Acknowledgements
This monograph is the outcome of a three-year Early Career Fellowship funded by the Leverhulme Trust (grant number ECF-2020–181) and held at the Faculty of Classics of the University of Oxford from November 2020. The starting date coincided with Covid lockdown number two shortly to be followed by lockdown number three and the first year of the fellowship was spent this way. They say that crises are periods of heightened creativity and innovation. Whether that pertains to this one only time will tell.
Especially given the circumstances into which this project was plunged, I owe thanks to all those who went on this ride with me. First and foremost, I owe thanks to the Leverhulme Trust for their unwavering support and their flexibility. One research outcome that has been non-negotiable for me throughout was this monograph and I am incredibly grateful to the trust for never questioning this. Secondly, I owe thanks to the colleagues who very kindly let me read their forthcoming work. In the midst of the Covid chaos and publication delays, this was invaluable. My thanks go to Andreas Willi (Oxford), M. Dolores Jiménez López (Alcalá), José Miguel Baños (Madrid), Klaas Bentein (Ghent), John Lowe (Oxford), Alessandro Vatri (Oxford), and Gregory Hutchinson (Oxford). Thirdly, I owe thanks to all the presenters and participants of the Emphasis & Co. seminar I convened at Oxford for the multitude of witty comments and constructive criticism, in particular Evert van Emde-Boas (Aarhus), Luuk Huitink (Amsterdam), Klaas Bentein (Ghent), Gregory Hutchinson (Oxford), Alessandro Vatri (Oxford), and Andreas Willi (Oxford). Finally, my thanks go to Lady Margaret Hall for affiliating me to the college for the duration of this fellowship, to all the staff at the Bodleian Libraries for trying their very best to supply materials even during the most challenging of times, to the Faculty of Classics for hosting the fellowship, and to Philomen Probert for taking on the role of mentor, which I know was not always an easy one.
Writing this monograph has not been an easy ride, there were fantastic highs and there were deeper than deep lows on the way. The one who got me back in the saddle every time I completely doubted that I would ever be writing these acknowledgements is Molly, without whom this monograph would not exist. For her discipline, respect, and understanding I will always be grateful. Andreas and Mark gave me the much-needed push when I needed it. My friends, dispersed across the planet, have always had my back, in particular Roxanne Taylor (Manchester/Huddersfield), Sam Ottewill-Soulsby (Oslo), Alexandre Loktionov (Cambridge), Alexander Fairclough (Bristol), Florence Becher-Häusermann (Basel), and Stephanie Johann (Mannheim). Finally, my thanks go to my family, my parents, Andreas and Brigitte, my siblings, Leonard and Sophie, to Matthew, to Beatrix and to Maria-Luisa († 2024), who left us far too early. It takes a village to bring a project such as this book to life, and I will forever be grateful that they all went on this ride with me.