Style and Assemblage in Roman Archaeology: Egypt at Pompeii

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Eva Mol (Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, University of York)

Style and Assemblage in Roman Archaeology

Egypt at Pompeii

Eva Mol (Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, University of York)

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Hardback

Forthcoming
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English

Oxford University Press
28 November 2025

History of art: ancient & classical art; Ancient history: to c 500 CE; Archaeological theory; Egyptian archaeology & Egyptology

Style and Assemblage in Roman Archaeology proposes a rethinking of the way in which objects, styles, concepts, and people relate in archaeological interpretation, using Egyptian and Egyptian-styled objects from the houses of Roman Pompeii as a case study. Integrating anthropological theories, Mol has developed a critical new method termed relational perception to show how we can better incorporate the messy and intuitive processes of style perception and classification in the Roman past, as well as more generally in archaeological research.

The houses of Pompeii yielded many objects that scholars nowadays would label as Egyptian or Egyptianized. They consist of imported and locally produced objects such as figurines, sculptures, furniture, jewellery, mosaics, or wall paintings. The interpretations regarding their presence and meaning have traditionally mostly been drawn without proper contextual analysis or theoretical underpinnings, and even more problematic: the collection and interpretation of artefacts were based on modern scholarly perceptions of what Egypt entails. Mol shows how this particular Western (and colonial) perception and art historical categorization has influenced our idea of Egypt in the Roman world, and how it still affects the interpretation of foreign objects in general. This book examines in detail how 'foreign' objects and styles were integrated in, and shaped, the Roman world and senses of personhood, and serves as an excellent example to illustrate the complexity that should be integral to the processes of archaeological classification and interpretation.

By: Eva Mol (Lecturer in Roman Archaeology Lecturer in Roman Archaeology University of York)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9780198912804
ISBN 10: 0198912803
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 28 November 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , Undergraduate , Further / Higher Education
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Introduction Making an Image: Perception and Matter of Egypt 1: How Things Become Egyptian: Colonizing a Style 2: Relational Perception in Archaeological Research Rethinking Egypt in Pompeian Assemblages 3: Materializations of Egyptian Deities in Domestic Religion 4: Green-Glazed Demons 5: Egypt as Style: 'Foreign' Objects in Pompeii 6: The Style of the Nile and Posthuman Embodiment Bringing Egypt Back Home 7: Ritual Place-Making in the Roman House 8: Egypt for Dinner Conclusion: Relational Perception and Style in Roman Archaeology

Eva Mol is Lecturer in Roman Archaeology at the Department of Archaeology at the University of York. She obtained her PhD at Leiden University, and worked at the University of Chicago, Brown University, and UCL, before coming to York. She is senior editor of Archaeological Dialogues, and is involved in archaeological fieldwork in Italy, Tunisia, and the UK. Her specialisms cover Egypt in Italy, myth and materiality in Mediterranean archaeology, Roman religion and animism, and slow archaeology.