A few items of note:   National Classical Etymological Online Exam September 29, 2011 latinteach Classics in Decline September 29, 2011 Jona Lendering Ancient and Modern October 1, 2011 (Peter Jones) On This Day in Ancient History – The Last Days of Pompey September 29, 2011 (N.S. Gill) IOT: The Etruscans 29 Sep 11 September [...]

pridie kalendas octobres 480 B.C. — birth of Euripides (not sure of the source of this one) 286 A.D. — martyrdom of Victor and Ursus 420 A.D. — death of Jerome 1452 — first Gutenberg Bible printed (?)  

… back on track: Round-Up: September 28 September 27, 2011  (Laura Gibbs) Book: Nascere vivere e morire a Pompei September 28, 2011  (Jo Berry) New exhibitions September 28, 2011  (Jo Berry) On This Day in Ancient History – Death of Pompey the Great September 28, 2011 (N.S. Gill) OPEN LETTER – TO THE ITALIAN ARCHAEOLOGISTS [...]

I had no internet early this a.m., so my blogging rhythm is a bit off today: Round-Up: September 26 September 26, 2011  (Laura Gibbs) AD vs CE September 26, 2011 Mary Beard Top Five Greek Gods September 26, 2011 (Juliette) An example of why abolishing AD and BC causes problems September 27, 2011 Roger Pearse [...]

My spiders brought back this really interesting page which has info on all the versions of Ben Hur (with plenty of eye candy posters) … definitely worth a look: Ben Hur: The Making of an Epic (blu-ray.com)

ante diem iv kalendas octobres 48 B.C. — Pompeius Magnus, in the wake of his defeat at Pharsalus, is murdered as he steps ashore in Egypt  

Not sure how long this will be available (these BBC things tend to disappear) … it appeared on BBC4 last weekend and is based on Adrienne Mayor’s First Fossil Hunters … enjoy:

Very interesting blog out of France which came to my attention via Delphine Regnard on Twitter: Langues et Cultures de l’Antiquité … plenty of news, reviews (book and plenty of games), and the like … worth a look if you’re comfortable with the French! I’ll regularly be scanning this one for inclusion in our Circumundique [...]

ante diem v kalendas octobres 70 A.D. — Roman armies break through the walls of the upper city of Jerusalem (by one reckoning)  

The Mayor has a really good rant on the subject in the Telegraph … here’s the meat of the piece: [...] So this is not some trivial bureaucratic thing: it is a change with subtle but extensive cultural ramifications. I object, first, because no one is asking for this change. I once did a few [...]

Interesting item from the Today’s Zaman: The Croesus Treasure, a collection of artifacts from the time of King Croesus’ rule of the Lydian Kingdom between 560 and 547 B.C., has had a turbulent history since its discovery back in the ‘60s, causing many to believe that the treasure, also known as the Lydian Hoard, is [...]

Peter Jones, in addition to his regular Ancient and Modern column in the Spectator, has just penned (in the same publication) an item about the Classics for All effort Some 15 years ago, at the behest of the then editor Charles Moore, I wrote a jovial 20-week QED: Learn Latin column for the Daily Telegraph. [...]

Adrian Murdoch continues the series with the guy who made his name (literally) taking on the Gothic threat: #35 Claudius Gothicus: Emperors of Rome

What the bloggers were up to yesterday: Three days in Rome September 25, 2011 Peter Stothard Anti-Roman Insurgency and the Significance of Popular Support September 25, 2011 History of the Ancient World A Comparative Study Of The Historiography Of The Battle Of Mons Graupius September 25, 2011 History of the Ancient World Celtic Settlement in [...]

ante diem vi kalendas octobres 46 B.C. — dedication of the Temple of Venus Genetrix (and associated rites thereafter) 303 A.D. — martyrdom of Cosmas and Damian 304 A.D. — martyrdom of Cyprian 1687 — a Venetian mortar ignites a store of Turkish gunpowder being stored in the Parthenon, causing much damage.  

Interesting item from the Sunday Times (Sri Lanka): Embossed on the gold coin is the arrogant profile of Alexander the Great. On it, the young conqueror’s features endure: his luxuriant curly hair and the crooked line of his broken nose; his elongated cheeks and large, unblinking eyes. Curiously though, his head is covered in the [...]

Brief item from the Greek Reporter: Charlotte Casiraghi claims to be a big fan of the Ancient Greek language and of Greek philosphers. The oldest daughter of Caroline, Princess of Hanover, and fourth in line to the throne of Monaco, is studying Philosophy of the Hellenistic and Roman Period and carries around in her bag [...]

… comic over at Joy of Tech (tip o’ the pileus to David Emery) …

The Save Classics at Royal Holloway folks have put up an interesting promotional video about the Sheffield Festival of Ancient Drama: More info: Sheffest, the Sheffield Festival of Ancient Drama.