Space shapes the architectural appearance of cities and significantly influences how they are perceived and described. Since the ‘spatial turn’, space has moved into the centre of scholarly attention and is now an established subject of research and category of analysis in Classical Studies. Leif Scheuermann likewise focuses on space—understood as spatial order (Raumordnung) (15).
This study examines the perception of the city of Rome in texts of the 1st century BCE. The focus is on the late Republic and, due to the character of the sources, specifically on Varro and Cicero. The central question is how these two authors described Rome and how this reflects their lifeworlds (Lebenswelten) and ideas (15). To investigate this literary perception of space, Scheuermann combines spatial-sociological theories with methods of empirical social research and proceeds with a mixture of traditional hermeneutic textual appropriation and modern computer-assisted data processing. The book pursues goals regarding content as well as methodology: it aims to reconstruct the spaces conveyed in the texts and, at the same time, to explore the possibilities of digital spatial and quantitative analyses in historical disciplines (17).
The title Imagines Urbis explicitly refers to Kevin Lynch’s seminal study The Image of the City[1] (14) in which the urban theorist investigates how observers conceive information about cities and use it to create mental maps. Despite Lynch’s evident influence there is no discussion of Lynch’s five basic elements of mental city maps (paths, edges, districts, nodes, landmarks). The subtitle of the book is concise and informative but does not indicate that the analysis is limited to only two authors of the 1st century BCE.
The introduction starts with opening remarks on the perception of Rome and then specifies the subject of the book. The following theoretical section takes the reader on a guided tour through modern spatial theories. Drawing on Immanuel Kant and Ernst Cassirer, the author emphasises that space is the foundation of all perception but cannot be grasped through it. Therefore, one can only speak of spatial orders (Raumordnungen). He divides these into three categories: individually perceived or remembered spaces, group spaces, and conveyed spaces (21). To characterise them, he draws on concepts of Aleida Assmann, Michel de Certeau, Maurice Halbwachs, and Henri Lefebvre. There follows a discussion of his research design and approach with the author transparently explaining the data handling, selection of sources, and use of structural diagrams and plans. The chosen work steps build on each other logically: first, the ancient sources were surveyed, next, a database of the collected material was created, which was integrated into a geoinformation system, then, the text passages were paraphrased and contextualised, assigned to categories, and, based on this, quantitative and spatial analyses were carried out. In this section, the author demonstrates a high degree of reflection and methodological awareness. What the introduction does not provide, however, is a discussion of recent approaches and relevant research on space in Classical Studies.
The chapter on Varro’s Rome begins with an overview of his life and work, followed by an analysis of the textual spaces in his surviving writings. Most of the chapter is dedicated to the linguistic treatise De lingua latina which contains three longer passages on Rome. As the author convincingly demonstrates, these are designed as routes through the city. Considering this spatial text structure, a comparison with Plutarch’s Quaestiones Romanae in which John Scheid observed a similar composition[2] would have been a fitting addition. In De lingua latina, historiography, mythology, and topography interweave, linking the past and the present city: characteristics which, according to Scheuermann, make this text a central piece of evidence for understanding the perception of Rome in the 1st century BCE (107). It becomes evident that Varro’s textual spaces are closely tied to the narrative and purpose of each work: while Rome functions as a setting in the Saturae Menippeae and De re rustica, a normative Rome emerges in the Antiquitates and De lingua latina.
The next chapter deals with Cicero’s Rome, starting with a critical discussion of Marie-José Kardos’ monograph on the places of Rome in Cicero[3]. The following extensive biographical sketch (123-160) provides detailed background information and demonstrates Scheuermann’s deep engagement with Cicero. At the same time, a more concise overview tailored to the central research question might have served the study’s aims more effectively. This is followed by a systematic analysis of the textual spaces in Cicero’s works. The author convincingly shows that in the letters and speeches the terms urbs and Roma are primarily used in the contexts of presence/absence and protection/threat of the city, and that Cicero focuses on urban spaces relevant to himself, such as the Palatine, Forum, and Capitol. In his philosophical writings, by contrast, Rome appears predominantly as a historical site and various individual locations are mentioned. Overall, Cicero frequently refers to Rome but rarely describes it explicitly. In comparison with Varro, the city constructed in his texts is more concentrated on central areas. Thus, Cicero does not provide a complete image but rather a reflection of the elites’ everyday reality in the late Republic (397).
