Konstantin Klein
- History
Areas of Expertise:
Greek and Roman history; History of the Levant from Hellenistic to Abbasid times; Late antique history, literature, and archaeology;
Epigraphy (Greek, Latin, Arabic inscriptions, and Palymrene Aramaic inscriptions);
Empire of Palmyra; Religious history of pre-Islamic Arabia
Membership:
since
2018
Contact
University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
University of Amsterdam
Oost-Indisch Huis
Kloveniersburgwal 48
1012 CX Amsterdam
Room D0.07
About me
The main focus of my research is the cultural and religious history of the Eastern Mediterranean, from Ancient Greece via the Hellenistic and Roman periods to the late antique and early Islamic times. My scholarly work uses an interdisciplinary methodological approach, in which I combine literary evidence with epigraphical as well as archaeological remains. I further substantiate results through sociological and ethnological research.
Interdisciplinary research and openness to other scholarly traditions are vital elements of my academic praxis – and my main motivation to be part of AGYA.
My current research explores the history of urbanism in Palestine, the inscriptions and the language of Palmyra, and the history of emotions in Classical Athens. However, over the past years, I have also dealt with 19th-century Italian merchant families, Greek entrepreneurs, Prussian renegades, and Swabian travellers to the Near East, since this, too, is part of what I would consider an inclusive approach to the history of the region.
Academic Career
| 2022 - today | Assistant Professor of Ancient History, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands |
| 2016 - 2022 | Akademischer Rat a. Z., Chair of Ancient History, University of Bamberg, Germany |
| 2016 | Ph.D. in Ancient History, University of Oxford, United Kingdom |
| 2011 - 2016 | Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, Chair of Ancient History, University of Bamberg, Germany |
| 2011 - 2013 | Junior Visiting Research Fellow of the Council of the British Research in the Levant (CBRL), Kenyon Institute, East Jerusalem |
| 2009 - 2010 | Mellon Scholar, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford, United Kingdom |
| 2008 - 2009 | Visiting Fellow at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University, USA |
| 2009 | M.A. in Medieval History, German Studies, and Islamic Art History, University of Bamberg, Germany |
| 2008 | Master of Studies in Ancient History, University of Oxford, United Kingdom |
- Working Groups
- Common Heritage and Common Challenges
- My Commitment to AGYA
- AGYA Co-President (since 2022)
- Task Force SSC (2019)
- Selection Committee 'New AGYA Members' (2019-2021)
On a personal note
Must read in my discipline:
The Roman Near East by Fergus Millar
Favourite novel:
The Flounder by Günter Grass
The scientist from my country you should know:
Theodor Mommsen, Historian and Nobel Laureate in Literature
