Daniel J. Sheridan is the Fellow in East-West Intersections at the American Academy of Rome. He received his Ph.D. in Chinese Studies in 2024 from the University of Cambridge, where he was a Gates Cambridge Scholar. As part of his unique interdisciplinary training, he was also previously awarded a M.A. in Iranian Studies (with Distinction) from SOAS University of London. A revised version of his Ph.D. dissertation on Sogdian Christians is available this year through Brepols. Through memory, transmitted texts, manuscripts, and other witnesses from material culture, his work explores the diverse histories of the so-called Silk Roads, the historic Afro-Eurasian trade routes.
How has your time in Rome shaped or shifted the direction of your project so far?
With my first book project soon to be published, here in Rome I have had the opportunity to lay the foundations of a new project on forgotten perceptions of medicine, healing, and wellbeing, and my fellowship has allowed me to cast my net of inquiry wide during these early stages. For example, walking the Via Appia through the old Aurelian gates to the Baths of Caracalla and on into the heart of the old city, I gained perspective that I could not have attained by reading alone. My reading journeys have also gone far beyond my immediate disciplinary boundaries. Exploring the stacks as well as being a participant in countless conversations yielded a number of unlooked-for gems.
What part of your daily routine or environment at the Academy has most influenced you and your work?
The proximity of the tranquil Academy gardens with the library has been quite advantageous for my work. From where I sit in my office, the excellent Academy library is at my fingertips or more literally right beneath my feet. After reading for a while, reading fatigue eventually sets in, which I take as a great reminder to get up and 'digest' my readings a bit (i.e. go downstairs to the Bass Garden or other nearby gardens to walk and reflect under the olive or citrus trees).
Have any encounters — with people, places, new information — opened up new paths in your research or practice in the past months?
Yes, though there have been so many such encounters that it is hard for me to single out particular ones. Because my work has mostly focused on the eastern branches of the so-called 'Silk Roads', the Walk & Talks led by Caroline Goodson, Andrew W. Mellon Humanities Professor at the Academy, have been invaluable in getting to know Rome better and also transformed how I think of things like 'walls'. Additionally, the chance to interact with a community of both artists and scholars has opened up new horizons for me as to what might be possible in how to share what I am learning with others. Preparing my Shoptalk with Akima Brackeen, Fellow in Architecture, underscored for me the importance of the acoustics of a space in relation to human wellbeing as well as introducing me to particular tools that might aid such a consideration.