In January 2026, the Ancient Peace Studies Network held its inaugural workshop at the University of St Andrews. Researchers from Colombia, the US, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, and Scotland (among other places!) came together to share expertise and set agenda for future collaborations.
Between us, we examined representations of peace and instances of peacebuilding from ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, archaic Greece, pre-Roman Sicily, Imperial Rome, late antique Iberia, early Islamic Iran, and the 20th and 21st centuries. A wide range of speakers demonstrated what we can learn about ancient peace imaginaries from e.g. omens, music and coins, alongside public monuments, historical accounts and peace treaties. We experimented with multiple theoretical and methodological approaches too, analysing e.g. peace linguistics, visual politics, popular culture, feminist peace research, war weariness, and saviour narratives, among many other topics.
Our discussions of antiquity were framed by reflections on modern peace studies and contemporary peacebuilding; and – with our membership of the Scottish Peace Platform in mind – we explored connections between the study of ancient peace histories and modern practice and discourse. Several papers touched on the transformative power of peace storytelling, past and present, and we also delved into peace gaming and the use of Classics in conflict resolution teaching.
Our discussions underlined the need for substantially more interdisciplinary research into ancient peace and peacebuilding going forward, and we also identified clear real-world benefits for the 21st century. As a result, we have a series of events, collaborations, publications and public engagement projects planned over the next two years – so watch this space!
If you are interested in our work, please reach out to us on [email protected].
