Le statue di marte e venere nel tempio di marte ultore sul foro di augusto 1

This paper explores the question of whether any circumstances, events or activities can be identified that may have made Cicero feel that he and / or other people were experiencing a moment or period of happiness in their private or public lives. By reviewing meaningful excerpts from a variety of Ciceronian works, this contribution presents examples of possible conditions and instances of happiness in Cicero's life (as far as it is possible to discover the feelings of an individual exclusively on the basis of their writings to other people). While Cicero hardly ever mentions preconditions for his own ‘happiness’ or states explicitly that he is ‘happy’, it can be inferred that he took pleasure in a range of situations that are generally regarded as blessings for human beings, such as having a family or a comfortable home. His special intellectual capability and his political career presented Cicero with further possibilities of winning success and satisfaction. Yet Cicero's feelings of happiness in all respects seem to have a basic component oriented towards community. Because Cicero's personal life is so intertwined with his public life and he has also considered the issue philosophically, his emotional disposition in ‘normal’ and ‘extraordinary’ moments is of a particular quality: he was able to derive joy from beliefs such as that he had saved the Republic, beyond the ordinary pleasures of all human beings such as conversations with good friends.     

Acqua minerale di Sangemini: the Italian mineral water industry finds a place at the table

Abstract

Water is an important part of most Italian meals, and Italians are amongst the largest consumers of bottled mineral water in Europe. This article looks at the development of the mineral water industry in Italy from the nineteenth century to present by focusing on the case of Sangemini mineral water from Umbria, Italy. In particular, this article looks at how medical findings became part of a popular hygiene and health discourse that was central to developing a market for mineral water in Italy. Contrary to other international markets, bottled mineral water is still consumed in Italy for its health and nutritional benefits today.     

"Del grasso di Lorenzo un'ampolletta": Relics and Representations in the Quest for Forgiveness in Renaissance Rome

Giuliano Dati's poem Gli stazoni & perdonanze che sono la Quaresima e l'Octava della Pasqua di Resurrexo in Roma che sono a cinquantaquattro chiese (1492–1493) is a guide to the stations and indulgences of Rome. The first part of the paper examines relics and guides and their role in lay piety. The second part looks at the way in which the Confraternity of the Gonfalone used some of the key Holy Week stations, and subsequently abandoned them in 1490 for the Colosseum where it performed its Easter plays, composed by the same Giuliano Dati and others.     

Breccia verde di Sparta,an elusive decorative stone used in antiquity

Breccia verde di Sparta is the traditional name given by the Roman marmorarii of the 19th century to a brecciated volcanic rock whose unknown precise provenance has been determined here for the first time through exploration of the broader area of Psefí (south of Krokees, province of Sparta, Peloponnese, Greece). This location was well known in antiquity and in modern times for having been exploited by the Romans for an important green porphyry named lapis lacedaemonius, nowadays also known as porfido verde antico. This breccia has been seldom used in Roman times for opera sectilia; in contrast, it appears more frequently reused in medieval floors; it is also frequently present in historical lithotecs formed in the 19th and 20th centuries. To fully characterise it and determine its relationships with green porphyry, breccia verde di Sparta samples from the newly discovered source have been thoroughly studied minero-petrographically and geochemically, and their complex genesis has been reconstructed. It appears that after extrusion the original brecciated basaltic andesite underwent extensive hydrothermal low-grade metamorphism, with a complete alteration of the igneous assemblage and minerals that preserved only part of the clinopyroxene phenocrysts. Alteration was accompanied by crystallisation of abundant epidote and chlorite, which imparted its predominant green colour to the rock. These breccias intruded in the lithoclases of the porphyry.     

A colpi di cuore. Storie del sessantotto

This article attempts to tackle the problem of how a colonial culture that was elaborated through the written word may have impacted on an Italian society that was significantly more ‘backward’ than its western European counterparts. The Prima Guerra d'Africa (1885-96) has often been seen as a military campaign desired exclusively by an isolated Italian government in a society that was incapable of using the occasion to develop cultural themes that impacted on the desires and aspirations of the ‘real’ Italy. This supposed societal dysfunction meant that Italy failed to create a ‘culture of imperialism’ in the years of the Scramble for Africa in a way that has now come to be considered of such central importance for the histories of France, Britain or even Germany.

Through an analysis of the role played by primary schools in Italian culture in these years, this article attempts to reverse this view, arguing that even taking into consideration Italy's ‘backwardness’ there was not only a great awareness of what Italy was supposedly doing in Africa but also a serious attempt to load the events that occured there with a meaning that had a much more intimate relationship with Italy's population. Although defeat in Africa meant a major setback in this process, imperialism as a cultural phenomenon continued to be of fundamental importance to the progress of nation building and the development of nationalism in Italy and, Finaldi argues, it should therefore be assigned a place in Italian culture that is much more on a par to that which culture and imperialism are deemed to have held for other European nation-states.     

