Laurie
Venters

Dr. Laurie Venters is a postdoctoral researcher in ancient history with a strong focus on the lived experiences of enslaved people in the early Roman Empire. His current work explores how the expansion of long-distance human trafficking—from around 100 BCE to 100 CE—shaped Roman ideas about racial difference. Specifically, he investigates how physical features such as skin colour, hair texture, facial structure, and height were used to construct a sense of Otherness around enslaved individuals brought to Italy during this period.

Laurie investigates how physical features were used to construct a sense of Otherness around enslaved individuals brought to Italy from around 100 BCE to 100 CE.

Laurie completed a BA in history at Royal Holloway, University of London, followed by an MA in ancient history at Leiden University and a PhD in ancient history at the University of Bonn. He previously held a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Fondazione 1563 per l’Arte e la Cultura. Before beginning his academic career, Laurie worked as an English teacher in Beijing, China.