Restoring Philip II’s Palace

ANA has a brief item on the restoration work ongoing at Philip II’s palace at Aigai. From the conclusion:

The restoration of the two-storey gallery (stoa) in the building’s front section was a “revelation” for archaeologists’ studying ancient architecture, as it contradicted earlier beliefs according to which such galleries were a later practice, dating in the 2nd century BC. The galleries’ architectural sections are built based on the “golden mean” ratio (1 to 1.6). Archaeologists believe that Pytheos was the palace’s architect, who had also designed the mausoleum of Halicarnassus, while the mausoleum’s sculptor Leocharis had also worked on the palace of Aigai.

Classicists in the News 04/04/09

Richard Martin’s approach to Homer was the subject of a press release from UWSTL:

Michael Halleran is now provost at William and Mary:

Exhibition: Etruscan Treasures from Tuscany

From the Temple and the Tomb: Etruscan Treasures from Tuscany

January 25-May 17

Meadows Museum (SMU Dallas)

Exhibition website (not much there; a few general images; elsewhere SMU has a slideshow):

Reviews/Press Coverage:

Training Legions

Another claim about the ancient world, this time from something called Total Health Breakthroughs:

Rocky Marciano did it. Muhammad Ali did it. And many, many other old-time boxers(and old time wrestlers for that matter) did it too.

But maybe the most unique and unusual group to use this exercise — that you never heard of — were the Roman legions.

How do you train hundreds upon hundreds of men to be in tip-top physical shape to go into battle?

Good question.

History reveals these men twisted thin green grapevines together and used them as jump ropes.

I think we’ve mentioned this ‘skipping legions’ claim before, so again we ask … does anyone have a source for this?

Hypatia Flick

Not sure if we’ve mentioned this Hypatia flick yet, mention of which I had misfiled quite a while ago. Agora appears to be a movie about Hypatia, set in the late 4th century A.D. and possibly portraying a Christian-inspired burning of the Library of Alexandria. There’s an official website, but all it seems to have at this point is the following trailer (albeit better quality):