Dr. Jeremy Simmons

Biography

Jeremy Simmons investigates the wider ancient world—what Greco-Roman geographers thought oikoumene, spanning roughly from Iberia to India. He focuses on texts and material culture of the Greek and Roman world, ancient Near East, and Indian subcontinent. His current research addresses long-distance maritime commerce in the western Indian Ocean during the early centuries of the Common Era. Simmons is preparing a forthcoming monograph, Sea Treasures: Cultural History Ancient Indian Ocean Trade (Princeton University Press, Summer 2026), which focuses on the consumption of goods traded in the Indian Ocean during antiquity, addressing the representative Mediterranean and Indian commodities in new social and cultural contexts. His upcoming research projects will continue to explore material historical directions while focusing on broader frameworks of oceanic history. Simmons teaches courses on Afro-Eurasian connectivity and comparative approaches to ancient conceptions of the world. He earned a Ph.D. in Classical Studies from Columbia University and a B.A. in Classics and Near Eastern Studies from the University of California, Berkeley. Before coming to Chicago, he was a visiting assistant professor at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (New York University) and an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park. Simmons has held residential fellowships at the American Academy in Rome (FAAR '20) and Harvard University's Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, DC (2023), as well as the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton (2024).

Research Interests

Experience