quidquid bene dictum est ab ullo, meum est
As I wade deeper into the catchup file, I note this one from a while ago (I think I should give Terrence Lockyer a tip o’ the pileus on this one … not sure if I saw it on my own or whether he brought it to my attention):
Poem of the week: My Sweetest Lesbia by Thomas Campion | Guardian.
… and we note that Ralph Hancock pointed the Classics list to a very Elizabethan-sounding performance of the poem …
This is actually interesting, if somewhat nutty … here’s a relevant excerpt to get you to ‘make the jump’:
The Altar’s notoriety in Christian circles stems from the aforementioned possible reference in the Book of Revelation 2:12–13:
And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.Dr Volker Kästner is a leading archæologist specialising in the city of Pergamon. He has worked at the Pergamon Museum since 1982 and has been heavily involved in its continuing restoration. For him, the idea that Pergamon is “where Satan’s seat is” can be explained: “Pergamon was seen by Byzantine sources as a particularly pagan place where unchristian cults thrived, and with some imagination the Altar could resemble a throne. Secondly, the Altar’s frieze encompasses many sculpted snakes, which since Antiquity have been viewed as a symbol connected to the underworld, representing something inhuman – but it’s all speculation.”
The article goes on to mention the altar as backdrop to his DNC acceptance speech as well, which is interesting insofar as that is what it reminded ME (innocently … no Satanic overtones) of when we mentioned it, although I might be confusing events. I hadn’t found the CBS item mentioned in the Fortean Times footnotes which also made the connection …
Galba rarely gets any press from anyone, much less the mainstream press, so when he is mentioned, we better note it. Inter alia from an item in the Times:
Martha Lane Fox is to establish a special unit in the Cabinet Office as she steps up her part in Gordon Brown’s plan to get ten million adults who have never used the internet online. As this was announced her father, the classicist Robin Lane Fox, was comparing Brown’s rule to that of Galba, one of the less successful Roman emperors.
via There are ways of stopping you laughing | Times Online.
… and I note that I saved the Daily Mail coverage:
Robin Lane Fox, Fellow of New College, Oxford, and father of internet whizz kid Martha, gave his verdict on Gordon Brown at a dinner for Oxford classicists.
He quoted Roman historian Tacitus on the Emperor Galba: ‘Capax imperii nisi imperasset’ – capable of being in charge if only he had never been in charge.
I think something was lost in the translation.
… and the Daily Mail reveals, well, you know, what the Daily Mail often reveals …
Seen on Classicists (please send any responses to the folks mentioned in the quoted text, not to rogueclassicism!):
Second Viennese International Colloquium on Ancient Legal History, Vienna,
Austria
Zweites Wiener Internationales Kolloquium zur Antiken Rechtsgeschichte27.-28.10.2011
Sport and Law in Antiquity
Ever since the archaic period, athletic and musical contests were an
integral part of religious festivals. Research into ancient agonistics
therefore constitutes a crucial area of classical scholarship. The aim of
our conference in Vienna is to investigate the legal context of athletic and
non-athletic contests in classical antiquity from the archaic to the late
Roman period. Apart from considering the actual rules of such contests and
questions concerning umpires, we intend to focus in particular on the
different forms of organization of contests, their integration into the
framework of public administration and the status of founders, sponsors and
donors of such competitions. Moreover, we would like to discuss the social
status and legal privileges of participants. We are also open to suggestions
for papers on related topics outside the main lines of enquiry indicated
above. We are delighted to announce that one of the most distinguished
scholars in ancient athletics, Prof. Ingomar Weiler (University of Graz,
Austria), will present the keynote address.We aim to assemble a varied and comprehensive programme, and we would
therefore like to invite potential contributors to submit a title and
300-word abstract by 25th May 2010. Papers should not exceed 30 minutes in
length, which will be followed by 20 minutes of discussion. The proceedings
of the conference will be published in the series edited by the Commission
for History of Ancient Law.Dr. Kaja Harter-Uibopuu
kaja.harter AT oeaw.ac.atUD Dr. Thomas Kruse
thomas.kruse AT oeaw.ac.at
Seen on Classicists (please send any responses to the folks mentioned in the quoted text, not to rogueclassicism!):
University of London School of Advanced Study
INSTITUTE OF CLASSICAL STUDIES
joint ancient history — classical archaeology seminar
Thursdays 4.30 pm
Senate House South Block G22/26
Spring term – Organizers: Alexandra Villing (BM) and Hans van Wees (UCL)
Contacts: AVilling AT thebritishmuseum.ac.uk
ucrahvw AT ucl.ac.ukPROGRAMME SUMMER 2010
ANCIENT TRADE: textual and material evidence
This seminar series brings together ancient historians and classical archaeologists to discuss questions of evidence and method, focused on the topic of trade in the ancient world. In order to stimulate discussion, we propose an artificially strict separation of textual and material evidence. In each session, a historian will discuss what the textual evidence (literary and epigraphical) can and cannot tell us about a range of aspects of trade, and an archaeologist will do the same for the material evidence. We hope that this approach will serve to identify the most significant differences between the pictures which emerge from each kind of source, to determine the extent to which these pictures are complementary or mutually exclusive, and to explore the implications for our interpretation of the evidence.
13 May Archaic Greece
Errietta Bissa (Lampeter) and Thomas Brisart (Oxford / Brussels)
20 May Classical Greece
Robin Osborne (Cambridge) and Alan Johnston (UCL / ICS)
27 May The central Mediterranean 600–300
Tim Cornell (Manchester) and Gabriele Cifani (Rome)
3 June Imperial Rome
Neville Morley (Bristol) and Kris Lockyear (UCL)
10 June Indo-Roman trade
Dominic Rathbone (KCL) and Roberta Tomber (BM)
Academic Events Office, Institute of Classical Studies, Senate House South Block 245A
Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU
admin.icls AT sas.ac.uk
020 7862 8700
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