Religious Architecture and Roman Expansion

Religious Architecture and Roman Expansion&&&160;uses architectural terracottas as a lens for examining the changing landscape of central Italy during the period of Roman military expansion, and for asking how local communities reacted to this new political reality.&&&160;It emphasizes the role of local networks and exchange in the creation of communal identity, as well as the power of visual expression in the formulation and promotion of local history.&&&160;Through detailed analyses of temple terracottas, Sophie Crawford-Brown sheds new light on 'Romanization' and colonization processes between the 3rd&&&160;and 1st&&&160;centuries BCE.&&&160; She investigates the interactions between colonies and indigenous communities, asking why conquerors might visually emulate the conquered, and what this can mean for power relations in colonial situations.&&&160;Finally, Crawford-Brown explores the role of objects in creating cultural memory and the intensity of our need for collective history-even when that 'history' has been largely invented.

'In this thoroughly researched and important book, Crawford-Brown addresses one of the most complex questions about one of the most transformative periods in ancient life: how did sociocultural practice change as Rome took control of Italia? In arguing for a multifaceted, un-centered invention of tradition, she lays a new path for the study of sacred sculpture, its creation and experience. A bonus is her success in explaining how terracotta remained a vibrant medium into the empire, despite the allure of marble, by harnessing a look back to both recent and long-distant pasts.' John North Hopkins, New York University

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