Katell Berthelot

Prof. Katell Berthelot is a CNRS Professor at University of Aix-Marseille, France, specializing in ancient Jewish history within Greco-Roman contexts. Her academic leadership includes directing the ERC-funded research program Judaism and Rome (2014-2019) examining Jewish-Roman intellectual encounters.

Her research centers on Jewish responses to Greco-Roman accusations of misanthropy, Hasmonean political theology, and Jewish-Roman ideological competition. Key contributions analyze how Jewish communities navigated Hellenistic diplomacy while maintaining biblical identity frameworks, particularly during the Roman imperial period.

Berthelot's publications reveal consistent focus on Jewish agency within imperial structures, with recent work emphasizing comparative analysis of Roman and Jewish conceptions of land, power, and divine favor. Her scholarship bridges textual analysis of Maccabean literature with broader socio-political contexts of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Award Highlights:

• National Jewish Book Award (Scholarship, 2021) for Jews and their Roman Rivals

Research leadership includes the 5-year ERC program Judaism and Rome investigating how Jewish thought evolved through confrontation with Roman imperial ideology. Her work demonstrates extensive engagement with primary sources across Greek, Latin, and Hebrew/Aramaic textual traditions.