Tony Potter

I am a PhD student in the Department of Classical Studies at the Open University. My doctoral thesis, supervised by Professor Phil Perkins and Dr E-J Graham, is entitled:

‘Sensory Experience in the Funerary Assemblages of Etruscan Cerveteri.’ 

My research focuses on funerary assemblages from the southern Etruscan city of Caere (modern-day Cerveteri). It investigates how the sensory affordances generated by these assemblages changed over time, thus shedding light on shifting ritual practices, material engagements and lived experiences of Caeretan mortuary culture. My research is underpinned by Assemblage Theory, a key framework within Deleuzian New Materialism, which reconceptualises reality as vibrant, dynamic, relational, and constituted of heterogeneous elements that are constantly 'becoming'. Essentially, New Materialism asks us to think differently about the world around us, it asks us to consider what 'things' are capable of doing rather than merely asking us to think about their assigned symbolic function. A New Materialist approach such as the one being developed and applied in my research will facilitate a nuanced exploration of the materiality and the changes in multisensory experience over time in Caeretan funerary assemblages. Moreover, it will provide a proven new method that can be applied to other ancient world case studies.