PhD Position Anchoring the agora in archaic and classical Greek poleis (c. 800-300 BCE) (1.0 FTE)

The agora can be considered the foundational space of the Greek polis: a communal space set aside as a podium for civic life. It developed in the centre of the urban fabric, lined with herms, sanctuaries, altars and temples. Beside operating partly or on specific moments as a market place, it was first of all a civic space, the heart of the polis as a social, religious and political community. In all Greek poleis, the agora became an important anchor for political, cultural and religious innovation. The introduction of new gods was successful when they received a sanctuary near the Acropolis or on the agora. Regime change, treaties and incisive legislation were anchored in the polis by collective oath taking on the agora. In sum, the agora was a quintessential element of one of the most conspicuous innovations of ancient Greece, the citizen-state, in which the demos as a collective was sovereign, represented in multiple authoritative bodies.

This PhD project will investigate the creation of the agora in Greek poleis from the Early Iron Age to late classical times, as a place where institutional innovations were anchored in physical terms (environmental context, spatial configuration and architectural design) and as a civic space whose very conception influenced the kind of polis' institutions founded there. A second objective concerns the choice of its location: were primarily practical considerations (e.g. close to the harbour) involved or also anchoring processes (e.g. close to a pre-existing sanctuary)?