Herodotus’ Egyptian logos and its afterlife - 06/04/2018, St. Andrews (Scotland)

Both Herodotus and ancient Egypt were major concerns in the eighteenth century, a period in which classicists, ‘orientalists,’ and biblical scholars were yet to be fully separated from one another. Indeed, Book 2, as the oldest and most extensive account of things Egyptian available to Europeans, appealed strongly especially to Protestant scholars eager to clarify and document the historical settings for the Old Testament. At the same time, Masons and free-thinkers also looked to Egypt, and especially to Herodotus’ accounts, to understand the universal origins of myths and rituals; with the rise of more Graecophilic histories, Herodotus’ linkages between Egypt and Greece became a subject of increasing controversy. Finally, travellers and treasure-hunters seeking admission into this still hostile province of the Ottoman Empire, too, turned to ‘the father of history’ as their guide, and proceeded to vigorously ‘fact check’ his reports. This lecture will discuss the many uses of Herodotus’ Egypt in the age of

Enlightenment and the many battles over his credibility that helped to define so many of the scholarly principles we still practice today.

Those attending the workshop are encouraged to refamiliarize themselves with Herodotus Book 2 in advance. Passages that are likely to be the particular focus of discussion include:

2.19-34 (esp. 24-7), 2.40, 2.43-5, 2.49-53, 2.104, 2.120 (cf. Genesis 6-8 & 18-19), 2.141.2 (cf. 2 Kings 18:17, 2 Chron. 32:9), 2.145-6, 2.159 (cf. 2 Chron. 35:20-4 & 2 Reg. 23:29), 2.161-9 (cf. Jeremiah 44:29-30)

FECHA /DATE/ DATA: 09/04/2018

LUGAR/LOCATION/LUOGO: Hebdomadar’s Room. Quad of St. Salvator’s College, University of St. Andrews (St. Andrews, Scotland)

ORGANIZADOR/ORGANIZER/ORGANIZZATORE: Thomas Harrison

INFO: tehh@st-andrews.ac.uk

INSCRIPCIÓN/REGISTRATION/REGISTRAZIONE: gratis/free/gratuito

PROGRAMA/PROGRAM/PROGRAMMA:

9.30 Anthony Ellis (Bern)

‘Written in Accordance with God’s Plan: Reading Herodotus’ Account of Egypt in the Reformation’

10.15 Andreas Schwab (Munich)

‘The variety of religion in Herodotus' Egypt’

11 Coffee

11. 30 Ben Earley (Free Univ., Berlin)

‘Herodotus in the history of Geography: a nineteenth-century view'

12.15 Jordan Bayley (Newcastle)

‘Dining on the Histories’

13.00 Lunch

13.30 Lucy Quine (Liverpool)

‘“The golden words of Herodotus”: Histories 2.104.2 in African- American Reception.’

14.15

Tom Harrison (St Andrews)

‘Lying priests’

15.00 Tea

4.05 pm (in Swallowgate 11 or School III, depending on expected numbers)