Month: September 2021

#Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for September 6, 2021

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. VIII Id. Sept. 2774 AUC ~ 29 Metageitnion in the first year of the 700th Olympiad

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Heus, you want to learn Latin? Salve sodalis, you have come to the right place. This is a Latin podcast for beginners. With the series “Litterae Latinae Simplices”, you will set up for a journey into Latin literature, in easy spoken Latin.

n 83/84 AD a battle was fought somewhere in Scotland between the Roman forces of Gnaeus Julius Agricola and the ‘Caledonians’ – the great climax to Agricola’s campaigns in Northern Britain. Details of the clash are few and far between, with our sole literary source for the event being the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus. But how much of Tacitus’ account can we really believe? And what locations have archaeologists suggested as being the site of this lost battlefield? Taking on the challenge of this much-debated ancient military event is Dr Andrew Tibbs, a History Hit veteran and an expert on the Romans in Scotland. In the first part of this podcast Andrew explains the background to Agricola’s campaigns in the north and the account of the Battle of Mons Graupius itself. In the second segment we look at some of the locations proposed as the site of this enigmatic ancient battle.

Lucius Vorenus begins his new job as a politician but is caught up in a disagreement between Caesar and his veterans. Titus Pullo continues his downward spiral, and Brutus begins to question his allegiance to Caesar.

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‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends the power of women will be greater than what is appropriate to their nature.

… adapted from the text and translation of:

Jean MacIntosh Turfa, The Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar, in Nancy Thomson de Grummond and Erika Simon (eds.), The Religion of the Etruscans. University of Texas Press, 2006. (Kindle edition)

#Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for September 4, 2021

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est pr. Non. Sept. 2774 AUC ~ 26 Metageitnion in the first year of the 700th Olympiad

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In this week’s episode, we’re heading back over to Greece to look at this terrible twosome, Scylla and Charybdis! How does the term between a rock and a hard place come from these two mythical monsters? Why are these two put in the same podcast in the first place? Find out in this week’s episode!

In this episode, /u/Kugelfang52 talks with /u/Toldinstone about various topics of interest from his upcoming book on Greek and Roman society, Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants. Included are the following questions: “Did they believe in monsters, ghosts, and/or aliens?” “Why are so many of their statues naked?” “Why didn’t the Greeks or Romans wear pants?”  “What were the greatest delicacies?” “What happened to the city of Rome after the empire collapsed?”

Edward J. Watts is a professor of history at the University of California, San Diego, and author and editor of several prize-winning books, including THE FINAL PAGAN GENERATION, a great book about HYPATIA, a book out about the collapse of the Roman Republic, MORTAL REPUBLIC, and his latest book is THE ETERNAL DECLINE AND FALL OF ROME. This is part one of a massive two-and-a-half-hour chat we had recently.

The writing system used on the Island of Cyprus during the Late Bronze Age is known by the neologism, Cypro-Minoan. Dr Philippa Steele, University of Cambridge, joins the show to explain what’s known about it.

Unlike Spain, Sicily had been relatively quiet during the opening years of the Second Punic War. That all changed in 216 BC with the death of Hiero II, King of Syracuse. Staunchly pro-Roman, Hiero had feared that his grandson and natural heir, Hieronymus, would lead Syracuse to disaster. His greatest fears were justified – shortly after the old king’s death, Hieronymus broke with Rome and allied with Hannibal. When Hieronymus was assassinated, one of the most confused and confusing conflicts of the Second Punic War began, one which would ultimately culminate in the sacking of the greatest Greek city in Magna Graecia.

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Alia

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

[Saturday] If it thunders today, it portends the downfall of powerful men and preparations for war.

[Sunday] If it thunders today, it portends an abundance of barley but a shortage of wheat.

