Mary Beard | Presidential Lecture

The 2024 Presidential Lecture in the Humanities and Arts presents Mary Beard, Cambridge Professor Emerita and one of Britain’s best-known Classicists.

Mary Beard has written numerous books, including Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town, best-selling SPQR – A History of Ancient Rome, the thought-provoking Women & Power, and most recently Twelve Caesars – Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern.

Beard is a regular broadcaster and media commentator and has written and presented television documentaries on history and culture as well as the highly-acclaimed TV series, Meet the Romans and Rome – Empire without Limit. She is Classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement, contributes regularly to the New York Review of Books and writes an engaging blog, A Don’s Life.

Her scholarship has been recognized on both sides of the Atlantic: by the British Academy, the American Academy and the American Philosophical Society amongst others. She was made a Dame in 2018 for services to Classical scholarship, is a trustee of the British Museum and has also been awarded the prestigious Getty Medal.

Beard’s most recent book, Emperor of Rome, was published in October 2023.
 

Related Reading

Rose Petals and Peacock Brains: What It Took to Be an ‘Emperor of Rome’ 
New York Times

By the Book: Mary Beard Would Like a Moratorium on Churchill Biographies, Thank You
New York Times

About the Series

The Presidential Lectures bring distinguished scholars, artists, and critics to the Stanford University campus for lectures, seminars, panel discussions, and a variety of related interactions with faculty, students, and the community at large.


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