A concise conclusion rounds off the study. First, the author reflects on his theoretical framework and approach. He then summarises the observations on Varro and Cicero and considers overarching aspects. The central insight that both authors construct the spaces of Rome according to their own everyday realities and the specific contexts of their works and focus on aspects of the city which are relevant to themselves is not particularly surprising, but Scheuermann succeeds in demonstrating this in a quantitative way for the first time. Given the differences between Varro and Cicero, a more detailed comparison with contemporary authors, complemented by an expanded historical interpretation, might have provided additional material for contextualising the observations. This could have clarified to what extent the perception of space depends on the individual and the genre, and what should be regarded as a time-specific phenomenon.
At the end of the book, the source editions, translations, and literature used are listed. It appears that only publications up to 2018 have been taken into account. Consequently, recent studies on space and Rome in Latin literature,[4] as well as the first German translation of Varro’s De lingua latina,[5] are unfortunately missing. Furthermore, the study would have benefited from a more comprehensive engagement with relevant research and approaches in Classical Studies: for instance, Diane Favro’s influential study on the perception of the city in Augustan Rome,[6] which also refers to Lynch and bears a title similar to Scheuermann’s book, would have been an important reference-point. Likewise, the concept of ‘cityscaping’[7] could have complemented his reflections on the imagines of the city (14); and the examination of the urban spaces in Cicero and Varro might have profitably built on the current intensive research on spatial narratology.[8]
The book is organised in four sections. The main part consists of the chapters on Varro and Cicero, with the latter occupying three times the number of pages due to his more voluminous text corpus. The chapter structure is quite schematic yet useful for answering the central question. Indexes of sources, places, and persons facilitate the search for specific information. The book is characterised by a precise language. It is pleasant to read, although one occasionally stumbles across lapses in spelling, grammar, syntax, and citation. These, however, like minor content-related errors – e.g. the Lauretum was a laurel not an oak grove (97) – do not affect the overall results. The focus lies on detailed analyses close to the sources. Self-created plans, tables, and diagrams illustrate the observations made. The argumentation is coherent and understandable. The results are clearly articulated but not easy to check: since there is no list of the text passages, specific numbers and percentages are not verifiable. Ideally the underlying data would have been made available, e.g. as a printed catalogue or an online database. Moreover, this could have offered additional opportunities for further investigations.
All in all, the book leaves a positive impression. One of its strengths is the well-versed evaluation of an immense amount of text: analysing all of Varro’s works and especially those of Cicero, is an impressive achievement. With a clear structure, effective visualisations, and concise summaries, the author succeeds in presenting his results in a convincing way. Also noteworthy is the thoughtful handling of methods. The successful application of a digital and quantitative approach is innovative, stimulating, and provides a new basis of data. The study expands our understanding of the perception of Rome in the late Republic, demonstrates the potential of a computer-assisted analysis, and has thus achieved its goals regarding content as well as methodology.
The monograph is an important contribution to the research landscape, offers a good starting point for interpretative studies on Varro and Cicero, and will hopefully stimulate similar analyses of other ancient authors. Leif Scheuermann has written a very relevant book which belongs to the reading list of all scholars dealing with Varro and Cicero, late Republican Rome, or space in Latin literature.
Notes
[1] K. Lynch, The Image of the City, Cambridge (MA) 1960.
[2] Plutarch, Römische Fragen. Ein virtueller Spaziergang im Herzen des alten Rom. Herausgegeben, übersetzt, kommentiert und interpretiert von John Scheid, Texte zur Forschung 103, Darmstadt 2012.
[3] M.-J. Kardos, Lieux et lumière de Rome chez Cicéron, Paris 1997.
[4] This applies especially to Friderike Senkbeil’s dissertation on the city of Rome in Tacitus’ historiographical works: F. Senkbeil, Tacitus und Rom. Die urbs Roma als Raum der erzählten Welt in den Historien und Annalen, Heidelberg 2022.
[5] Varro, De Lingua Latina. Lateinisch und deutsch. Herausgegeben, eingeleitet und übersetzt von Wilhelm Pfaffel, 2 vols., Edition Antike, Darmstadt 2023.
[6] D. Favro, The Urban Image of Augustan Rome, Cambridge 1996.
[7] T. Fuhrer / F. Mundt / J. Stenger (eds.), Cityscaping. Constructing and Modelling Images of the City, Philologus Suppl. 3, Berlin/Boston (MA) 2015; C. Tiersch, Cityscaping – Raumformungsprozesse antiker Städte als Gegenstand aktueller Debatten, in: eTOPOI 9, 2021, 105-141.
[8] On spatial narratology in general, see the seminal study of K. Dennerlein, Narratologie des Raumes, Narratologia 22, Berlin/New York (NY) 2009. An overview regarding ancient texts is provided by R. Kirstein, Erzähltheoretische Kategorien. Raum – Antike, in: E. v. Contze / S. Tilg (eds.), Handbuch Historische Narratologie, Berlin 2019, 206-217.