UWTSD Hosts International Conference Exploring Ancient Eurasian Networks

12 November 2025

The University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) recently welcomed leading international scholars to its Lampeter campus for the conference Going beyond Empires: Oasis Polities, Imperial Frontiers and Trade across Ancient Eurasia in Antiquity.

Mathew Cobb of UWTSD presenting during the Going beyond Empires: Oasis Polities, Imperial Frontiers and Trade across Ancient Eurasia in Antiquity conference at UWTSD's Founders Library in Lampeter

The two-day event brought together over two dozen researchers from the United States, Norway, the United Kingdom, and mainland Europe to explore new perspectives on connectivity, exchange, and interaction across the ancient Eurasian world.

Papers ranged widely in scope from discussions of fringe landscapes in Inner Asia, presented by Annie Chan (Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich), to analyses of the desert-dwelling Blemmyes as intermediaries in long-distance trade, delivered by Emilia Smagur and Jerzy Oleksiak (University of Warsaw).

The conference was co-organised by UWTSD’s Dr Matthew Cobb and Dr Tomas Larsen Høisæter (Western Norway University of Applied Sciences) as part of the wider collaborative research project Like Islands in a Sea of Sand: Understanding the Silk Roads of Late Antiquity as a Layered Network Model, funded by the Norwegian Research Council.

A particular highlight was the participation of former UWTSD Humanities student Daniel Bartle (BA Ancient History and Archaeology; MRes Ancient History), who presented a paper entitled Interactions across the Imperial Frontier: The Indus Valley between India and Iran. Reflecting on the event, Daniel said:

“I found the Going Beyond Empires conference to be both interesting and insightful, providing new perspectives and focusing on regions I had not previously much considered, which have since become an additional focus of my research. It was also good seeing the campus host such events again, and I hope to attend more in the future.”

Current students also took the opportunity to engage with the conference, including Isabelle Waine (MA Ancient History), who travelled from North Wales to attend. Isabelle commented:

“I was fortunate to be able to attend a day of this well-attended conference in the [Founders] Library at the lovely Lampeter campus, in early October.”

Reflecting on the success of the conference, Dr Matthew Cobb, Senior Lecturer in Ancient History at UWTSD, said:

“Going Beyond Empires was an excellent opportunity to bring together colleagues from across the world to share their latest research on ancient Eurasian networks. The discussions were lively, thought-provoking, and truly interdisciplinary, highlighting both the diversity and the interconnectedness of ancient societies. We’re especially grateful to everyone who contributed to making the event such a success from our visiting speakers and students to the porters, catering and professional services teams who supported us throughout.

I would also like to extend particular thanks to Ruth Gooding from RBLA Special Collections for preparing a wonderful display of rare materials that enriched the experience for our guests, and to The Lampeter Society for their generous contribution to welcoming our international participants. The conference showed the very best of what Lampeter can offer - a warm welcome, academic excellence, and a deep engagement with the past.”