PhD Position: Urban Landscapes in Late Antiquity

at  Universiteit van Amsterdam

PhD Position: Urban Landscapes in Late Antiquity
Faculteit/Dienst: Faculteit der Geesteswetenschappen
Opleidingsniveau: Master
Functie type: Researcher
Sluitingsdatum: 25 October 2024
Vacaturenummer: 13412
The Amsterdam School of Historical Studies (ASH) is advertising a PhD position as part of the FGW Starting Grant Project “Urban Landscapes in Late Antiquity”, led by principal investigator Dr Konstantin Klein. The supervisor team will consist of Prof. Dr Daniëlle Slootjes, Dr Martijn Icks, and Dr Konstantin Klein. The Amsterdam School of Historical Studies is one of the five Research Schools within the Amsterdam Institute for Humanities Research (AIHR). You will be part of the Ancient History Chair Group of the Department of History, European Studies and Religious Studies at the University of Amsterdam.

YOUR EXPERIENCE AND PROFILE

Candidates need to have the following qualifications:

• a completed (R)Ma or MPhil degree in (Ancient) History, Ancient Studies, or Classical Philology (held by time of appointment);
• strong interest in urban studies and/or environmental history;
• well-developed research skills including the ability to formulate relevant and creative research questions and hypotheses, descriptive and analytical skills, and a clear and persuasive style of writing;
• a strong cooperative attitude and willingness to engage in collaborative research;
• enthusiasm for communicating academic research to non-academic audiences;
• a good working knowledge of Ancient Greek or the willingness to improve existing basic knowledge within the first year of the PhD project;
• a working knowledge in or the willingness to acquire a second ancient language of Late Antiquity (for example: Armenian, Coptic, Latin or Syriac etc.);
• excellent command of English, reading competence in French, German and Italian;

Experience with Digital Humanities tools is a plus but not required.
Please note that if you already hold a doctorate/PhD or are working towards obtaining a similar degree elsewhere, you will not be admitted to a doctoral programme at the UvA.

ABOUT US

The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 42,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds.
The Faculty of Humanities provides education and conducts research with a strong international profile in a large number of disciplines in de field of language and culture. Located in the heart of Amsterdam, the faculty maintains close ties with many cultural institutes in the capital city. Research and teaching staff focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and are active in several teaching programmes.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?

Your PhD project focuses on the dynamic urban culture of the Eastern Roman Empire during Late Antiquity. The research investigates how urban landscapes evolved during this period of significant political, environmental, and/or social transformations. From flourishing urbanisation to the formation of ruined landscapes due to factors such as climate change, epidemics, and political shifts, your project will explore how ancient cities and their inhabitants navigated prosperity and decline.
Your PhD project will employ diverse literary, epigraphic, and material sources, as well as cutting-edge digital tools provided by UvA’s 4D Research Lab, to reconstruct late antique urban landscapes. A key focus will be the interplay between monumentalisation and ruination as markers of collective memory and identity, offering new insights into how cities and their inhabitants experienced urban decay.

TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• submission of a PhD thesis (monograph or a set of articles), which includes a digital component, within the period of appointment (four years, full time);
• presentations of intermediate research results at workshops and conferences;
• publication of at least one single-authored, peer reviewed article;
• participation in the PhD programme of OIKOS, the National Research School in Classical Studies in the Netherlands;
• participation in the PhD training programmes of the Amsterdam School of Historical Studies and the Faculty of Humanities;
• (co-)organisation of knowledge dissemination activities such as training sessions in digital methods or workshop organisation;
• (co-)teaching in BA programmes in years 2 and 3 of the PhD project.