Department of History

Personal Statement:

I specialize in the Ancient Mediterranean world, specifically Classical Greece and the Hellenistic era. I have traveled to most of the major ancient sites of ancient Greece and Macedon, and I enjoy sharing those travel experiences in the classroom. Students are welcome to contact me over email for advice concerning travel to Greece, and particularly ancient Greek archaeological sites.

My research focuses on the interaction between intellectuals and kings in the late Classical and early Hellenistic period. Most of my research considers these intellectual exchanges in the fields of geography and politics. My current project is the first book length study of Alexander III (the Great) of Macedon as an imperial explorer. I have used Greek advice to princes literature and Achaemenid Persian geographical collection practices to further the discussion concerning Alexander’s exploratory motivations during his Asian campaign. I have also demonstrated that the Greek geographical understanding of central Asian geography was less accurate than previously thought. In doing so, I argue that Aristotle’s primary work on geography, the Meteorologica, was published in the 320s BCE, which means it was inspired by campaign geographical reports rather than a geographical guide available to Alexander and his intellectuals at the start of the campaign.

In the future, I hope to expand upon my recent article concerning the prevalence of Xenophon’s Cyropaedia within the intellectual circles of Alexander’s campaign. I believe that Alexander and the early Hellenistic kings were deeply impacted by the works of Xenophon, even to the point that early Hellenistic kingship reflected this author’s influence.

Research and Teaching Interests:

Classical Greece

The Hellenistic Age

Ancient Macedon

Achaemenid Persia

Greek Political Thought

Ancient Geography

 

Current Projects:

Book Manuscript: Beyond the Borders of the Sun: Exploration in the Age of Alexander the Great 

Article: “Callisthenes’ Last Entry: The Araxes River and Bactria in Strabo’s Geography.”

Selected Publications:

“Setting a Royal Pace: Achaemenid Kingship and the Origin of Alexander the Great’s 

               Bematistai.” Ancient History Bulletin 31.1-2 (2017): 39-64.

“The Cyropaedia among Alexander’s Lost Historians.” The Ancient World 46, No.2 (2015): 134-161.

“Bede’s Monk-Kings.” Fons Luminis 2 (2012): 95-117.

 

Courses Taught:

2008-2009  (2) World History to 1500 CE (East Carolina)

2013           HST 111B Archaic and Classical Greece (UCSB-Summer B)

2014           HST 111C Hellenistic Greece (UCSB-Summer B)

2016           HST 2A (UCSB Fall)

2017           HST 111B (UCSB Winter)

2017           HST 2A (UCSB Fall)

Awards & Professional Activities:

FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS

2015-2016   UCSB Affiliates Dissertation Fellowship

2015-2016   UCSB Graduate Division Dissertation Completion Fellowship

2014-2015   Nominated for Graduate Student Association Award for Teaching Excellence

2014-2015   UCSB History Associates Fellowship

2014-2015   UCSB Interdisciplinary Humanities Center Dissertation Fellowship

2013-2014   Hal Drake Award Fellowship (UCSB History Department)

2013-2014   Mediterranean Seminar/UC Multi-Campus Research Project Travel Grant

2013-2014   Bert Hodge Hill Scholarship (American School of Classical Studies-Athens Summer Program)

2013-2014   Lena Dumas Travel Scholarship (UCSB Classics Department)

2012-2013   Jacobs Fund for Alexander Studies Fellowship

2012-2013   UCSB Graduate Dean’s Advancement Fellowship

2009-2010   Darcy Ritzau Fellowship (UCSB History Department)

2007-2008   Bodo Nischan Memorial Fellowship (East Carolina History Department)

 

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

2014-present   American Historical Association

2013-present   Association of Ancient Historians

2009-present   Ancient Borderlands Multi-Campus Research Group

2009-present   Friends of Ancient History (California)