Literacy in the Roman World

Literacy in the Roman World – Special Supplement # 3 from the Journal of Roman Archaeology – was published in 1991 in response to a famous book by William Harris: Ancient Literacy (hardcover 1989, paperback 1991).

Several scholars were invited by JRA to comment on this book. Eight scholars responded in good time, and their contributions were published together as Special Supplement # 3.

In a short preface, John Humphrey (editor of JRA) explains:

“The contributors were given complete latitude regarding the aspects of the book and of the topic on which they wished to focus, except only that the emphasis was to be Roman rather than Greek or Hellenistic.”

All eight scholars accept Harris’ basic conclusion that the level of literacy in the classical world (ancient Greece and ancient Rome) was never high, but this does not mean that there is nothing to complain about. In what follows I will give a brief presentation of the eight scholars and their contributions:

** Tim Cornell (born 1946) is professor emeritus of ancient history at the University of Manchester and the author of several books, including The Beginnings of Rome (1995). His contribution has the title: “The tyranny of the evidence: a discussion of the possible uses of literacy in Etruria and Latium in the archaic age.”

Harris claims archaic Italy and the Early Roman Republic had almost no writing, and most of it was used for religious affairs (e.g. funerals). It was not used for business or administration. Cornell presents a broad selection of evidence to show that this view is misleading and too pessimistic. In my opinion he is quite convincing.

** Mary Beard (born 1955) is professor of Classics at Cambridge University and the author of several books, including Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town (2008). Her contribution has the title: “Ancient literacy and the function of the written word in Roman religion.”

Harris claims writing was essential to the Christian religion, but only marginal in the pagan Roman religion. Beard presents a broad selection of evidence to show that this view is not always correct. In my opinion she is quite convincing.

** Nicholas Horsfall is honorary professor of classics and ancient history at Durham University and the author of several books, including four commentaries on Virgil’s Aeneid (book 2, 3, 7 & 11, published 2000-2008). His contribution has the title: “Statistics or states of mind?”

Harris claims that ordinary workers were unable to read and write. Horsfall presents a broad selection of evidence to show that this view is too pessimistic. In my opinion he is quite convincing.

** James L. Franklin Jr. is professor of classical studies at Indiana University and the author of several books, including Pompeis Difficile Est (1999, 2001). His contribution has the title: “Literacy and the parietal inscriptions of Pompeii.”

Harris claims literacy in provincial towns was relatively low. Franklin presents a broad selection of the amazing evidence from Pompeii to show that this view is not always correct. In my opinion he is quite convincing.

  

Fig. 1, page 83. CIL IV.2487.

This is a famous Latin epigram. The inscription reads:

"Admiror te paries non cecidisse (ruinis) //

qui tot scriptorum taedia sustineas."

Here is an English translation of the Latin text:

"I admire you, wall, because you have not collapsed into ruins,

even though you are holding up the silly messages of so many poets."

 Fig. 2, page 85. CIL IV.3884.

This is an invitation to watch the gladiator games in the amphitheatre. This message about the games (edictum munerum) was written with beautiful letters by a professional writer Aemilius Celer, who left his name two times: in the middle of the letter C and on the right (next to the main text).

Fig. 3 page 90. CIL IV.8066.

Drawings of two gladiators on a wall in a house. On the left Oceanus, a former slave. The letter L after his name stands for "libertus." He won 13 times (XIII). On the right Aracintus, also a former slave, who won four times (IIII).

 Fig. 4, page 94. CIL IV.4755.

The architect Cresces (Crescens) left his name and title on the wall of a house, working them into the shape of a boat by extending some of the letters downward to form oars and tracing the lower bend of the final S back under the whole inscription to suggest a keel. The upward extension of the first T of the word "architectus" to form a mast completed the effect.

** Mireille Corbier is director of research at the Paris-based CNRS and the author of several books, including Donner a voir, Donner a lire: Memoire et communication dans la Rome ancienne (2006). Her contribution (published in French) has the title: “L’écriture en quête de lecteurs.”

Harris insists we must have evidence for everything. If there is no surviving evidence for a school in a certain town, it becomes an argument to say there was no school in this town. Corbier points out that this method can be dangerous: what if there was a school? What if the evidence had disappeared? A basic archaeological dictum says: absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. The method used by Harris may have led him to conclusions which are too pessimistic.

[This chapter includes a reference to the monument erected for Titus Flavius Secundus at Cillium (in present-day Tunisia). For more information about this monument, please turn to Jon Davies, Death, Burial and Rebirth in the Religions of Antiquity (1999) pp. 150-152 (the monument) & 221-224 (the Latin inscription).]

** Alan K. Bowman (born 1944) is professor emeritus of ancient history at Oxford University and the author of several books, including Life and Letters on the Roman Frontier (first edition 1994, second edition 1998, third edition 2003). His contribution has the title: “Literacy in the Roman Empire: mass and mode.”

Harris claims literacy among ordinary soldiers was limited. Bowman presents a broad selection of the amazing evidence from Vindolanda - the Roman fort near Hadrian’s Wall - to show that this view is not always correct. In my opinion he is quite convincing.

** Keith Hopkins (1934-2004) was professor of ancient history at Cambridge University and the author of several books, including A world Full of Gods (1999). His contribution has the title: “Conquest by book.”

Harris claims the average level of literacy was low in the ancient world. Hopkins presents a broad selection of evidence from Roman Egypt to show that this minimalist view could be too pessimistic. In my opinion he is quite convincing.

** Ann Ellis Hanson is a classical scholar at Yale University and the author of several articles (but not a single book). Her contribution has the title: “Ancient illiteracy.”

This contribution presents an interesting selection of evidence from Roman Egypt, but the purpose is not to challenge Harris’ view. Of the eight scholars, who responded to the invitation from JRA, Hanson is the only one who does not criticize or question any part or aspect of Harris’ book.

Fig. 2, page 198.

This ancient papyrus from Egypt (P. Geneva. inv. 213) is a declaration of death. According to
Ann Hanson, the purpose of the document is "to relieve relatives of the deceased from further
attemps to collect the tax and from harassment by officials" (page 197).

Literacy in the Roman World is an interesting collection about an important topic. I like it, but I can only give it four stars. If I like it so much, why give it only four stars? Because there is no bibliography, no index, and very few illustrations.

PS # 1. Some Romano-British curses (mentioned by Mary Beard) and some Vindolanda Tablets (mentioned by Alan K. Bowman) are now available online. See the website of CSAD: Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents.

PS # 2. In 2002 JRA published another volume about this topic: Becoming Roman, Writing Latin? Literacy and Epigraphy in the Roman West, Special Supplement # 48, edited by Alison E. Cooley.

PS. # 3. For more information about this topic see Literacy and Power in the Ancient World edited by Alan K. Bowman and Greg Woolf (Cambridge University Press, hardcover 1994, paperback 1996).

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Literacy in the Roman World,

The Journal of Roman Archaeology,

Special Supplement # 3, 1991, 198 pages

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