Theodor Mommsen

Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen (30 November 1817 - 1 November, 1903) was a German classical scholar and historian, generally regarded as the greatest classicist of the 19th century. His work regarding Roman history is still of fundamental importance for contemporary research.

Mommsen as scientific editor and organiser

While he was secretary of the Historical-Philological Class at the Berlin Academy (1874 - 1895), Mommsen organised countless scientific projects, mostly editions of original sources.

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Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum

At the beginning of his scientific career, Mommsen already envisioned a collection of all known ancient Latin inscriptions when he published the inscriptions of the Neapolitan Kingdom (1852). He received additional impetus and training from Bartolomeo Borghesi of San Marino. The complete Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum would consist of 16 volumes, of which 15 appeared during Mommsen's life, five made by Mommsen himself. The basic principle of the edition (contrary to previous collections) was the method of autopsy (which in Greek means literally "to see for oneself"), according to which all extant inscriptions were tested and compared to the original.

Related Topics:
Neapolitan - 1852 - Bartolomeo Borghesi - Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum

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Further editions and research projects

Mommsen also published the fundamental collections in Roman law: the Corpus Iuris Civilis and the Codex Theodosianus. Furthermore, he played an important role in the publication of the Monumenta Germaniae Historica, the edition of the texts of the Church Fathers, the Limes research and countless other projects.

Related Topics:
Corpus Iuris Civilis - Codex Theodosianus - Monumenta Germaniae Historica - Church Fathers - Limes

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