Writing on the Wall - Graffiti and the Forgotten Jews of Antiquity (Hardcover)

What ancient graffiti reveals about the everyday lives of Jews in the Greek and Roman world Few direct clues exist to the everyday lives and beliefs of ordinary Jews in antiquity. Prevailing perspectives on ancient Jewish life have been shaped largely by the voices of intellectual and social elites, preserved in the writings of Philo and Josephus and the rabbinic texts of the Mishnah and Talmud. Commissioned art, architecture, and formal inscriptions displayed on tombs and synagogues equally reflect the sensibilities of their influential patrons. The perspectives and sentiments of nonelite Jews, by contrast, have mostly disappeared from the historical record. Focusing on these forgotten Jews of antiquity, Writing on the Wall takes an unprecedented look at the vernacular inscriptions and drawings they left behind and sheds new light on the richness of their quotidian lives. Just like their neighbors throughout the eastern and southern Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, Arabia, and Egypt, ancient Jews scribbled and drew graffiti everyplace--in and around markets, hippodromes, theaters, pagan temples, open cliffs, sanctuaries, and even inside burial caves and synagogues. Karen Stern reveals what these markings tell us about the men and women who made them, people whose lives, beliefs, and behaviors eluded commemoration in grand literary and architectural works. Making compelling analogies with modern graffiti practices, she documents the overlooked connections between Jews and their neighbors, showing how popular Jewish practices of prayer, mortuary commemoration, commerce, and civic engagement regularly crossed ethnic and religious boundaries. Illustrated throughout with examples of ancient graffiti, Writing on the Wall provides a tantalizingly intimate glimpse into the cultural worlds of forgotten populations living at the crossroads of Judaism, Christianity, paganism, and earliest Islam.

General

Imprint:	Princeton University Press
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	June 2018
First published:	2018
Authors:	Karen B. Stern
Dimensions:	235 x 155 x 26mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover - Trade binding
Pages:	312
ISBN-13:	978-0-691-16133-4
Categories:	Books > Arts & Architecture > History of art / art & design styles > BC to 500 CE, Ancient & classical world Books > Arts & Architecture > Art forms, treatments & subjects > Other graphic art forms > Graffiti Books > Humanities > History > World history > BCE to 500 CE Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Ethnic studies > Jewish studies Books > History > World history > BCE to 500 CE
LSN:	0-691-16133-X
Barcode:	9780691161334

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!