… adapted from the text and translation of:

Jean MacIntosh Turfa, The Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar, in Nancy Thomson de Grummond and Erika Simon (eds.), The Religion of the Etruscans. University of Texas Press, 2006. (Kindle edition)

#Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for September 3, 2021

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. III Non. Sept. 2774 AUC ~ 26 Metageitnion in the first year of the 700th Olympiad

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In this essay, ‘History is People’ acclaimed historical novelist Rosemary discussed her responsibilities as a children’s author and her belief that human nature remains essentially consistent and relatable throughout history, using a range of texts from the Homeric Age to the English Civil War to illustrate her points. The essay was originally distributed at a conference for the Children’s Literature in Education journal in Exeter in 1971, and was later reprinted in the 1973 anthology Children and Literature: Views and Reviews, edited by Virginia Haviland, which is where this reading is taken from.

Linear B is the writing system that was used by the civilization(s) known as the Mycenaeans. Professor and Chair of the Department of Classics at the University of Colorado Boulder, Dr. Dimitri Nakassis, joins the show to discuss this Late Bronze Age writing system.

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‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends heavy rains and war.

… adapted from the text and translation of:

Jean MacIntosh Turfa, The Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar, in Nancy Thomson de Grummond and Erika Simon (eds.), The Religion of the Etruscans. University of Texas Press, 2006. (Kindle edition)

#Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for September 2, 2021

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. IV Non. Sept. 2774 AUC ~ 25 Metageitnion in the first year of the 700th Olympiad

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When one mentions Roman military installations you would be forgiven for instantly thinking of their forts, the remains of which we can see today dotted around the country. From the Kent coast to central Scotland. But what about their camps, these often-temporary structures that formed a keystone of Roman military activity. Roman camps have now been discovered across the former empire, but Britain boasts a wealth of them. To discuss the different types of camps and how we can tell them apart, Tristan spoke to Dr Rebecca Jones from Historic Environment Scotland. Rebecca explains why Scotland in particular is the best place to study marching camps, and why there is such a concentration of them on the Roman Empire’s northernmost frontier. Rebecca is the author of ‘Roman Camps in Britain’.

The Samnites were a group of communities from the central Apennine Mountains who shared certain traits and that predominantly appear in the historical sources in the second half of the first millennium BCE. Historian, Dr Rafael Scopacasa, returns to the show to discuss what scholars know about the Samnites in fifth century BCE.

The conventional wisdom is that sex workers in ancient Greece were divided into two main categories: pornai who were enslaved in brothels, and hetaerae, who were elite courtesans. That’s actually a drastic oversimplification. This is the beginning of a journey into the world of sex workers in ancient Greece. Join us as we explore what life was like for sex workers at every level of the profession—including those who didn’t fit easily into these categories.

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Alia

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends discord among the common folk.

… adapted from the text and translation of:

Jean MacIntosh Turfa, The Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar, in Nancy Thomson de Grummond and Erika Simon (eds.), The Religion of the Etruscans. University of Texas Press, 2006. (Kindle edition)

#Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for September 1, 2021

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est Kal. Sept. 2774 AUC ~ 24 Metageitnion in the first year of the 700th Olympiad

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Our dive into Lucretius continues this week and after a quick review of Epicureanism we get to the particulars.  First up, Memmius, Lucretius’ patron to whom he dedicated his work. Why him? From the few shenanigans we know about Memmy he seems like a very un-Epicurean sort. Was Lucretius trying convert him? Then the thesis of the work—freeing oneself from superstition and the fear of death. If religion forces you to sacrifice you own daughter, what good is it? Can Venus and Mars stay in détente long enough to chill things out? Maybe as likely as Dave and Jeff agreeing on Roy Orbison’s catalogue and who actually gets to be a Travelling Wilbury. You don’t want to miss this one!

Odysseus confronts the suitors, and our long journey comes to its end.

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Alia

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends both a good harvest and good times.

… adapted from the text and translation of:

Jean MacIntosh Turfa, The Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar, in Nancy Thomson de Grummond and Erika Simon (eds.), The Religion of the Etruscans. University of Texas Press, 2006. (Kindle edition)