Herbert Bloch
Encyclopedia
Herbert Bloch was professor emeritus of Classics at Harvard and a renowned authority on Greek historiography, Roman epigraphy and archaeology, medieval monasticism, and the transmission of classical culture and literature.

Life

A Jewish native of Germany, Bloch studied Ancient History, Classical Philology and Archaeology at the University of Berlin and at the University of Rome
University of Rome La Sapienza
The Sapienza University of Rome, officially Sapienza – Università di Roma, formerly known as Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a coeducational, autonomous state university in Rome, Italy...

, where he received his Dr. degree in Roman History in 1935 and the Diploma di perfezionamento in 1937. He was awarded a L.L.D. by the University of Cassino
University of Cassino
The University of Cassino is a university located in Cassino, Italy. It was established in 1979.-Organization:The University of Cassino comprises faculties in the fields of Economics, Engineering, Humanities , Law and Human Movement Sciences-External links:...

 in 1989.

He was a member of the staff of the excavations in Ostia in 1938. Because of anti-Semitic legislation in Italy at this time, Bloch emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 in 1939. His brother, who stayed in Germany, died in the Holocaust. Bloch taught at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 from 1941 to 1982. His teaching and research interests involved Greek and Roman historiography
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...

, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 epigraphy
Epigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...

, Roman archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...

 (especially architecture), and Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors,...

 literature.

He was a Member of the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...

, Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...

 (1953–54), Professor in Charge of the School of Classical Studies at the American Academy in Rome
American Academy in Rome
The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo in Rome.- History :In 1893, a group of American architects, painters and sculptors met regularly while planning the fine arts section of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...

 (1957-59), Senior Fellow of the Society of Fellows (1964-79), Trustee of the Loeb Classical Library (1964-73). He served as President of the American Philological Association
American Philological Association
The American Philological Association , founded in 1869, is a non-profit North American scholarly organization devoted to all aspects of Greek and Roman civilization...

 (1968/9) and as President of Fellows of the Medieval Academy of America
Medieval Academy of America
The Medieval Academy of America is the largest organization in the United States promoting excellence in the field of medieval studies. It was founded in 1925 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts...

 (1990-93). He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...

, the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...

, the Pontificia Accademia Romana di Archeologia
Pontifical Academy of Archaeology
The Pontifical Academy of Archaeology is an academic honorary society established in Rome by the Catholic Church for the advancement of Christian archaeological study...

 (since 1990 Hon. Mem.), The German Archaeological Institute
German Archaeological Institute
The German Archaeological Institute is an institution of research within the field of archaeology , and a "scientific corporation", with parentage of the federal Foreign Office of Germany-Origin:...

, the Zentraldirektion of the Monumenta Germaniae Historica
Monumenta Germaniae Historica
The Monumenta Germaniae Historica is a comprehensive series of carefully edited and published sources for the study of German history from the end of the Roman Empire to 1500.The society sponsoring the series was established by the Prussian reformer Heinrich Friedrich Karl Freiherr vom...

. He was awarded the Premio "Cultori di Roma" 1999.

He died on 6 September 2006 at Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Selected works

His publications include
  • I bolli laterizi e la storia edilizia romana. Contributi all'archeologia e alla storia romana (1936-38), printed as a book in 1948, 2nd ed. 1968
  • Supplement to Vol. XV,1 of the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum
    Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum
    The Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum is a comprehensive collection of ancient Latin inscriptions. It forms an authoritative source for documenting the surviving epigraphy of classical antiquity. Public and personal inscriptions throw light on all aspects of Roman life and history...

    , Including Complete Indices to the Roman Brick-stamps (1948; 2nd ed. 1967); ed. Felix Jacoby
    Felix Jacoby
    Felix Jacoby was a German classicist and philologist. He is best known among classicists for his highly important work Fragmente der griechischen Historiker, a collection of text fragments of ancient Greek historians...

    , Abhandlungen zur griechischen Geschichtsschreibung (1956)
  • "Der Autor der Graphia aureae urbis Romae," Deutsches Archiv für Erforschung des Mittelalters, 40 (1984), pp. 55-175 (slightly enlarged to be published as a book by the Monumenta Germaniae Historica
    Monumenta Germaniae Historica
    The Monumenta Germaniae Historica is a comprehensive series of carefully edited and published sources for the study of German history from the end of the Roman Empire to 1500.The society sponsoring the series was established by the Prussian reformer Heinrich Friedrich Karl Freiherr vom...

    )
  • Monte Cassino in the Middle Ages, 3 vols. (1986) (awarded the Praemium Urbis in Rome 1987 and the Haskins Medal of the Medieval Academy 1988)
  • The Atina Dossier of Peter the Deacon of Monte Cassino. A Hagiographical Romance of the Twelfth Century published in the series Studi e Testi 346 (1998).

Sources

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