Comments on Alex de Waal's ‘Re-assessment of Entitlement Theory in the Light of Recent Famines in Africa’

Alex de Waal attempts to build his account of recent famines in Africa (de Waal, 1990) on the foundations of a critique of Amartya Sen's entitlement theory - henceforth, Entitlement Theory (ET). The core of the paper is thus composed of two parts - one critical and the other constructive. The constructive part, or at least the motivation behind it, is eminently useful, but the critical part, I am afraid, is rather off the mark. I shall argue that not only are his criticisms hard to accept, they are also not necessary for building his constructive part.     

Scienze credenze occulte livelli di cultura

The essay intends to find out why although many studies have focused on the three-year revolutionary period in Italy from 1796–1799, the Cisalpine Republic has never been studied in the same detail as the Neapolitan Republic. In reconstructing these events, the two republics are regularly presented in opposing terms. The Cisalpine Republic is portrayed as exemplifying subordination to the military protectorate and politics of France, while the Neapolitan Republic is put forward as the shining example of revolutionary resistance within Italy at the time. The essay intends to underline why the nineteenth and the twentieth century historiography has negatively and prejudicially judged the political experience of the Cisalpine Republic.     

Public vices,private remedies in nineteenth-century Italy: Giulia Falletti di Barolo Colbert and Le Forzate

In nineteenth-century Italy notions of femininity and, no less, masculinity influenced the ways in which crime was viewed. The result was that criminality was perceived, judged and explained differently according to the sex of the offender. At every stage in the penal process, cultural understandings of what women were like, and how they ought to behave, operated to define the appropriate response to their misconduct and to structure their punishment. These 'gendered' aspects of criminal justice have influenced the practices of prosecution and sentencing, and, most clearly of all, the special regimes and attitudes adopted in women's prisons: throughout the century male prison regimes emphasized discipline and deterrence, while female prisons developed individualized programmes of 'moral regeneration'. This article deals with the history of the first prison destined exclusively for women - which was opened in Turin in 1821 - with the circumstances which brought about its creation as well as with its organizational structure and its aims. Its promoter - both in money and in spirit - was a woman, named Giulia Falletti di Barolo Colbert. Giving special consideration to the ideals of its foundress, this article examines how nineteenth-century perceptions of the female criminal differentiated the nature and purpose of penal servitude for women.     

Craniofacial trauma in the Prehispanic Canary Islands

The current project is a study of craniofacial trauma in a large sample (n = 896) of Prehispanic Canary Islanders (PCIs). The possible causes and social implications of the trauma found are considered, with reference to archaeological and historical data. Variables include the island, period and ecology, the sex and age of the individuals, the distribution of lesions across the skull (by side and by individual bone) and ante‐mortem tooth loss. The results show a fairly high trauma rate (16%), a low prevalence of peri‐mortem trauma (3.8% of all lesions), higher prevalence of trauma in males than in females (25% vs. 13% of all individuals), more cranial than facial lesions (8.9% vs. 3.5% of all elements) and more lesions on the left side of the skull (6.7% vs. 4.5% of all elements) which suggests that the lesions were sustained through intentional rather than accidental agency. There was no correspondence between trauma prevalence and ecology. The archaeological and historical data support the assertion that the lesions may be the result of skirmishing between groups, using weapons such as slingshots, stones and staves. The presence of edged‐weapon lesions on some individuals suggests that these may have been the victims of contact‐period European groups. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ceramic findings from the archaeological site at Aiano-Torraccia di Chiusi (Siena,Italy): a multi-analytical approach

In 2005, the remains of a Roman villa, dating from the early fourth to the sixth centuries ad, were discovered at the archaeological site of Aiano-Torraccia di Chiusi (Siena, Italy). After being abandoned in the sixth century ad, the complex was occupied by a group of Ostrogothic or Lombardic artisans in the period between the sixth and the seventh centuries ad. Many ceramic remains (coarse pottery and red slip ceramics) from the first to the seventh centuries ad have been discovered on this archaeological site. These findings have been analysed using different analytical techniques (optical microscopy (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), and micro-Raman in order to characterize the ceramic body, the coating, the temper, and to investigate the compositional relationship between the different kinds of ceramics. The use of different techniques on the same samples yielded information at different scales. OM and SEM-EDS yielded interesting information on the coarse pottery: the analyses performed on some minerals and rock fragments suggest that stone tesserae from the Roman villa (in the form of numerous marble fragments) were used in the production of this pottery. Bulk analyses (XRD and XRF) and subsequent micro-analyses (SEM-EDS, ATR-FTIR, and micro-Raman) of the red slip pottery revealed clear chemical, mineralogical and textural differences: some ceramics (the TCC sample group) typically have a Fe-enriched coating while others (the INGR sample group) present a clear difference in grain size but no chemical or mineralogical differences between the ceramic body and the coating.     

