Ulysses and the Sirens by H.J.Draper

An Academic Conference and Tour of Ancient Sites

Exedra Mediterranean Center

Syracuse, Sicily, October 5-8, 2022 (new dates)

With a post-conference tour October 9-10

Homeric Thrinacia – our Sicily – is the legendary home of the Cattle of the Sun, the Cyclops, the Laestrygonians, Aeolus, and close neighbor of Skylla and Charybdis. Samuel Butler, in the nineteenth century, memorably theorized that the Odyssey’s author was a young Sicilian woman, glimpsed in the figure of Nausicaa. Otherwise, surprisingly few scholars have explored Sicily’s association with the Homeric epics, the Odyssey in particular. The goal of this conference is to bring scholars from a variety of disciplines to Siracusa to discuss Homer’s epic vision and to visit the archaeological traces of the mythic places and beings of the Odyssey.

Our conference will include academic presentations as well as visits to the Neapolis archeological park and Paolo Orsi museum.  We will also enjoy traditional Sicilian hospitality, with group dinners and coffee breaks featuring local specialties.  At the conclusion of the conference, an optional tour of will visit the Cyclops Islands (Acitrezza), cross the Straits of Messina, see the Riace Bronzes, overnight at Skylla (Scilla) on the Calabrian coast, return to Sicily (skirting Charybdis), see the Greek theater at Taormina, then climb up Mount Etna for a wine tasting and traditional meal.

The official languages of the conference are English and Italian.  Proposals for presentations related to any aspect of Homer in Sicily are welcome.  Abstracts for papers should be 150-300 words in length and prepared for blind review.  Proposals for panel discussions should include contact information for all participants.  Presentation times range from 20 minutes for individual papers to 90 minutes for panel discussions.  Scholars are welcome to participate without presenting a paper.

Selected proceedings will be published by Parnassos Press in a volume entitled Homer in Sicily, and available through JSTOR, Perlego, and amazon.com

Please send abstracts and questions to Heather L. Reid at fontearetusa1@gmail.com  Abstracts already submitted and/or accepted will carry over to this conference unless expressly withdrawn. New abstracts received by May 15, 2022 will be considered for early acceptance.  Final deadline for abstracts is August 15, 2022. 

We look forward to welcoming you to in beautiful Syracuse, the heart of Western Greece