Cristina Rosillo-López - Political Conversations in Late Republican Rome

Whereas I began work on this book in a normal and hectic academic world filled of travel and conferences, I ended it under a strict lockdown at home. At a time when millions of people are secluded and isolated at home, we are reminded of the importance and joy of face-to-face interaction, something that cannot be replaced by our increasingly sophisticated modern means of communication. These are unusual, yet somehow fitting, circumstances to complete a book that examines how Roman senators and their entourage preferred to meet in person to engage in conversation. Now more than ever, we can see that they were right.

This book was conceived, researched, and partially written thanks to a Humboldt Research Fellowship, which allowed me to spend many months in Germany and have the luxury of dedicating long periods of time exclusively to research. I was a guest at the Lehrstuhl fr alte Geschichte at the Technische Universitt Dresden, and I immensely enjoyed the city, countryside, library and my new colleagues, who went the extra mile to make me feel at home; vielen Dank.

This research was also financed by the project El sector inmobiliario en el mundo romano (HAR2016-76882-P, Agencia Estatal de Investigacin, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacin, Gobierno de Espaa).

I am very grateful to the university libraries and librarians at Dresden, Oxford, and Paris. At the library of the Universidad Pablo de Olavide, David Fernndez Lora has managed to track down rare items and almost inaccessible books and journals for me; muchsimas gracias, a l y a todo el equipo de la biblioteca. I also thank Ben Jerue for making my English more readable.

Parts of this book were presented at seminars and conferences in Turin, Durham, Buenos Aires, Bielefeld, Dresden, Grenoble, Paris, and in the Libera Res Publica Network meetings of Seville and Palma. I would like to thank the audiences for engaging with the topic and for their questions and suggestions.

Whether at a conference, during a quick coffee break, or over a long and leisurely meal and drink(s), many colleagues and friends have offered suggestions and comments throughout the research and writing of this book: Henriette van der Blom, Clment Bur, Juan Manuel Corts Copete, Cyril Courrier, Jean-Michel David, Antonio Dupl Ansuategui, Mara Garca Magn, Marta Garca Morcillo, Enrique Garca Riaza, Karl-Joachim Hlkeskamp, Frdric Hurlet, Fabian Knopf, Christoph Lundgreen, Gesine Manuwald, Pascal Montlahuc, Rosario Moreno Soldevila, Elena Muiz Grijalvo, Mike Peachin, Francesca Rohr Vio, Amy Russell, Catherine Steel, Kathryn Tempest, and Uwe Walter. Thank you very much! Martin Jehne was essential for the structure and perspective of this book; his comments and advice on early drafts always made me reflect deeper on the subject. I would like to extend a special thanks to my colleague and friend Francisco Pina Polo, who has followed this book from its birth to completion, reading the whole manuscript (and several partial drafts); as always, I have learned much from his incisive comments, insightful questions, and intellectual generosity. Although some of the above-mentioned people have not always agreed with all the arguments made over the following pages, engaging with them in conversation and debate has been (and still is) a real pleasure.

I was extremely fortunate to be in strict lockdown in the company of my two favourite people in the world. Igor, the best partner I could ever hope for, has made everything possible. While currently Nora can just say a limited (but growing) number of words, her eyes and smile do speak volumes. This book is for her.