Videos by Matteo Zaccarini
Trailer di presentazione del graphic novel "Trenta" (in lavorazione), fiction storica a fumetti s... more Trailer di presentazione del graphic novel "Trenta" (in lavorazione), fiction storica a fumetti sulla vicenda dei 'Trenta Tiranni' ad Atene, 404-403 a.C.
Teaser trailer of the "Thirty" graphic novel (work in progress), a historical fiction on the 'Thirty Tyrants' of Athens, 404-403 BC.
https://youtu.be/KkPQx1j_oLo 48 views
Papers by Matteo Zaccarini
A multi-disciplinary approach to the preservation of cultural heritage: A case study on the Piazzetta degli Ariani, Ravenna
2013 Digital Heritage International Congress (DigitalHeritage), 2013
ABSTRACT The Interdepartmental Centre for Industrial Research (CIRI) – Building and Construction ... more ABSTRACT The Interdepartmental Centre for Industrial Research (CIRI) – Building and Construction of the University of Bologna is a ‘cross-over’ research board composed of several departments whose scholars come from different disciplines. their aim is to work together, share their know-hows, and dibate issues from different points of view. The pilot project concerns the ‘Square of the Arians’, Ravenna, Italy, suffering from chronic problems of physical and social deterioration, despite the fact that the Arian Baptistery is part of the Unesco World Heritage List. Moving from an analytical historical study of the site and of its sources, a large-scale operational project led to the reconstruction of different diachronic phases of the site through 15 centuries of history and has produced a 3D reconstruction and Virtual Tours for remote and mobile visualization. The results were displayed in July, 2013 by a conference and an open, multimedia exhibition in the Square itself, comprising 3D modelling, videos, interned-based support utilities, etc. Such a project represents a successful and flexible result to be adapted to different cases in the field of the preservation of the Cultural Heritage.
‘Finer than the Acropolis’: Edinburgh, the Parthenon and the Scottish genius
R. Beaton and N. Gaul (eds), The Greek Revolution of 1821. European Contexts, Scottish Connections (Edinburgh Leventis Studies 12), Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 2024
In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an agg... more In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an aggressive policy of acquiring antiquities. The removal of the Parthenon marbles and the proposed reproduction of the temple itself as the National Monument of Scotland, planned to commemorate the Napoleonic Wars, represent two major, interrelated components of this process, driven by a strong sense of competition between Britain and France and, at the same time, between Scotland and England. This paper explores the cultural and ideological process behind the intended reconstruction of the Parthenon in Edinburgh in the early nineteenth century.
‘Finer than the Acropolis’: Edinburgh, the Parthenon and the Scottish genius
R. Beaton and N. Gaul (eds), The Greek Revolution of 1821. European Contexts, Scottish Connections (Edinburgh Leventis Studies 12), Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 2024
In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an agg... more In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an aggressive policy of acquiring antiquities. The removal of the Parthenon marbles and the proposed reproduction of the temple itself as the National Monument of Scotland, planned to commemorate the Napoleonic Wars, represent two major, interrelated components of this process, driven by a strong sense of competition between Britain and France and, at the same time, between Scotland and England. This paper explores the cultural and ideological process behind the intended reconstruction of the Parthenon in Edinburgh in the early nineteenth century.
In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an agg... more In the early nineteenth century, British individuals and institutions successfully pursued an aggressive policy of acquiring antiquities. The removal of the Parthenon marbles and the proposed reproduction of the temple itself as the National Monument of Scotland, planned to commemorate the Napoleonic Wars, represent two major, interrelated components of this process, driven by a strong sense of competition between Britain and France and, at the same time, between Scotland and England. This paper explores the cultural and ideological process behind the intended reconstruction of the Parthenon in Edinburgh in the early nineteenth century.
Klio, Nov 9, 2023
This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in
the Cyropaedia. Xenoph... more This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in
the Cyropaedia. Xenophon’s Cyrus is often regarded by the scholarship as an ideal,
benevolent leader sincerely concerned with virtue, friendship, and honour-related
dynamics. However, it is clear that Cyrus equally resorts to malicious and divisive
means, employing psychological subjugation, fostering mutual rivalry among his
friends, and weakening his subjects. His actions ultimately arouse fear, envy, and
insecurity, as Cyrus displays some of the typical features of a tyrant. Xenophon possibly
meant to show how Cyrus, by successfully balancing different and contrasting
aspects, succeeded in maintaining power no matter the costs by ‘domesticating’ his
subjects.
