Price is the Fred and Helen Lessing Professor of Ancient History at Tel Aviv University. His scholarship spans Greek and Roman historiography, Jewish history under Rome, and epigraphy. Author of Jerusalem under Siege and numerous studies on Josephus and internal conflict in antiquity, Price brings a global perspective to the study of ancient societies and their texts. 

Michael Scott (University of Warwick)
Michael Scott is Professor of Classics and Ancient History and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) at Warwick. A prolific author and broadcaster, Scott has written widely on ancient Greece and Rome, including Delphi: Centre of the Ancient World and Ancient Worlds: An Epic History of East and West. He is well known for his BBC documentaries and his commitment to making the ancient world accessible to all.

Why Attend?

This unique event brings together leading voices in ancient history to explore how the ancient world continues to shape our understanding of culture, politics, and society. Don’t miss the chance to engage with scholars whose work spans continents and millennia.