Planet Project

30/08/2026

It has been a real pleasure to organise, together with Ellie Bennett, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞𝐧, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐬: 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐀𝐬𝐢𝐚, a workshop bringing together scholars from different backgrounds to explore masculinities in the ancient world.

A huge thank you to all our speakers for their brilliant and thought-provoking papers, and to everyone who attended, participated in the discussions, and contributed to making these two days so stimulating and memorable.

A huge thank you to our keynote speaker, Prof. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐭𝐢 𝐍𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐧, for his magnificent lecture and for opening the workshop with such an inspiring and intellectually rich contribution.

We are deeply grateful to Prof. Saana Svärd and to the 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬 (ANEE) for their generous support in making this workshop possible.

And thank you to all the friends and colleagues who stopped by during these days — it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces, including Dr. Emanuel Pfoh, Prof. Jason M Silverman, and Filippo Pedron.

A very special thank you to 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐭 for involving me in this project and, above all, for the incredible work she put into making the workshop happen. Her organisation, care, energy, and attention to every detail were truly exceptional. It has been a privilege to work together, and I hope this is only the beginning of many more projects to come. ❤️ These are days that I will carry in my heart for a very long time.

And I could not think of a better way to conclude than with Ellie’s words from her closing remarks:
“Everything we do is political, including the creation of historical inquiry, and I believe right now we have a responsibility to engage in politics to help minimise future harm. So I guess this is also my answer for what’s next in the field: be brave and embrace political activism. I truly believe that those same ancient gendered dynamics have the potential to continue to shape modern men, which in turn can shape our modern world.”

So be brave. And keep shaping worlds!

24/08/2026

📌 **Plants and Humans in the Ancient Near East. Roots of Multispecies Connections** 📌

❓ Cosa cambia quando le piante non sono più considerate semplicemente come risorse, ma come soggetti attivi nella relazione tra esseri umani e ambiente?

📚 Il volume *Plants and Humans in the Ancient Near East. Roots of Multispecies Connections* nasce dall'incontro e dalla condivisione di prospettive di ricerca tra il progetto BioANE (*Biodiversity in the Ancient Near East*), diretto da Silvana Di Paolo e Gioele Zisa Sapienza Università di Roma, e il progetto MSCA PLANET (*Plants in the Ancient Near Eastern Texts*), coordinato da Gioele Zisa. L'obiettivo è intercettare e incrementare le ricerche in corso sul tema della biodiversità nel Vicino Oriente antico, considerando prospettive di breve e lungo periodo.

🌿 Il volume riunisce studiose e studiosi provenienti da archeologia e storia dell'arte, assiriologia, archeobotanica e paleoecologia, storia delle religioni ed Environmental Humanities, mettendo in dialogo diverse prospettive per esplorare le molteplici relazioni tra piante e società del Vicino Oriente antico.

📖 Edito da Silvana Di Paolo e Gioele Zisa e pubblicato da Zaphon (Münster) come volume 6 della serie wEdge, il volume è articolato in tre sezioni:

➡️ *Ecological Knowledge: Near and Distant Plant Geographies*
➡️ *Arboreal Imaginaries: Plants as Relational Beings*
➡️ *Vegetality in Art: The Metonymic Imagery*

🔎 Attraverso la diversità e la densità dei saggi proposti, il volume offre nuovi spunti interpretativi sull'interazione tra esseri umani e piante, affrontando le implicazioni ontologiche, ecologiche ed etiche della prospettiva antropocentrica e contribuendo al crescente dialogo tra Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Environmental Humanities e Critical Plant Studies.

🌱 Le piante non sono considerate esclusivamente come parte delle strategie umane di sussistenza, addomesticamento e controllo delle specie, ma soprattutto come esseri “agentivi”, con un ruolo fondamentale nella costruzione dell'esperienza dell'ambiente circostante attraverso le loro capacità rigenerative e la loro versatilità riproduttiva, nella costruzione di significati sociali e culturali e nella rappresentazione simbolica e magica del mondo attraverso fenomeni di feticizzazione e metonimia.