Ruling through Fear. Cyrus the Great in Xenophon’s Cyropaedia
Klio, 2023
This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in the Cyropaedia. Xenopho... more This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in the Cyropaedia. Xenophon’s Cyrus is often regarded by the scholarship as an ideal, benevolent leader sincerely concerned with virtue, friendship, and honour-related dynamics. However, it is clear that Cyrus equally resorts to malicious and divisive means, employing psychological subjugation, fostering mutual rivalry among his friends, and weakening his subjects. His actions ultimately arouse fear, envy, and insecurity, as Cyrus displays some of the typical features of a tyrant. Xenophon possibly meant to show how Cyrus, by successfully balancing different and contrasting aspects, succeeded in maintaining power no matter the costs by ‘domesticating’ his subjects.
Ruling through Fear. Cyrus the Great in Xenophon’s Cyropaedia
Klio, 2023
This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in
the Cyropaedia. Xenopho... more This paper explores Xenophon’s depiction of Cyrus the Great as a ruler in
the Cyropaedia. Xenophon’s Cyrus is often regarded by the scholarship as an ideal,
benevolent leader sincerely concerned with virtue, friendship, and honour-related
dynamics. However, it is clear that Cyrus equally resorts to malicious and divisive
means, employing psychological subjugation, fostering mutual rivalry among his
friends, and weakening his subjects. His actions ultimately arouse fear, envy, and
insecurity, as Cyrus displays some of the typical features of a tyrant. Xenophon possibly
meant to show how Cyrus, by successfully balancing different and contrasting
aspects, succeeded in maintaining power no matter the costs by ‘domesticating’ his
subjects.
The Classical Quarterly, 2022
Through a detailed analysis of Xenophon's defence against a charge for hybris among the Ten Thous... more Through a detailed analysis of Xenophon's defence against a charge for hybris among the Ten Thousand, this paper discusses violence, reputation and hierarchy in Greek military and social contexts. Contrary to other recent treatments of the episode, the study highlights the centrality of honour/shame dynamics and of desert in establishing and upholding social order, showing that these notions are found consistently in numerous examples as early as Homer. Addressing the apparent lack of strict discipline in Greek armies, the paper concludes that shame and peer pressure had a strong normative power in acknowledging and reconciling personal claims and common interests within a group.
The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, 2022
The most famous polis in ancient Greece, Athens developed complex social, administrative, and pol... more The most famous polis in ancient Greece, Athens developed complex social, administrative, and political structures starting from the Archaic period; it rose to prominence during the fifth century, but was eventually defeated by Sparta. Despite frequent conflicts and financial troubles, during the fourth century the Athenian democracy reached its most developed form. Frequently caught in the struggles between Alexander's successors, Athens was not a protagonist of the Hellenistic period but managed to attract the favor of major external powers, enjoying long-lasting fame as a cultural hub with a glorious past.
Axon, 2020
This Athenian casualty list of the Erechtheis tribe, c. 460-459 BCE, is an important source for o... more This Athenian casualty list of the Erechtheis tribe, c. 460-459 BCE, is an important source for our understanding of the Athenian military effort in the Eastern Mediterranean in the central decades of the 5th century. While it can be safely dated and contextualized on the basis of Thucydides, the inscription highlights the selective and biased narrative provided by the literary sources. Furthermore, along with other similar documents, this list provides valuable information on the rationale and aims of the public celebration of the war dead in Athens, on the identity of the civic body, and on the inclusion of various social classes in the celebration of the polis.
Emotions Through Time: From Antiquity to Byzantium, 2022
This chapter investigates the presentation and construction of anger in the War of Troy, a rework... more This chapter investigates the presentation and construction of anger in the War of Troy, a reworking in vernacular Greek of Benoît de Saint-Maure’s Roman de Troie. Taking my cue from the prominent role of emotions in characterising the protagonists of the work, I show that the War of Troy has its own emotional trajectory, distinct from Benoît’s ‘original’. Anger is particularly relevant because it is both genre-specific (as a feature of epic) and gender-specific (as a male characteristic). I show that the warrior’s anger conforms, in its essentials, to Aristotle’s account of the emotion and at the same time is depicted as a collective experience, forging a community, in Rosenwein’s sense. The anonymous poet skilfully navigates such conventions, by choosing a well-defined vocabulary within the semantic area of cholē or bile, which entails a widespread medical understanding of the bodily basis of anger. The case studies of Achilles and Hector show that rhetoric and characterisation are tightly tied to this semantic choice, as both the discourse of anger and its acting out on the part of the heroes are shaped by its physiology.
