On Season 2, Episode 5 of the Peopling the Past podcast, we are joined by Dr. Hilary Becker, an assistant professor of classics at Binghamton University, where she works on Etruscan and Roman art and archaeology, specifically the ancient Roman economy and the pigment trade. She is also an archaeologist and, most recently, she has served as co-principal investigator in the Area Sacra di Sant’Omobono in Rome.
Listen in, as Dr. Becker explains the role of pigments in the ancient world, including their use in medication, cosmetics and, of course, painting. We also get to talk about her excavations at Sant’Omobono and the possible discovery of Rome’s only surviving pigment shop.
Interested in learning more? Check out this related article by Dr. Becker.
2013. R. Beeston and H. Becker. “Investigation of Ancient Roman Pigments by Portable X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy and Polarized Light Microscopy,” In Archaeological Chemistry VIII. American Chemical Society Symposium Series. Edited by R. A. Armitage and J. Burton. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society, 19–41.
Looking for a transcript of this episode? Click here.
Additional Resources Related to this Podcast
2021. “Color Technology and Trade,” In Cultural History of Color, a six-volume series with one volume dedicated to ancient color. Carole Biggam and Kirsten Wolf, general editors; David Wharton, editor of the antiquity volume. Bloomsbury Publishing, 35-48.). In press.
2020. “Grading for color: Pliny’s hierarchy of pigment quality,” In The Nature of Art. Pliny the Elder on materials. Edited by A. Anguissola and A. Grüner. Brepols, 194-200. In press.
2020. H. Becker, T. Rutkowski, V. G. Ersan, M. Poliks, L. Piper, M. Postlewait, L. Schmitt, J. Young, P. Smart, and V. Imbruce. “Materials Matter: Exploring ancient pigments in the classroom,” In Archaeological Chemistry: A Multidisciplinary Analysis of the Past. Edited by M. V. Orna and S. C. Rasmussen. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 52-72.
2020. M. Ceci and H. Becker. “Uso dei colori e scelta dei pigmenti nel mondo romano,” In Picta Fragmenta. La Pittura Vesuviana. Una Rilettura.National Archaeological Museum.Naples, Italy. September 12th-16th, 2018. Edited by V. Sampaolo, P. Giulierini, and A. Coralini. Milan: Silvana Editoriale, 421-27.
2016. “Roman women in the urban economy: occupations, social connections, and gendered exclusions,” In Women in Antiquity: Real Women Across the Ancient World. Edited by J. Turfa and S. Budin. London: Routledge, 915-931.
2013. R. Beeston and H. Becker. “Investigation of Ancient Roman Pigments by Portable X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy and Polarized Light Microscopy,” In Archaeological Chemistry VIII. American Chemical Society Symposium Series. Edited by R. A. Armitage and J. Burton. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society, 19–41.
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