BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

D.C.-Area Archaeology Event

The Washington, D.C.-area Biblical Archaeology Society of Northern Virginia (BASONOVA) will host the lecture “Doctors, Diseases and Deities: Epidemic Crises and Medicine in Ancient Rome” by Sarah Yeomans on January 29, 2017. Not in the D.C. area? The Biblical Archaeology Society offers a wide range of travel/study programs in the United States and across the globe.

On Sunday, January 29, 2017, Sarah Yeomans, Director of Educational Programs at the Biblical Archaeology Society, will deliver the lecture “Doctors, Diseases and Deities: Epidemic Crises and Medicine in Ancient Rome.”

Life in the ancient Roman world could be perilous. War, disease, famine and childbirth are a just a few examples of circumstances that contributed to a much lower average lifespan than that which we enjoy today.

People in antiquity were no less concerned about the prevention and cure of maladies than they are now, and entire cults, sanctuaries and professions dedicated to health dotted the spiritual, physical and professional landscapes of the ancient world.

In her presentation, Yeomans examines a recently excavated, as-yet unpublished archaeological site that has substantially contributed to our understanding of what ancient Romans did to combat disease and injury, as well as evidence for how they responded to one of the most horrifying epidemics the ancient world had ever seen: the Antonine Plague of the 2nd century C.E.

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About the speaker:

Sarah Yeomans is Director of Educational Programs at the Biblical Archaeology Society in Washington, D.C. She is an archaeologist specializing in the Imperial period of the Roman Empire with a particular emphasis on religions and ancient science. Yeomans is a faculty member in the department of religious studies at West Virginia University. In addition, she is pursuing her doctorate at the University of Southern California, where she is a Provost Fellow, and is a Mayers Fellow at the Huntington Library and Museum in Los Angeles. Yeomans holds an M.A. in archaeology from the University of Sheffield, England, and an M.A. in art history from USC. She has conducted archaeological fieldwork in Israel, Italy, Turkey, France and England and has worked on several television and film productions, most recently as an interviewed expert on Fox’s The Nativity: Facts, Fiction and Faith. Her current research involves ancient Roman medical technology and cult, as well as the impact of epidemics on Roman society. She is generally happiest when covered in dirt, roaming archaeological sites somewhere in the Mediterranean region.

The free eBook Life in the Ancient World guides you through craft centers in ancient Jerusalem, family structure across Israel and ancient practices—from dining to makeup—throughout the Mediterranean world.

Related reading in Bible History Daily:

Doctors, Diseases and Deities: Epidemic Crises and Medicine in Ancient Rome
Video lecture featuring Sarah Yeomans

Medicine in the Ancient World by Sarah Yeomans

Ancient Pergamon: City of science … and satan? by Sarah Yeomans

Ancient Cupping in Israel

Justinian Plague Linked to the Black Death

The Cyprian Plague

Epilepsy, Tutankhamun and Monotheism

Heart Disease in Mummies

Prehistoric Parasite Bloomed with Mesopotamian Farming