🔗 Per conoscere "Paesaggi e biodiversità | Gruppo di ricerca"
👉 https://www.ispc.cnr.it/it_it/2022/12/15/paesaggi-culturali-e-biodiversita/

🔎 Per approfondire il progetto MSCA PLANET
👉 https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101148482

📚 Per maggiori dettagli sulla pubblicazione
👉 https://www.zaphon.de/epages/83179382.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/83179382/Products/%22ISBN%20978-3-96327-320-9%22
🔗 Serie wEdge
👉 https://www.zaphon.de/wEdge

CNR Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche
CNR DSU

21/08/2026

𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞𝐧, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐬: 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐀𝐬𝐢𝐚

Next week, on 𝟐𝟕–𝟐𝟖 𝐀𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐬𝐭, the 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢 will host Shaping Men, Shaping Worlds: Masculinities in Ancient Western Asia, a two-day workshop exploring how masculinities were imagined, constructed, performed, negotiated, and contested across ancient Western Asia and Egypt.

Bringing together scholars working across Assyriology, Egyptology, Biblical Studies, and related fields, the workshop will explore a wide range of themes, including:

🔹 Economics and etiquette
🔹 Blurring binaries
🔹 Lineage and virility
🔹 Rituals and magic
🔹 Emotions
🔹 Sexualities
🔹 Masculine bodies and performance

We are especially delighted to welcome Prof. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐭𝐢 𝐍𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐧 for the opening keynote: “He-Prophets and Q***r Performers: Prophetic Masculinities in Antiquity.”

📍 27 August: University of Helsinki, Siltavuorenpenger 3, Athena room 348
📍 28 August: University of Helsinki, Fabianinkatu 24, room 532

The workshop is organised within the framework of the 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐀𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬, University of Helsinki, and 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 A𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐬 (PlANET), Sapienza University of Rome and University of Pennsylvania.

We warmly welcome colleagues, students, and anyone interested in the study of gender and masculinities in the ancient world!

Ellie Bennett & Gioele Zisa

25/07/2026

Two unforgettable years are coming to an end, and I would like to share this last photo with my supervisor, Professor 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐓𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐲, in front of the statue of Benjamin Franklin on the beautiful University of Pennsylvania campus.

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Steve for his constant guidance, generosity, encouragement, and support throughout these years. His knowledge and enthusiasm to share his time and experience have had a profound impact on both my research and my personal growth.

Thank you, Steve, for every conversation, every piece of advice, every thoughtful comment, and for creating such a welcoming environment. It has been a privilege to work with you, and I will always be grateful for everything you have done for me during this journey.

08/07/2026

🌿 Spotlight: Sacred Plants in Mesopotamia 🌿

I'm thrilled to share that PlANET's little exhibit 𝐒𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐚 is now on view in the Spotlight Gallery at the 𝐏𝐞𝐧𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐮𝐦!

Cylinder seals and cuneiform tablets tell the deep bond between trees, gods, and humans in Mesopotamian mythology — from the wilderness where Gilgamesh battles lions, to the mahaleb cherry tree in Inanna's garden.

A small space, but full of arboreal stories: for the ancient Mesopotamians, trees were bridges between earth and sky, between humans and gods.

A heartfelt thank you to the Penn Museum staff, Jess Bicknell and Lauren Harrison, for their support in bringing this exhibit to life. Thanks as well to the curators of the Near East Section, Prof. Holly Pittman and Prof. Richard Zettler, to Dr. Katherine Blanchard and Dr. Philip Jones, keepers of the Near East and Babylonian Sections respectively.

And finally, a special thank you to Prof. 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐓𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐲, my supervisor, without whose costant support this project would never have seen the light of day.

Thank you to everyone who stops by to see it in person at the Penn Museum! 🌳

07/07/2026

Today marked my final meeting with Dr. 𝗡𝗮𝗼𝗺𝗶 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 after nearly two years of regular discussions and collaboration at the Penn Museum as part of the PlANET project. 🌱

As one of the world's leading archaeobotanists, Naomi has taught me so much—from the study and interpretation of plant macroremains to reading and understanding pollen diagrams, and from the ecology of the Zagros Mountains and the Iranian Plateau to discussing hypotheses on the identification of plants mentioned in cuneiform texts.
These conversations have greatly enriched both my research and my perspective, reminding me how valuable the exchange of ideas is in science.

Thank you, Naomi, for your time, your generosity, and for sharing your extraordinary knowledge. I hope this is not the end, but the beginning of many more discussions and collaborations.

19/06/2026

🌿 What can plants tell us about the ancient Mesopotamian world?

🎙️ In the new episode of the 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒏 𝑬𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 podcast, I had the pleasure of discussing this question with 𝐉𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐚𝐲𝐥𝐨𝐫 (British Museum) and 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐭 (University of Helsinki).

