Where does the Mediterranean end, anyway? I took a train to Graz, Austria, to find out. During the workshop “Coasts, Cultures, Constructs” (17–18 April 2026), organized by Hannah Barmüller, Juliana Reinisch, and Hans Scherer, perspectives from different disciplines (Classics, Law, Philosophy, Tourism studies etc.) as well as different languages and career levels were brought together. The discussions broadened not only the participants’ own horizons, but also challenged geographical constructs (through, for example, thinking about transatlantic travel) of the Mediterranean. Thus, entanglements could be made out on a micro-level as well as on a macro-level; the same holds true for intellectual developments, starting in antiquity and sometimes finding their way to modern times, as in the case of Aulus Gellius’ treatment of Pliny’s Naturalis historia, which I discussed as part of Gellius’ still potent educational program. Temporal and geographical lines finally transcended the eponymous coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and led our group to Graz, where we not only enjoyed academic conversations but also the fabulous early springtime.

The workshop took place under the aegis of the network “Trans-Mediterranean Entanglements” (University of Graz).