The Rostovtzeff lecture

Rostovtzeff Introduction Page
Past Rostovtzeff Lectures

Professor Rostovtzeff’s widow, née Sophie M. Kulezycki, bequeathed a generous sum to the Classics Department for the promotion of research in archaeology and ancient history. Part of this fund is used to support the visit of a leading figure in Ancient History each year around Rostovtzeff’s birthday in November. The Rostovtzeff lecture is an important public lecture at Yale in the general field of Ancient History. The lecturer also meets informally with faculty and students during his or her visit to the university.

Pierre Briant, Professor at the College de France, has been named the 4th annual Rostovtzeff lecturer by the Department of Classics. He will be visiting Yale November 10 and 11, 2011 giving the annual lecture on the 10th, and conducting a seminar on the 11th.

November 10–11, 2011

Pierre Briant, the College de France

"Michael Rostovtzeff, Elias J. Bickerman and the 'Hellenization of Asia': from Alexander the Great to World War II."

briantFor event information, see calendar.

Briant is the leading figure in the study of Achaemenid Persian History and has written widely on the Persian empire both from the point of view of Greek and Persian history. He taught in Toulouse for many years before being appointed Professor at the College de France in Paris, where he is the Chair in the History and Civilization of the Persian empire and of the empire of Alexander the Great. He was the Founder of the influential achemenet.net online resource for Persian history and archaeology. He received a doctorate honoris causa from the University of Chicago in 1999 and is the author of ten monographs, including the standard history of the Persian empire, and more than 100 articles.

Rostovtzeff photo

Top photo Michael I. Rostovtzeff