http://hdl.handle.net/1803/2991 2013-05-18T13:10:23Z 2013-05-18T13:10:23Z Moore, J. Hunter http://hdl.handle.net/1803/3941 2011-02-11T18:58:01Z 2009-04-01T05:00:00Z

Title: Singing for Strength: Enslaved Africans and Community Building in the Transatlantic Slave Trade Authors: Moore, J. Hunter Abstract: Throughout the Transatlantic slave trade enslaved Africans sang. In holding pens called barracoons awaiting shipment, aboard slave ships crossing the Atlantic, and in the transatlantic colonies, singing was a common feature of daily life and special events. Many people sing, but for enslaved Africans singing may have been a means of survival. Slaves often found themselves surrounded by other slaves with whom they had no prior social relationship. Singing would have enabled them to create an immediate sense of community, mitigating the effects of the severe dislocation they suffered. Singing also helped to preserve a sense of community among slaves once they were settled in the colonies. Contemporary accounts attest to the importance of both singing and community in West Africa, the source for the majority of slaves in the transatlantic trade. Similar evidence exists for African slaves in the British colonies of the Caribbean and North America as well as for their descendants. Finally, a positive view of the creative adaptation or "creolization" of cultural forms by enslaved Africans is compared with earlier analyses that described it as being purely destructive. Description: Student research for MLAS course. This paper examines singing by enslaved Africans in the Transatlantic slave trade, the importance of singing to the people of West Africa, and its importance to the descendants of enslaved Africans in the Transatlantic colonies and United States. Written for MLAS 270 33: New Methods, New Discoveries, and New Interpretations in Slavery Studies with Prof. Jane Landers, Spring 2009. Paper includes a bibliography.

2009-04-01T05:00:00Z Doster, Stephen http://hdl.handle.net/1803/3748 2011-02-11T18:50:01Z 2010-01-05T19:54:43Z

Title: An Analysis of the Synagogue Zodiac at Sepphoris: Its Judaization, Symbolism, and Significance Authors: Doster, Stephen Abstract: The zodiac, a pagan symbol believed to have originated in 7th century BCE Babylonia, appears in the floor mosaics of numerous synagogue ruins through the Palestine region, including one found in a fifth century synagogue at Sepphoris, an ancient city located in modern day northern Israel. Description: This paper provides an analysis of the zodiac found in a fifth century synagogue at Sepphoris, an ancient city near Nazareth.

2010-01-05T19:54:43Z Doster, Stephen http://hdl.handle.net/1803/3747 2011-02-11T18:49:17Z 2010-01-05T19:53:10Z

Title: Christ And The Samaritan Woman: A Via Latina Catacomb Fresco, 340 - 350 CE Authors: Doster, Stephen Abstract: In 1955, construction began on a new apartment building located between the Via Latina and the Via Dino Compagni, two streets in southeast Rome. Workers pouring concrete for the building's foundation were surprised to see the material quickly disappear into the ground. When they traced the seepage to its origin, they discovered a catacomb that had been sealed and hidden from public access centuries earlier. Deep within the catacomb is a fresco of a woman and a man standing on either side of a well. This paper analyzes the fresco known as "Christ and the Samaritan Woman" of the Via Latina Catacomb. Description: This research paper describes the "Christ And The Samaritan Woman" fresco located in the Via Latina catacomb in Rome, Italy.

2010-01-05T19:53:10Z Harmer, Crickett http://hdl.handle.net/1803/3526 2011-02-11T18:47:48Z 2009-10-15T14:10:05Z

Title: Harriett Powers and her Eternal Cloth Bible Authors: Harmer, Crickett Abstract: Art and images serve as cultural memories for many diaspora groups, from early Judaic to African American communities. Religion is one of the strongest cultural beliefs subject to creolization when art attempts to preserve those memories. The iconography created in Harriett Powers' (1836-1910) "Bible Quilt" (fig.1) broadcasts a personalized creolized message of faith and commitment. Powers interpreted and illustrated biblical stories in her famous and unique quilt. This paper will research and analyze the legacy that Powers' quilted bible message in fiber left behind. Description: Student research for MLAS course Picturing the Bible with Professor Robin Jensen. The article analyses a quilt, held in the Smithsonian Museum, depicting bible stories, made by former slave Harriett Powers.

2009-10-15T14:10:05Z