The Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies (The Roman Society) was founded in 1910 as the sister society to the

Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies, known as the Hellenic Society, was founded in 1879 to advance the study of Greek language, literature, history, art and archaeology in the Ancient, Byzantine and Modern periods. The first Presid ...

. The Society is the leading organisation in the United Kingdom for those interested in the study of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

. Its scope covers

Roman history The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced ma ...

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

and

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

History of the society

The society was founded at a public meeting in 1910, chaired by

Frederic Kenyon Sir Frederic George Kenyon (15 January 1863 – 23 August 1952) was a British palaeographer and biblical and classical scholar. He held a series of posts at the British Museum from 1889 to 1931. He was also the president of the British Academy fr ...

, Director of the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, and sponsored by

Percy Gardner Percy Gardner, (24 November 184617 July 1937) was an English classical archaeologist and numismatist. He was Disney Professor of Archaeology at the University of Cambridge from 1879 to 1887. He was Lincoln Professor of Classical Archaeology and A ...

, George Macmillan, John Penoyre,

Francis Haverfield Francis John Haverfield, (8 November 1860 at Shipston-on-Stour – 1 October 1919) was an English ancient historian, archaeologist, and academic. From 1907 to 1919 he held the Camden Professorship of Ancient History at the University of Oxford ...

, J. S. Reid, A. H. Smith, G. F. Hill , and G. H. Hallam. The Society's Memorandum and Articles of Association described its major aims as "...to promote Roman studies by creating a library, publishing a journal, and supporting the

British School at Rome The British School at Rome (BSR) is an interdisciplinary research centre supporting the arts, humanities and architecture. History The British School at Rome (BSR) was established in 1901 and granted a UK Royal Charter in 1912. Its mission is " ...

." The first issue of the ''Journal of Roman Studies'' was published in 1911. Early contributors included

Eugénie Strong Eugénie is the French version of the female given name Eugenia. Eugénie or Eugenie may refer to: People * Eugénie de Montijo (1826–1920), 9th Countess de Teba; later Empress Eugénie, Empress Consort to Napoléon III * * Princess Eugenie ...

, Albert Van Buren, Elizabeth Van Buren and G. L. Cheesman. Margerie Taylor oversaw the Society from Oxford as secretary from 1923 until 1954, subsequently serving as Honorary Secretary and Editor of ''JRS.'' The society celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1960, marked in part by the major exhibition on Art in Roman Britain at

Goldsmiths' Hall Goldsmiths' Hall is a Grade I listed building at the junction of Foster Lane and Gresham Street in the City of London. It has served as an assay office and the headquarters of London's goldsmith guild, the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, one o ...

, London, accompanied by a catalogue by

Jocelyn Toynbee Jocelyn Mary Catherine Toynbee, (3 March 1897 – 31 December 1985) was an English archaeologist and art historian. "In the mid-twentieth century she was the leading British scholar in Roman artistic studies and one of the recognized authoriti ...

. In 1966 a sub-committee was established to consider starting a second journal. The first issue of ''Britannia'' was published in 1970, edited by

Sheppard Frere Sheppard Sunderland Frere, CBE, FSA, FBA (23 August 1916 – 26 February 2015) was a British historian and archaeologist who studied the Roman Empire. He was a fellow at All Souls College, Oxford. Biography The son of Noel Gray Frere, of the ...

Work of the society

The society produces two annual publications, the ''Journal of Roman Studies'', which contains articles and book reviews dealing with the Roman world in general, and ''Britannia'', which has articles and reviews specifically on

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered was ...

. The society also publishes the ''Britannia Monograph Series'', from 1981, and the ''JRS Monograph Series'', from 1982. A library is maintained jointly with the Hellenic Society and in conjunction with the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

Institute of Classical Studies The Institute of Classical Studies is a research institution associated with the University of London and a member of the School of Advanced Study. The institute is a national and international research institute in the languages, literature, his ...

with over 110,000 volumes and 600 current periodicals. The Joint Library was built in-part through review copies from ''JRS'' and ''

Britannia Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Great ...

''. Grants of the society include: grants for

summer schools Summer is the hottest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, the earliest sunrise and latest sunset occurs, daylight hours are longest and dark hours are shortest, with ...

, archaeology grants (through excavation grants and a biennial conference) and grants for schools for teaching about the

Roman world The culture of ancient Rome existed throughout the almost 1200-year history of the civilization of Ancient Rome. The term refers to the culture of the Roman Republic, later the Roman Empire, which at its peak covered an area from present-day Lo ...

. There is a programme of public lectures in London, and others outside London arranged with local branches of the

Classical Association The Classical Association is a British learned society in the field of classics, aimed at developing classical study and promoting its importance in education. Constitution The association was founded on 19 December 1903, and its objects are def ...

List of presidents

The following persons are or have been president of the society:Presidents of the Roman Society 1910–2010 are listed in C. Stray, "'Patriots and Professors': A Century of Roman Studies".

References

External links

Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies ''Journal of Roman Studies'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roman Society, The Ancient Roman studies Learned societies of the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1910 1910 establishments in the United Kingdom Archaeological organizations Publications established in 1911 Annual journals English-language journals History journals Cambridge University Press academic journals