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2015 NC State Graduate Student History Conference

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May 5, 2015

The Economy of Petra from the First Century BC through the Fourth Century AD: An Analysis of the Perfume Industry

This thesis is an attempt to reconstruct the economy of Petra during the third century AD, a period that can be described as a “miniature dark age.” This analysis is made through the lens of a particular type of ceramic vessel, the Nabataean piriform unguentarium or perfume bottle. The Nabataean Kingdom (mostly within what is…

May 4, 2015

In Transition: The United States and South Africa, 1976-1977

The South African government’s 19 October 1977 crackdown on dissent sent shockwaves throughout the country. The “October crackdown” also convinced many members of the United Nations Security Council that it was time to impose mandatory sanctions on South Africa. Jimmy Carter, however, ordered the USUN ambassador to veto sanctions banning trade, investment and nuclear cooperation…

May 4, 2015

Consent and Coercion in the Central Piedmont of North Carolina during the Civil War Era

In recent years the study of Civil War loyalty has gained considerable scholarly attention. Most of these studies demonstrate that many in the North and South struggled to balance conflicting loyalties between nation, state, family, religion, and self-interest throughout the war. This thesis finds that while all of these factors contributed to dissent, an underlying…

Apr 28, 2015

The Warrior’s Banquet: Syssitia in Ancient Crete

Although the island of Crete is most famously known today as the homeland of the Minoan civilization of the second millennium BCE, during the Classical and Hellenistic periods in Greece (ca. 480 – 67 BCE), the island was famous in the Greek world as the homeland of a large number of independent poleis (Greek city-states).…

Apr 28, 2015

Jesica Jayd Lewis – Thesis Distinction

Jesica Jayd Lewis was awarded “distinction” for her thesis entitled, “The Warrior’s Banquet: Syssitia in Ancient Crete.” Using epigraphic and archaeological evidence to analyze literary portrayals of pre-Roman Crete, and using the Cretan common-meal institution of syssitia as a case study, Jayd’s thesis argues that civic communal dining was a fundamental institution of the ancient Greek communities…

Apr 23, 2015

Public History M.A. Student Wins National Award

Samantha Vandermeade, a second-year graduate student in Public History, won the James Madison Award for Excellency in Historical Scholarship for her article entitled, “Fort Lipstick and the Making of June Cleaver in American Advertising, 1941-1961.” Her article will be published in vol. 12 of the Madison Historical Review later this spring. Read Sam’s article in MHR‘s…

Apr 21, 2015

Evidence that the Majority of Medieval English Jews were not Moneylenders

The collective Western mind still today erroneously sees “the Jews” of medieval England as moneylenders. It is generally accepted that the Jews functioned to create a more liquid economy and to provide the crown with much needed financial support. However, while it is true that a select handful of Jews did operate as professional moneylenders,…

Apr 20, 2015

Motivation, Mechanics and Magnitude: A Study of Glass Recycling in the Roman Empire

The topic of Roman glass recycling is not often discussed in scholarly literature. Knowledge of this subject, however, is integral to our understanding of the Roman glass industry and the ancient economy more generally. Evidence for Roman glass recycling comes from three main sources: ancient literary references, archaeological remains, and chemical composition studies. All three…

Apr 15, 2015

History Weekend Asks: Climate Science — Whom Do You Trust?

NC State's Department of History plays a critical role in the discussion of climate change. Join us for History Weekend, featuring Harvard professor Naomi Oreskes, who will give a historian's perspective in her address, "Climate Science: Whom Do You Trust?"

Apr 2, 2015

2015 NC State Graduate Student History Conference

Graduate students from across the United States joined NC State University to present research at the 11th Annual Graduate Student History Conference on March 28, 2015. Sponsored by the History Graduate Student Association and the History Department at NC State, this year’s conference featured fourteen panels on diverse fields in history, including the Cold War,…