Bimillennium [Top]

A bimillennium is more than a chronological marker; it is a "purely notional" yet powerful opportunity for systematic reassessment. The early 21st century has witnessed a cluster of these anniversaries, most notably the 2,000th anniversary of the death of Augustus (AD 14–2014) and the death of Ovid (AD 17–2017). These milestones have sparked a "wave of new and creative scholarly interest," prompting historians and classicists to move beyond traditional hagiography toward more complex, "disfigured," or "globalized" interpretations of Roman legacy. The Augustan Bimillennium (2014)

The 2,000th anniversary of Ovid's death saw the first professional meeting in China dedicated to the poet, titled "Globalizing Ovid," which explored his influence on 18th-century Chinese porcelain. bimillennium

Contemporary readings of Ovid's exile poetry have shifted to look at the "disfiguration" of his career—a "real and abominable" event that tore his life apart, rather than just a literary trope. A bimillennium is more than a chronological marker;