Scholars Will Meet Here To Review Book on Herculaneum Scrolls
By Bernie Nguyen

Classics scholars Jeff Fish and David Armstrong are organizing a 2007 conference at Grand Hotel.

The little Island of Mackinac has found a connection to the greater world of classic Greek and Roman history. A Mackinac conference of 13 to 14 scholars next summer will put the finishing touches on a new book based on the discovery of a villa containing a library of papyrus scrolls at Herculaneum, which was buried during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. It was the same eruption that buried nearby Pompeii.

Classics scholars Dr. David Armstrong, a professor at the University of Texas, and Dr. Jeff Fish, a recently tenured professor at Baylor University, came to the Island last week to help coordinate the conference, invited by the Reverend Ron and Annakay Smith of the East Bluff, who are involved with the Classics Department at the University of Texas through the Ronald Nelson Smith Chair. The two professors stayed at Grand Hotel and gave a short lecture on the Odyssey at the Mackinac Island Public Library Thursday, June 8.

During excavation of the ancient site of Herculaneum in 1752, the large villa of Calpurnius Piso, the father-inlaw of Julius Caesar, was discovered. Within the villa, archaeologists found the only pile of papyrus scrolls filled with literature that could be opened. The scrolls turned out to contain the writings of Philodemus, an Epicurean philosopher who also served as spiritual advisor while teaching a school at the villa. Epicurus' philosophies on the best way to lead a virtuous life were taught there to students who include the poets Virgil and Horace.

Until recently, Dr. Armstrong explained, it was impossible to read the papyri because of the amount of damage done by the intense heat and ash from the eruption, as well as the centuries of pressurization while buried under debris. With the use of Multispectral Imaging (MSI), a technology originally developed by NASA to photograph beneath the earth's surface, the original ink on the documents is now visible beneath the severe carbonization, rendering whole volumes of undiscovered philosophical texts readable to scholars of ancient Greek, which many Roman noblemen spoke, despite the more vernacular use of Latin in the western part of the Roman Empire.

The Herculaneum project is one of large scope, involving much small detail. Much of the text is missing, meaning that to reconstruct the literature, Drs. Armstrong and Fish must also interpret as they go, rebuilding the original texts in Greek before translating them into English. These translations will be put into a book, which is undergoing final edits before going to publication.

The conference, which is scheduled for next summer and will be held at Grand Hotel, will bring members of the Friends of Herculaneum Society, which is an official society at Oxford, to discuss the texts while making final adjustments to the book. A larger conference will be held in Naples in 2008.

It is their connection to the Island, however, that is making Drs. Armstrong and Fish appreciate the Mackinac experience.

"We're associated with a group called ISAC, the Institute for the Study of Antiquities and Christian Origins at the University of Texas," Mr.

Armstrong explained. "Mrs. Smith is part of ISAC and she dreamed up the idea of this conference."

Mrs. Smith said she had wanted to bring the scholars to the Island after hearing that Edith Hamilton, a renowned Classics scholar and author, had summered here.

"I thought it was time for another great classical work to be produced while looking over the Great Lakes," she said.

As for their experience on the Island, Drs. Fish and

Armstrong greatly enjoyed their brief stay and the beautiful weather

"We are spellbound," said Dr. Fish.

Dr. Armstrong agreed.

"The best day on the conference in Naples," he said, "is the day you go to the Island of Capri the Island of Flowers. There are some views and gardens here that actually beat Capri."

"They're comparable," Dr. Fish clarified. "But they're not this grand."