Madeleine Duperouzel

Research Topic

'Ornaments in the triclinium?’ Women, Identity, and Agency in Late Antique Rural Mediterranean Landscapes, c.300-600 AD.

My thesis research traces the socio-economic activities and agencies of women in the Late Antique rural Mediterranean. I aim to synthesise documentary sources with visual and material sources to build a coherent and cohesive picture of these women, who are often deemed the most 'silent' of the ancient and medieval Mediterranean worlds. 

Prior to beginning my DPhil, I received my MA in Art History from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London, where I was supervised by Professor Antony Eastmond, and my MPhil in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies from the University of Oxford, where I was supervised by Professor Phil Booth. I received my BA (Hons) in History from the University of Oxford in 2019. 

Fellowships, Grants, and Workshops

I am the recipient of the joint Early Medieval Europe Journal and British School at Rome Postgraduate Fellowship 2026/7. This generous Fellowship will enable me to spend a month in Rome conducting research into the BSR's archaeological archive, visiting villae excavation sites, and viewing the rich visual corpora that pertains to Late Antique women, across both urban and rural contexts. 

In June and July of 2026, I will be an excavation assistant at a 4th-7th century paleo-Christian rural site in San Miceli, Sicily, with the Biblical Archaeological Society.

From October 2025 - June 2026, I was a participant in the Mary Jaharis-sponsored workshop 'East of Byzantium XII: Spaces,' where I am developing an article for publication on the portrayal of women's work and gendered space in John of Ephesus' Lives of the Eastern Saints. 

Conference Papers

(Upcoming) Panel Organiser and Presenter at the Small Worlds, Big Worlds: Medieval Mediterranean Perspectives Conference, Instituto de Estudos Medievais (IEM), Portugal.
'Contextualising and Communalising the Early Christian Church: Genre Scenes between the Social and Spiritual worlds of the Aquileia Basilica, Italy (4th century CE)'

(Upcoming): Beyond Exceptionalism III Conference, Universitat Jaume I, Castellon, Spain.
‘For I know such properties’: Analysing strategies of rural efficiency, risk management, and resilience in women’s documents from Egypt (4th–5th centuries AD).'

Ghent Centre for Late Antiquity International Postgraduate Conference, University of Ghent, Belgium.
'Creating, Viewing and Challenging Power, Vulnerability and Dependency on Late Antique Estates.'

CHASE Medieval and Early Modern Winter Conference 2025, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
'Examining Marginal Women in Late Antique and Byzantine Egyptian Papyri, 4th-7th centuries.'

27th International OUBS Graduate Conference 2025: Byzantium and its Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
‘Mosaics as Microcosmos: Nature and Identity in Christian and Islamic Mosaics of the 7th and 8th century Levant.' 

Supervisor: Ine Jacobs and Jas Elsner