As far as I’m aware, this item has only appeared in a Greek newspaper and only came to my attention via a post on the Classics list by Lampros Kallenos. I find it interesting on a couple of levels, not least of which is the fact that the discovery of cemetery in which this young victim of Athens’ plague was found is what basically launched most of my online activities in regards to disseminating news coverage of things of interest to Classicists and Classical archaeologists.

I won’t lay claim to being able to read modern Greek with any suitable degree of authority, but the Google translate feature gives a reasonable gist … essentially the skull of an 11-year-old girl, dubbed ‘Myrtis’ (because of the stage her teeth were at when she died), was found back in 1994 with suitable preservation for a facial reconstruction. Microsoft funded the research of Manolis J. Papagrigorakis et al and the results were revealed last week (why did it take so long?). There will be an associated exhibition at the Museum of Natural History in Athens and it will be going ‘on the road’ later …

• Ενα πρόσωπο 2.500 ετών πάλι στο φως

The Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and the Ancient World was recently awarded an $180,000 grant from the Getty Foundation to begin work on an international project titled “The Arts of Rome’s Provinces.”

The grant is intended to develop an “international conversation about art history,” said Natalie Kampen, visiting professor of Roman archaeology and art, who will lead the project with Susan Alcock, professor of classics and director of the Joukowsky Institute.

But Kampen said she and Alcock are “not teachers in any way.” They will be “facilitators” who will bring together groups of professionals that may not have encountered each other otherwise, she said.

Twenty people with terminal degrees will be chosen to be a part of the project, Kampen said. “There is a wide spectrum of people who could conceivably be involved in this.”

She and Alcock will send invitations to experts in the discipline of art history and related fields — to scholars at universities, museums and professional organizations throughout the world — to apply to participate. Alcock, Kampen and a small international committee will choose the fellows.

Because art history is studied differently in each part of the world, the project will aim to “figure out how these different kinds of art histories can benefit each other,” Kampen said.

Local traditions will lend a new perspective to the subject, she added.

“What we’re proposing is to do our project in two separate countries and in each country at several different sites,” Kampen said. She called the project a “movable feast” because the fellows will study Roman art history and archaeology in both Greece and England.

The foundation approached Kampen and Alcock several years ago and asked if they would form a project to internationalize art history and apply for the grant. “As a 1976 Ph.D. from Brown, I knew I wanted to bring the grant back to Brown to say thank you,” said Kampen, who is a professor of women’s studies and art history at Barnard College.

She and Alcock planned a project that “nobody had ever done before,” Kampen said.

Though she is excited for the work to begin, she said she is nervous about organizing such a large project.

Kampen said she has been asking the question, “Why is art produced in different parts of the Roman empire different?,” for her entire career. Now, with tools and insights that the other fellows will contribute, she said she hopes not only to “find answers” but also to “figure out interesting ways to ask questions.”

Being able to work on the project is “one of these great opportunities that you never think you’ll get,” Kampen said.

via – Art historians dig into ‘movable feast’ | The Brown Daily Herald.

A WORLD-famous museum has promised to update its visitor information, after wrongly claiming that no Roman chariot circus had been found in Britain.

Colchester borough and county councillor Kevin Bentley took the British Museum to task after spotting the error during a trip to London with his wife Karen.

The town’s own Circus Maximus was discovered by the Colchester Archaeological Trust in 2004.

Work is now under way to show the circus’s layout, and secure £750,000 for the Sergeants’ Mess and gardens under which lie its eight starting gates.

Mr Bentley wrote to museum director Neil MacGregor requesting not only a correction, but help directing tourists to Colchester, the site of northern Europe’s only known circus.

In response, Dr Ralph Jackson, curator of Romano-British Collections, said: “As you can imagine, we frequently up-date and refresh our galleries, and brief details of Colchester’s circus were added, fairly soon after its discovery, to one of the labels in the most appropriate part of the ‘Roman army’ case, as well as to our website.

“You are quite correct, though, that the follow-up change to the in-case hanging information panel has not yet been made.

“I am grateful to you for drawing our attention to that, and I shall ensure that it is done as soon as possible,” he added.

Mr Bentley, a former cabinet member for culture and tourism, said what little information there was on Colchester’s circus find had been buried away on a small information board, while a larger version claimed no circus had ever been found in Britain.

“I am just delighted that they have recognised that the board needs updating, and, of course, this is a chance to promote Colchester,” he said.

“It is not about getting one over on the British Museum. It is about getting it corrected, and point people towards Colchester. And, of course, it is a chance for people in Colchester to go and see their town mentioned in the British Museum.” […]

via Colchester: British Museum to correct Roman Circus slip-up |Essex County Standard.

In case you happen to be in Rome next week, here’s a list of assorted events which are going on to celebrate the 2763rd anniversary of Romulus and Remus’ little spat:

2.763° Natale di Roma: ecco il programma | Prima Press.