Un breve riassunto dei prossimi appuntamenti, cicli di conferenze e convegni internazionali in cui verranno discussi argomenti relativi a Hatra.
Alcuni degli incontri sono in versione ibrida ed è possibile seguirli online al link indicato.
Durham University – Department of Classics and Ancient History
Author: Ilaria Bucci
Classics and Ancient History Seminars
Wednesday 25 February 2026, 1:00–2:00 pm (GMT)
Location: 38 North Bailey (Durham DH1 3EU, UK), Room CL108 and online
Title: Inscribing Devotion: Memory Practices and Patterns of Mobility in the Sacred Landscape of Hatra (Iraq)
Aarhus University – Museum of Ancient Art
Author: Ilaria Bucci
LoCis (Locally Crafted Empires) Lecture Series: Statements in Stone
Tuesday 24 March 2026, 4:00–6:00 pm (CET)
Location: Victor Albecks Vej 3, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
Title: Between Goddesses and Mortals: Visualising Women in Hatra (Iraq)
Abstract: This lecture examines how women were portrayed in Hatra (northern Iraq, 2nd–3rd century CE), and what these images reveal about their roles within family and society. Although Hatra preserves the largest corpus of statuary from the Parthian Empire, depictions of secular women are strikingly rare—a pattern also reflected in the epigraphic record. When they do occur, they follow portrait types similar to those at sites like Palmyra, Edessa, and Dura-Europos, hinting at shared models across the broader region. In contrast, female deities appear frequently. Their imagery encompasses a wide range of figures that reveal the coexistence of both local and Graeco-Roman iconographic traditions. A notable group consists of divine female beings whose attire mirrors that of noble women, differing primarily in their seated posture and details of dress and ornament. This overlap blurs the distinction between mortal and divine representations—making them more complex for the modern observer—and raises questions about whether a dominant ideal of female identity existed in Hatra. Among the few representations of women, nude and semi-nude figures are especially rare. Often linked to the iconography of Aphrodite and her circle, they appear mostly in graffiti as dancers or musicians and suggest possible connections with religious cults, forms of everyday entertainment, or both. By bringing together sculpture, wall paintings, and graffiti, this lecture considers what the local visual vocabulary can tell us about women’s roles within Hatrene family life, social structures, and religious practices.
Event information at: https://projects.au.dk/locally-crafted-empires/events/show/artikel/default-571af51fa0
Aarhus University – RAC/TRAC
Author: Enrico Foietta
Friday 22 May 2026, 12:20-12:40
Location: Aarhus University, Denmark
Title: Between Rome and Parthia: Frontier Dynamics, Settlements and Connectivity in Northern Mesopotamia (2nd–3rd c. CE)
Abstract: During the 2nd century CE and the first decade of the 3rd century CE, the frontier between the Roman and Parthian Empires in northern Mesopotamia was established between the Khabur, the Sinjar, and the Tigris to the north, and the middle course of the Euphrates to the west. In reality, however, the area corresponding to the Jazira between the Tigris and the Euphrates as far south as Tikrit—was politically and militarily controlled by the “buffer” Kingdom of Hatra, whose eponymous capital was located approximately 80 km from Mosul. This local kingdom played a crucial role in supporting the Parthian Empire against Rome in the struggle for control over these strategic territories, which were nevertheless highly complex from both environmental and social perspectives, as they effectively blocked the north–south invasion route toward the Parthian capitals of Ctesiphon and Seleucia on the Tigris. The present paper, the outcome of a series of recent studies employing archaeological and epigraphic evidence from the Kingdom of Hatra, seeks to reassess not only the possible location and features of the frontier between the Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Hatra, but also to investigate, from a comparative perspective, the similarities and differences in settlement patterns within these regions. Furthermore, it aims to evaluate—through the integration of archaeological data, textual sources, and epigraphic evidence—the route communication networks linking the two entities under consideration. A comparative and integrated approach, which systematically organizes and combines the available data, proves essential. The traditional separation between studies on the Roman Empire and those on the Parthian Empire and its allies has frequently produced partial interpretations, placing emphasis on contrasts in the military, political, and economic management of territory, while failing to highlight potential points of convergence.