A two-day international and interdisciplinary conference on the career and work of Publius Nigidius Figulus (c. 98-45 BCE), a Roman statesman and polymath of remarkable interests and achievements.  As a political conservative, Nigidius opposed Julius Caesar in the Civil War of 49/8 BCE and died in exile.  Being an important agent of what has been called the "cultural revolution" of the first century BCE, he published extensively on Latin grammar, Aristotelian biology, astronomy and astrology, and various forms of divination.  Nigidius is credited with reviving Pythagoreanism at Rome and is described by his contemporary Cicero as "a keen and careful investigator of those matters that seem to have been concealed by nature" and by St. Jerome as a "Pythagorean and magician.”  This conference brings together scholars who work on different aspects of Nigidius in an attempt to arrive at a holistic image of this unusual figure.

This event will take place virtually over Zoom. Register at: https://forms.gle/uX8iVQGQypKCDsfF8

Click here to view the Conference Program.

For further information, contact Katharina Volk at kv2018@columbia.edu

Confirmed speakers:

Giulio Celotto, Virginia Alessandro Garcea, Sorbonne  Phillip Horky, Durham  Duncan MacRae, Berkeley  Daniele Maras, Soprintendenza Archeologia, Rome  Jay Reed, Brown James Rives, UNC, Chapel Hill Philip Thibodeau, Brooklyn College Fabio Tutrone, Palermo Katharina Volk, Columbia