Death and the Occult in the Ancient World is a new series of monthly lectures, workshops and tours which aim to examine the way people along the ancient Mediterranean interacted with the unseen forces in the world. While many basic ancient myths and mortuary traditions are known to most people with a casual interest, often this barely scrapes the top of a rich wealth of information and long history of interesting, engaging, and surprisingly weird traditions and beliefs. Through illustrated lectures, guided tours, and occasional workshops, we will strive to understand the different approaches that the Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans had to explaining the world around them and challenge popular misconceptions held by the public today.
Through this series we hope to bridge the gap that often exists between academic disciplines and the public audience, bringing the two together in an approachable forum. Led by a trained Archaeologist and Art Historian Ava Forte Vitali of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this series will expand upon topics including religion, art, archaeology, and texts, in order to further our understanding of both our world and theirs.