quidquid bene dictum est ab ullo, meum est
Something a little different this year … here’s the final clip of the 1960 Last Days of Pompeii (it’s the part where the volcano erupts etc. … very cheesy):
If you want to watch the whole thing … begin here (then click the links in the info boxes). Wired has a nice feature on the ‘techie’ side today as well …
Among assorted recipients of NEA grants for translation projects is Charlotte Mandell … here’s her project:
To support the translation from French of the novel Zone by Mathias Énard. Written in a single sentence and based on the structure of The Iliad, Zone is more than 500 pages long, and was a critical success in France when published in 2008. The narrative unfolds during a train journey from Milan to Rome, and interweaves the narrator’s experiences in the war in Yugoslavia with other stories of war — from the Trojan War to World War II to present-day clashes. Winner of the Prix Décembre 2008, Zone is Énard’s fourth novel, and the first that will be translated into English. This translation will be published by Open Letter Books in mid-2010. Born in 1972, Énard studied Persian and Arabic and lived for long periods of time in the Middle East. He currently resides in Barcelona.
Looks interesting …
Some interesting finds from a Roman-era Thracian tomb … the first report (August 16) from Novinite:
Bulgarian archeologists have found a unique golden wreath in an unnamed mound near the South-East village of Krushare, Sliven District.
This has been announced Sunday by the archeologist Diana Dimitrova, who was wife of the late great Bulgarian archeologist, Georgi Kitov.
Until that moment, numerous objects have been found in the mound – a bronze candlestick, a glass rhyton, a huge bronze amphora, a golden bracelet, other golden objects, and glass vessels with some kind of liquid in them.
The excavations continue and more find are expected to come up.
Dimitrova’s team is taking part in the excavations Archeology Summer “Sliven 2009”, which began on June 9.
In the initial plans of the team, there were 3-4 mounds marked. In is the third year in a row that the Sliven Municipality financially supports the “TEMP” expedition. This was Georgi Kitov’s expedition.
His goal was to prove that the Valley of the Thracian Kings lies to the big branch of the Tundzha river next to the city of Sliven.
A couple of days later, another report added (inter alia) that a leather purse containing some coins had been found. Here’s an image of the bronze candlestick in situ:
rogueclassicism 