Histos, 2019
Review of the volume
Jacoby Online. Brill's New Jacoby - Second Edition, 2020
New edition, translation, and commentary for the BNJ2
THE GREEKS AND THE PERSIAN WAR - (D.C.) Yates States of Memory. The Polis, Panhellenism, and the Persian War. Pp. xx + 337, maps. New York: Oxford University Press, 2019. Cased, £55, US$85. ISBN: 978-0-19-067354-3
The Classical Review, 2021
G. Parmeggiani Eforo di Cuma. Studi di storiografia greca (Studi di Storia 14). Bologna: Pàtron Editore, 2011. Pp. 805. €66. 9788855531108
The Journal of Hellenic Studies, 2014
WAR AND DEMOCRACY IN CLASSICAL ATHENS. (D.M.) Pritchard Athenian Democracy at War. Pp. xxiv + 287, ills. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019. Cased, £75, US$105. ISBN: 978-1-108-42291-8
The Classical Review, 2019
(A.) Chaniotis and (P.) Ducrey Eds Unveiling Emotions II. Emotions in Greece and Rome: Texts, Images, Material Culture (Heidelberger Althistorische Beiträge und Epigraphische Studien 55). Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2013. Pp. 387. €62. 9783515106375
The Journal of Hellenic Studies, 2016
Rivista di Filologia e Istruzione Classica, 2020
This article proposes a new interpretation of the figure of Aristides, the Athenian politician kn... more This article proposes a new interpretation of the figure of Aristides, the Athenian politician known as 'the Just'. The study shows how Aristides' fame was far from undisputed for the whole 5th century. Starting from the 4th century we find more evidence of his iconic attachment to justice: however, his reputation is always context-dependent and inevitably associated to Athens' domination over the Greeks. It is only in distant sources that he becomes a moral paragon. But to his contemporaries, Aristides was never a symbol of virtuous and ideal justice: the notion of distributive justice effectively explains his questionable fame. Questo articolo propone una nuova interpretazione della figura di Aristide, il politico ateniese noto come 'il Giusto'. Lo studio mostra come la fama di Aristide fosse tutt'altro che irreprensibile nel V secolo. Dal IV secolo in poi troviamo tracce più solide del suo iconico collegamento alla giustizia: tuttavia, la sua reputazione è inevitabilmente legata al contesto e associata al dominio di Atene sui Greci. È solo nelle fonti distanti che egli diviene un esempio di moralità. Ma per i propri contemporanei Aristide non fu mai un simbolo di giustizia virtuosa e ideale: il concetto di giustizia distributiva spiega efficacemente la sua discutibile fama.
Axon. Iscrizioni storiche greche, 2020
This Athenian casualty list of the Erechtheis tribe, c. 460-459 BCE, is an important source for o... more This Athenian casualty list of the Erechtheis tribe, c. 460-459 BCE, is an important source for our understanding of the Athenian military effort in the Eastern Mediterranean in the central decades of the 5th century. While it can be safely dated and contextualized on the basis of Thucydides, the inscription highlights the selective and biased narrative provided by the literary sources. Furthermore, along with other similar documents, this list provides valuable information on the rationale and aims of the public celebration of the war dead in Athens, on the identity of the civic body, and on the inclusion of various social classes in the celebration of the polis.
Revue internationale d'Histoire Militaire Ancienne – HiMA, 2019
This paper analyses the fundamental elements of Plutarch's major accounts of duels (monomachies) ... more This paper analyses the fundamental elements of Plutarch's major accounts of duels (monomachies) fought by Greek and Roman characters. It shows how Homeric epic represents the main model for these episodes: the verbal and visual confrontation, the physical size and prowess, the adorned weapons, and the frightening appearance of the combatants, are the most frequently recurring elements, which regularly take precedence over historical plausibility or consistency within Plutarch's corpus. Through a refined reworking, Plutarch imbues the duels with a heroic, dramatic tone which echoes a distant past and meets the literary culture of learned readers.
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Videos by Matteo Zaccarini
Teaser trailer of the "Thirty" graphic novel (work in progress), a historical fiction on the 'Thirty Tyrants' of Athens, 404-403 BC.
https://youtu.be/KkPQx1j_oLo
Papers by Matteo Zaccarini
the Cyropaedia. Xenophon’s Cyrus is often regarded by the scholarship as an ideal,
benevolent leader sincerely concerned with virtue, friendship, and honour-related
dynamics. However, it is clear that Cyrus equally resorts to malicious and divisive
means, employing psychological subjugation, fostering mutual rivalry among his
friends, and weakening his subjects. His actions ultimately arouse fear, envy, and
insecurity, as Cyrus displays some of the typical features of a tyrant. Xenophon possibly
meant to show how Cyrus, by successfully balancing different and contrasting
aspects, succeeded in maintaining power no matter the costs by ‘domesticating’ his
subjects.
the Cyropaedia. Xenophon’s Cyrus is often regarded by the scholarship as an ideal,
benevolent leader sincerely concerned with virtue, friendship, and honour-related
dynamics. However, it is clear that Cyrus equally resorts to malicious and divisive
means, employing psychological subjugation, fostering mutual rivalry among his
friends, and weakening his subjects. His actions ultimately arouse fear, envy, and
insecurity, as Cyrus displays some of the typical features of a tyrant. Xenophon possibly
meant to show how Cyrus, by successfully balancing different and contrasting
aspects, succeeded in maintaining power no matter the costs by ‘domesticating’ his
subjects.