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Rostrum
(669 words)

[German version]

A rostrum (Greek βῆμα/bêma; Latin plural rostra,) is an elevated podium, a pulpit (early Christian ámbōn, Lat. ambo), or a type of stand, shaped in a variety of forms, which raises the speaker above his audience. This is useful not only from an acoustic point of view, but also lends importance to the protagonist acting on the podium, as it 'lifts' him in a significant way over his surroundings.

Rostrum-like devices must already have been present in the archaic Greek citizen communities, as in all larger communities of colonists which had to decide by consensus (polis). Yet…

Cite this page
Höcker, Christoph (Kissing), “Rostrum”, in: Brill’s New Pauly, Antiquity volumes edited by: Hubert Cancik and , Helmuth Schneider, English Edition by: Christine F. Salazar, Classical Tradition volumes edited by: Manfred Landfester, English Edition by: Francis G. Gentry. Consulted online on 28 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1574-9347_bnp_e1019790>
First published online: 2006
First print edition: 9789004122598, 20110510



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