by Levi McGarry, College of Arts and Sciences
A new book by WSU associate professor Hallie Meredith explores the important but neglected work of fourth to sixth-century CE Roman craftworkers, shedding light on the lives of uncredited creative laborers in antiquity.
Meredith is an associate professor in the Department of Art and is also a glassblower herself. Her research uses fresh methodological approaches to architectural, artefactual and epigraphic evidence to reveal new insights into traditional craft processes and the craftworkers themselves.
“Craftworkers throughout history have nearly always worked anonymously, often as valuable assistants in the service of famed artisans, but typically without proper credit or recognition,” said Meredith. “However, an unsigned piece can nevertheless reveal a world.”
Her book, The Roman Craftworkers of Late Antiquity: A Social History of Glass Production and Related Industries is now available through Cambridge University Press. To learn more about Professor Meredith’s approach and perspective, read her work “Out of the Margins: Late Antique Craftworkers in the Making” on the Fifteen Eighty Four blog published by Cambridge University Press.
