Classics

Home » Theodora Kopestonsky

Theodora Kopestonsky

Theodora Kopestonsky

by

ADDRESS
Department of Classics 1115 McClung Tower University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-0413
Phone
(865) 974-5404

Theodora Kopestonsky

Distinguished Lecturer

Research Interests

Greek and Roman Art and Archaeology, Corinthian Studies, Ancient Cult and Ritual Practice, Coroplastic Arts, Gender in Antiquity

Education

  • Ph.D., University at Buffalo, 2009
    Dissertation: Kokkinovrysi: A Classical Shrine to the Nymphs at Corinth
  • M.A., University at Buffalo, 2003
  • B.A., University of Evansville, 2000

Honors

  • Society for Classical Studies Excellence in Teaching at the Collegiate Level, 2021
  • Kress Publication Fellowship, ASCSA, 2017-2018
  • Finalist, Chancellor’s Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Tennessee, 2016
  • Lecturer Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Tennessee, College of Arts and Sciences, 2015
  • Henry S. Robinson Corinth Research Fellowship, ASCSA, Summer 2010
  • Humanities Institute Dissertation Fellowship, University at Buffalo, 2008-2009
  • Doreen C. Spitzer Research Fellowship, ASCSA, 2007-2008
  • Dorothy B. and Homer A. Thompson Research Fellowship, ASCSA, 2006-2007
  • John William White Fellowship, Regular Program, ASCSA, 2005-2006

Selected Publications

  • (in progress) “Recovering Terracotta Figurine Assemblages from Shrines in the Potters’ Quarter and Corinth,” in The Potters’ Quarter: A Corinthian Context Revisited (Hesperia Supplement), ed. K. Harrington and A. F. Ward.
  • 2021. “Teaching Evidence Use and Interpretation with Coins,” Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia 30: 24-46. (co-written with Lee L. Brice)
  • “Never Out of Style: Teaching Latin Love Poetry with Pop Music,” TCL 10.2 (2019).
  • “Don’t Borrow Money from Catullus…or Rihanna,” Sententiae Antiquae, 15 August 2019. https://sententiaeantiquae.com/2019/08/15/dont-borrow-money-from-catullus-or-rihanna/
  • “Offerings, Ritual, and Water: The Case of the Sacred Spring at Corinth,” in Waters of Antiquity, eds. B. Robinson and S. Bouffier. (forthcoming 2019)
  • “Locating Lost Gifts: Terracottas as Evidence for Ephemeral Offerings,” JGA 3 (2018): 245-268.
  • “The Greek Cult of the Nymphs at Corinth,” Hesperia 86.4 (2016): 711-777.
  • “Marriage” and “Sexuality” in The Routledge Dictionary of Ancient Mediterranean Religions. eds. Eric Orlin, Lisbeth Fried, Michael Satlow and Jennifer Knust. (with Erin Darby). 2016.
  • “Cueing Behavior: Figurines at Roadside Shrines in Corinth” in Figurines de Terre Cuites en Méditerranée Grecque et Romaine: Iconographie et Contexte. eds. Ergün Lafli and Arthur Muller. Septentrion. 2015. p.407-416.
  • Silent Participants: Terracottas as Ritual Objects (Actes de la réunion Silent Participants Philadelphie janvier 2012) (co-edited with Caitlin Barrett and Clarissa Blume) in Figurines Grecques en Contexte. eds. Stéphanie Huysecom-Haxhi and Arthur Muller. Septentrion. 2015.

Presentations

  • Nymphscapes: Watery Sanctuaries and Human Interaction in the Greek World, Society for Ancient Mediterranean Religions conference, Godscapes: Ritual, Belief and the Natural World in the Ancient Mediterranean and Beyond, (Edinburgh, UK), June 2023.
  • The Coroplast’s Perspective: Finding Reflections of Daily Life in Greek Terracottas, AIA/SCS annual meeting (New Orleans, LA), January 2023.
  • From Ancient Greece to Hollywood: Amazons in Wonder Woman (2017), AIMS annual conference: The Kaleidoscope of Antiquity: Shifting Perspectives on the Ancient Mediterranean World and Its Modern Receptions, (America/UK/EU/Austrolasia-online), December 2022.
  • “The Archaeology of Religion” with Erin Darby, UTK Library: For Your Reference/Reviewer 2 (online program), November 2021
  • Origin Story: Contextualizing the Nymphs in the Ancient Greek World, co-keynote lecture paired with Madeline Miller (NYT best-selling author) for Hollins University Classics Symposium, They Called Me Nymph: The Archaeology and Fiction of Lesser Female Divinities, November 2021.
  • with Lee L. Brice, Teaching General Education Classes with Material Culture: Coins, AAH annual conference (online), May 2021
  • “Smelly Sanctuaries: Odor and Experience at the Greek Sanctuary,” AIA/Baltimore Chapter, September 2020 (online)
  • “Adventures in Group Work in the Classics Classroom,” AIA/SCS Annual Meeting, January 2021 (online)
  • “The Sensual Experience of the Graeco-Roman Sacrifice,” Tennessee Foreign Language Teaching Association annual meeting, November 2019.
  • “…And Some Figurines: Recovering Terracotta Assemblages from the Potters’ Quarter,” AIA, Annual Meeting (San Diego, CA), January 2019.
  • “Dancers, Riders, and Standing Ladies: Leading Figures in Terracotta Assemblages at Small Corinthian Shrines,” International Conference: Terracottas Through Time, II, Haifa, Israel, March 2018
  • “Never Out of Style: Teaching Latin Love Poetry with Taylor Swift,” CAMWS annual meeting (Kitchener, ON) April 2017
  • “The Most Popular Girl at the Shrine: Reconsidering the Classical Corinthian Standing Female Figurine” AIA Annual Meeting (Toronto, Canada) 2017.
  • “Little Gifts: Dedications at the Sacred Spring in Corinth,” AIA annual meeting (San Francisco, CA), January 2016
  • “Smells at the Sanctuary: Scents as Offering to the Gods,” CAMWS, annual Meeting (Boulder, CO), March 2015.
  • “Offerings and Ritual at Corinthian Springs,” HYDROMED: International Conference on Water and Cult (Athens, Greece), July 2015.
  • “Infiltrating the Empire: The Cult of the Nymphs in the Roman World,” CAMWS, Annual Meeting (Waco, TX), April 2014

Employment

  • Distinguished Lecturer 2020-Present
  • Senior Lecturer, Department of Classics, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2017-2020
  • Lecturer, Department of Classics, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2011-2017
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Humanities, Columbus State Community College, Columbus, 2009-2011
  • Adjunct Professor, First Year Program, Denison University, Granville, 2010
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Art and Art History, Buffalo State College, Buffalo, 2009
  • Instructor, Department of Classics, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, 2003-2005
  • Teaching Assistant, Department of Classics, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, 2000-2002