Assessment of fractures in some columns inside the crypt of the Cattedrale di Otranto using integrated geophysical methods

We investigate the problem of internal fracturing of the columns of a building of cultural importance (the Crypt of the “Cattedrale di Otranto”, Apulia, Italy), using a multi-disciplinary approach, integrating different non-destructive techniques (Microclimatic and Geophysical). In fact historic buildings, over centuries, may accumulate a high concentration of water and/or moisture that increases significantly the deterioration rate, diminishing the mechanical resistance.     

试论宋神宗时期的州县省废

撤废州县政区建制是熙丰变法的重要内容之一。自熙宁元年至九年,尤其是王安石当政期间,一批户少役繁的州县被撤销。虽在宋神宗主持新政时期,有部分已废州县得到复建,但整个宋神宗时期仍有22个州、116个县被撤。省废州县,裁官减役,省费节流,对缓解当时冗官冗费和减轻百姓的负担,具有重要意义。这项务实的改革,遇到的阻力不大,在元祐初大部分得以幸存。     

La ragion di Stato in biblioteca

The Fondazione Luigi Firpo, based in Turin, houses the library collected by Luigi Firpo (1915–1989), one of the most distinguished European historians of early modern political thought. The collection includes around 6 000 16^th, 17^th and 18^th century books, among which one can find almost all European literature on the reason of State. The Foundation organizes international conferences, grants scholarships and publishes the research of young scholars. Therefore it has established itself as one of the leading research centres on political thought and on early modern and modern history.     

Il Mito dello Stato Moderno Nella Fortuna della Ragion di Stato

Treaties on the reason of State have made their contribution in making obsolete the ideal model of the platonic state, the naturalistic Aristotelian model and the theological natural law model of the “respublica christiana”. Together with Machiavellism, the doctrine of reason of State has firmly established the modern distinction of politics and morals and has created an authentic pedagogy of the art of government. It represents an intrinsic element of the myth of the modern State, with characters of universality functioning in the social and individual disciplining — despite the limits and the contradictions which even the form of political myth is incapable of concealing: crisis and war (civil and among nations).     

谈偃师焦村魏石经《尚书·无逸》残石

1978年,洛阳汉魏太学遗址东南约18公里的偃师焦村之野发现一块刻有古文、小篆、隶书三体之曹魏正始石经残石,6行19字,经文“家……勤劳……不则……昔在……宁……外”,为《尚书·无逸》篇开首,复原后知为正始石经第廿石中心偏左部位残石。     

The “Guerriero di Castiglione”: reconstructing missing elements with integrated non-destructive 3D modelling techniques

Accurately measuring an artefact of historical significance generally results in being able to extract information which is useful for evaluating what remains of the materials from a distant time. This allows scholars arrive at an exhaustive historical reading of the same artefact.Compared to the traditional measuring techniques, which can often be imprecise and complicated, 3D laser scanners measure the morphological characteristics of an artefact with extreme accuracy. Despite this, it is not always possible to choose the most appropriate sensors due to the geometric peculiarities, or indeed, the size of the object.The present work deals with two non-destructive analyses of an ancient stone sculpture, which for its morphology and size was scarcely compatible with the technical characteristics of either of the scanners used. Both scanners operate on the same technical principal, but are quite different from each other in terms of scale and precision. For these reasons, a complex 3D model (extremely appropriate given the original artefact) was draw out through a synergy of the two techniques.The virtual particularities of the model allowed it to be manipulated with the appropriate software. In fact, on the basis of qualitative parameters devised by researchers, it proved possible to reproduce the artefact’s geometric form, both virtually and in the form of physical models, obtained through non-conventional restoration methods (R.P. techniques).It has also been possible to verify the state of degradation of the surface of the stone caused by the traditional methods of applying cataloguing or storage information to it.Finally, the results achieved provide opportunities for further research on certain geometrical characteristics of the stone which, as highlighted by the elaboration on the virtual model, seem to be traceable to non-manual, perhaps mechanical, processes. Therefore, the historical considerations which derive from this fact call certain scholars into play.     

新罗北界与唐朝辽东

统一新罗并合了朝鲜半岛上旧属三韩的地域,没有也无意于北上占据本非三韩的高句丽故地。有唐一代,辽东即鸭绿江南北的高句丽故地主体仍然属于中原王朝,渤海国仅据有一部分高句丽旧地。所谓“统一新罗与渤海国的相互敌对很像一个被分割国家的南北两部分”这样的说法,显然是对历史的误解。     

The Karo Batak population of Boven Deli (Sumatra) 1894–1914

Neumann gives the results of his census of Boven Deli in 1914 (13,000 inhabitants), comparing part of it to two earlier but smaller censuses by himself (1904) and by his predecessor, Wijngaarden (1894). In this twenty‐year period, the area's population apparently doubled. Neumann suggests that the major part of the increase happened before 1904, when, after the annexation of the Karo plateau, the government clamped down on migration. He determined that the average family size in 1914 was 4.21 persons.