In this conversation, we explore the world of 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗮: their economic roles, their symbolic meanings, and the challenges of identifying and studying them through both texts and archaeobotanical remains.

I had the opportunity to discuss my Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action 𝗣𝗹𝗔𝗡𝗘𝗧 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 (Plants in the Ancient Near East Texts), its goals, and how it brings together different disciplines to investigate the role of plants in ancient Mesopotamia.

A big thank you to Jon and Ellie for the invitation and for such an engaging and enjoyable discussion!

🎧 The episode is now available on the Thin End of the Wedge website and on Spotify: https://www.wedgepod.org/episode-list/

Give it a listen and let me know what you think.

16/06/2026

Member Spotlight from Marie Curie Alumni Association United States of America Chapter.

For Dr. Gioele Zisa, attending the Marie Curie Alumni Association United States of America Chapter Regional Meeting in Chicago was an opportunity not only to present his Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Global Fellowship project, PLANET (Plants in Ancient Near Eastern Texts), but also to finally meet in person many members of the Marie Curie community he had previously only known online.
Currently a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Global Research Fellow at Sapienza University of Rome and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania, Gioele studies the role of plants in ancient Near Eastern texts, bringing together perspectives from history, anthropology, religion, and cultural studies.
The Chicago meeting offered a unique environment to exchange ideas, explore career paths, and connect with researchers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds.
While the scientific sessions, lightning talks, and discussions on funding opportunities were highly valuable, what resonated most were the informal conversations between sessions.
"It was a reminder that these moments can genuinely shape the way we think about our work and our future paths. What I appreciated most was feeling part of a real community, not just a network."
Celebrating Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s birthday together added a meaningful moment of reflection on the enduring legacy of one of science’s most influential pioneers.
Beyond the academic program, Chicago provided memorable experiences—from exploring the Field Museum and seeing Sue, the world-famous Tyrannosaurus rex fossil, to enjoying a classic slice of Chicago-style pizza with fellow attendees.
Experiences like the Chicago Regional Meeting demonstrate the value of bringing researchers together in person, transforming professional connections into lasting relationships and fostering collaborations that extend far beyond the event itself.
A sincere thank you to Sabina Cveček, the MCAA USA Chapter Board, and all volunteers whose dedication made this inspiring gathering possible.

🌟 Member Spotlight: Dr. Gioele Zisa from Marie Curie Alumni Association United States of America Chapter For Dr. Gioele Zisa, attending the Marie Curie Alumni Association United States of America Chapter Regional Meeting in Chicago was an opportunity not only to present his Marie Skłodowska-Curi...

25/05/2026

🌲On 29 April I had the pleasure of giving a lecture at the 𝐔𝐂𝐈 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬, Irvine 🌴

The lecture 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒆𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒁𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒔 𝑴𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔? 𝑹𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒆𝒔𝒐𝒑𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑬𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑰𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒖 is now available online:

Watch the lecture on YouTube, on the channel of the UCI Jordan Center for Persian Studies:

The Cedars of the Zagros Mountains? Rethinking the Mesopotamian Evidence and its Connections with the Iranian Plateau.A talk by Gioele ZisaUCI Jordan Center ...

25/05/2026

🌿 I am pleased to share my contribution to the volume 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑯𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑵𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝑬𝒂𝒔𝒕. 𝑹𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 (wEdge 6, Zaphon):

𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬: 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭-𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐮𝐦 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐭𝐢-𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐭 𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐲
by Gioele Zisa

The article explores the role of plants in first-millennium BCE Mesopotamian anti-witchcraft rituals and incantations, with particular attention to the so-called "Heilmittel incantations". Rather than treating vegetal substances as passive materia medica et magica, the study investigates how plants were conceptualized as living, intelligent, and agentive beings actively participating in ritual performances.
Through the analysis of poetic language, etymologies, metaphorical associations, and performative invocations, the article shows how plants acquired therapeutic efficacy within Mesopotamian ritual practice. It argues that anti-witchcraft botany in ancient Mesopotamia must be understood within a broader relational ontology in which plants possessed agency, intentionality, and cosmological significance. 🌱

This contribution reflects my broader interest in multispecies relationships, Environmental Humanities, and the intersections between Assyriology, Ritual Studies, and Critical Plant Studies.

Link to the pubblication: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20384981