Event

Speaker: Sheila Ager, Professor and Dean of Arts, University of Waterloo

Hyde Lecture: "Power and Precarity: Murdering Royal Women in the Hellenistic Age"

Abstract: The dynastic history of the new kingdoms that sprang up in the Mediterranean and the Near East in the wake of Alexander the Great’s death presents a picture of intrigue as convoluted, as bloody, and as emotionally appalling as anything seen in Game of Thrones. In spite of all the violence and mayhem of George Martin’s spectacular epic, the rate of intra-dynastic murder in Westeros and Essos actually pales next to the saga of the Hellenistic kingdoms. Particularly interesting is the high murder rate of royal women. This paper explores the phenomenon of murdering royal women in the Hellenistic era, addressing the possible reasons as well as the critical methodological issues.

Every spring, the Graduate Group in Ancient History at Penn hosts a week-long visit by a distinguished ancient historian, made possible by a gift by Walter Woodburn Hyde (1870-1966, Professor of Greek and Ancient History at Penn 1910-1940). During their stay, the Hyde Lecturers teach several graduate seminars, meet with graduate students individually and in smaller groups, and deliver the formal Hyde Lecture. 

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