The ZAZH (Zurich Center for the Study of the Ancient World) is a “Center of competence” (a network of institutes, departments and sections of these that co-operate to form special, interdisciplinary research clusters) of the University of Zurich (UZH). It pursues the objective of linking, across the institution and beyond the boundaries of faculty, research and teaching in the domain of Ancient Studies, and of strengthening the international position of UZH as a hub for the research of Mediterranean Antiquity.

The culture of the ancient Greco-Roman Mediterranean in all its facets, as well as its potential, over the centuries, for stimulating and inspiring the construction of identities in Europe and beyond, form the chief focus of this scholarly network.

On the spatial plane this focus is geographically extended to take in Syria, Palestine, Egypt, the Near East, Ancient India and China, as well as their adjacent “Barbarian” regions. The temporal axis encompasses Antiquity as well as the reception of Antiquity. Well beyond this, we also pursue collaborations in the area of methodology with, for example, the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine and the section for Geographic Information Visualization and Analysis.

The Goals of the Center are:

1. Fostering of scholarly exchange and collaboration between participating scholars and chairs in the form of joint research initiatives, co-teaching, crosslisting, excursions etc.;
2. Optimising the support and development of young researchers, especially in the area of graduate studies, through shared events like seminars, colloquia, summer schools, workshops;
3. Positioning of the University of Zurich as a national and European research hub for interdisciplinary research into Mediterranean Antiquity, its peripheral regions and zones of contact and exchange, as well as its manifold receptions within and outside of the European context;
4. Communication to the public, both within and without the university community, of themes and research questions specific to Antiquity through series of events and public lectures;
5. Development of links with comparable research centers and individuals active in the politics of scholarship within Switzerland and abroad.

Click here for additional information about the ZAZH.