News & Events Amherst College Classics Students to Discuss Roman Artifacts at Mead Art Museum April 21

April 2, 2009
Contact: Karen Cardinal
Accounting, Web and Marketing Manager, Mead Art Museum
413/542-2551

AMHERST, Mass.—On Tuesday, April 21, at 4:30 p.m., at the Mead Art Museum, Luca Grillo, professor of classics at Amherst College, and his students will present their research on a variety of ancient Roman objects in the Mead’s collection. Organized as part of Grillo’s class “Life in Ancient Rome,” this event is free and open to all.

Grillo’s course is dedicated to the daily life, occupations and political situation of the peoples of ancient Rome, and he and his students used much literary and archaeological evidence as the basis for their inquiry, including the Mead’s many rich and under-studied holdings in the areas of religious sculpture, jewelry, portraits, household objects and coins. Taken together, the fascinating artifacts represent a wide spectrum of their original owners’ multi-faceted lives. The students will bring these objects to life as they reveal their function and long-lost context.

“Professor Grillo has taken full advantage of what the Mead has to offer the Amherst College faculty,” said Elizabeth Barker, director of the Mead. “We’re thrilled that he and his students are sharing their newfound knowledge with the museum and the greater public. His successful curricular use of our collections demonstrates well that the Mead is an essential part of Amherst’s academic life—and the life of the greater Amherst community.”

A complete schedule of museum events is posted on the Mead’s Web site, www.amherst.edu/museums/mead/programs.

The Mead Art Museum houses the art collection of Amherst College, totaling more than 16,000 works. An accredited member of the American Association of Museums, the Mead participates in Museums10, a regional cultural collaboration. During the academic term, the museum is open Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays 9 a.m. to midnight and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For more information, please visit the museum’s Web site, www.amherst/museums/mead, or call 413/542-2335.