Month: October 2023

Thelxinoe ~ Classics News for October 6, 2023

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est pr. Non. Oct. 2776 AUC ~ 22 Boedromion in the third year of the 700th Olympiad

In the News

In Case You Missed It

Classicists and Classics in the News

Greek/Latin News

Public Facing Classics

Fresh Bloggery

Other Blog-like Publications

Assorted Twitter Threads

Fresh Podcasts

Gird your togas, it’s time for part one of our much-anticipated look back at HBO’s 2005 prestige drama series, Rome. A big favorite of ours, we dig into what this show gets about antiquity, from the graffiti-ridden alleys of the Suburra to the partisan gridlock of the Curia. We especially love its marriage of the plebeian with the patrician, how it combines the fancy parties and politicking of the Julii clan with the quotidian troubles of regular people, and how both elements come together to far-reaching effects. Politics, class, religion, medicine, insane penises, disgraced 80’s presidential candidates; it’s all there.

Ok, so it’s not American Naval History, but this episode is too interesting not to post. With Professor Bret Devereaux I discuss the essentially non-Mahanian nature of ancient naval warfare. Because galleys were both cheap to build (but expensive to maintain) and had very limited operational endurance, the missions they could perform and the strategic use of galley navies was extremely different than Age of Sail and modern navies. For anyone used to thinking about naval power in the modern era this is going to be a paradigm shifting discussion!

Manos sent this in for Murray to chew over. ‘Having heard and read so much about Phillip & Alexander’s training of the Macedonian phalanx as to becoming flexible in manoeuvring difficult battle landscapes as well as proficient when encountering lateral attacks, I remain sceptical about the devastating results in both the battles of Cynoscephalae and Pydna. Was it hubris on the part of Phillip and later his son Perseus or lax training which resulted in both battles’ outcome?’

Liv reads a selection of spooky content from ancient authors: Aeschylus’ Agamemnon, translated by Herbert Weir Smyth; Aeschylus’ Eumenides, translated by Herbert Weir Smyth; Lucan’s Pharsalia; Letters of Pliny the Younger, translated by William Melmoth.

Fresh Youtubery

Book Reviews

Online Talks and Conference-Related Things

Jobs, Postdocs, and other Professional Matters

Alia

Diversions

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends the appearance of future abundance but the harvest will  be sparse and the autumn practically devoid of fruit.

… 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 October 5, 2023

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. III Non. Oct. 2776 AUC ~ 21 Boedromion in the third year of the 700th Olympiad

In the News

In Case You Missed It

Classicists and Classics in the News

Greek/Latin News

Public Facing Classics

Fresh Bloggery

Other Blog-like Publications

Fresh Podcasts

When you think of Gladiators you tend to think of Roman Amphitheatres, Hollywood films, and probably not Colchester in the UK. But thanks to the discovery of the Colchester Vase, evidence suggests that Gladiators might have fought in an arena in Roman Colchester. From animal hunts, to violent fights to the death – this artefact paints a vivid picture of what Roman life might have been like. But how accurate is this vase, and what does it’s detailed imagery really tell us about Gladiators in Roman Britain? In this episode, Tristan welcomes Colchester Museum Curator Glynn Davis to the Podcast, to talk about what life might have been like for a Gladiator in Roman Britain. Using artefacts displayed in the museum, Glynn takes us on a journey through the different types of combat, animals fought, and helps debunk some popular Gladiatorial myths.

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and ideas of one of the great historians, best known for his History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (published 1776-89). According to Gibbon (1737-94) , the idea for this work came to him on 15th of October 1764 as he sat musing amidst the ruins of Rome, while barefooted friars were singing vespers in the Temple of Jupiter. Decline and Fall covers thirteen centuries and is an enormous intellectual undertaking and, on publication, it became a phenomenal success across Europe. The image above is of Edward Gibbon by Henry Walton, oil on mahogany panel, 1773. With David Womersley The Thomas Wharton Professor of English Literature at St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford Charlotte Roberts Lecturer in English at University College London And Karen O’Brien Professor of English Literature at the University of Oxford

The wars between the Persians and the Greeks have become a cornerstone of the idea of “Western Civilization,” a defining moment when Greeks became Greeks in opposition to the outside world. But this series of conflicts was far more complicated than a simple civilizational clash; it was born of a particular world, and to properly understand the Persian Wars, we need to grasp the background that made them possible.

Fresh Youtubery

Book Reviews

Dramatic Receptions

Online Talks and Conference-Related Things

Jobs, Postdocs, and other Professional Matters

Alia

Diversions

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends a surplus of all necessities except for grain.

… 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 October 4, 2023

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. IV Non. Oct. 2776 AUC ~ 20 Boedromion in the third year of the 700th Olympiad

In the News

In Case You Missed It

Classicists and Classics in the News

Public Facing Classics

Fresh Bloggery

Other Blog-like Publications

Fresh Podcasts

This week Jeff and Dave – with the help of Prof. Deborah Roberts (Emerita, Haverford College) – begin their look at tragedian Aeschylus’ magnum opus, Prometheus Bound. We get started with Prof. Roberts providing a lovely reading of the central passage of the play, in which Prometheus explains the many kindnesses he has wrought for the human race. Then we follow up by setting the table with the briefest of looks at the development of tragedy. Next, we dig into the main course with a bit of Greek from the play’s opening, and the fascinating dialogue between smith god Hephaestus and the personifications Power (Κράτος) and Violence (Βία). In addition to examining the perennial central questions of how this telling differs from Hesiod, whether Zeus can be just while mistreating so severely one of his own – who fought for him in fact in his war against the other Titans – we also take a few glances at the vexed question of who really wrote the play. And if threnodic literature is not your cup of tea, don’t worry, there are many wretched puns and inane surrealities along the way.

A small agile nation takes advantage of an unprecedented window of opportunity. As that start-up nation’s influence quickly spreads throughout the Holy Land, it gains the begrudging admiration of its neighboring frenemy states. Sound familiar? But of course, we’re not talking about the modern state of Israel’s hi-tech scene, rather the period in which ancient Israelites founded the biblical United Monarchy some 3,000 years ago. “It’s exactly the time when things changed dramatically. The Egyptian empire that was the ruler of the region collapsed, so the stabilizing force that was here to make sure that these nomads do not interfere and do not disrupt trade and the livelihood of the city-states, this force was not here anymore,” Tel Aviv University Prof. Erez Ben-Yosef, the head of the ongoing Timna Valley Archaeological Expedition, told The Times of Israel this week.

Achilles is one of the greatest heroes in Greek mythology. The son of Peleus, a Greek King, and Thetis, a divine sea nymph, Achilles was a demigod with extraordinary strength and courage. The perfect combination to make a great warrior, he is perhaps best known from Homer’s epic poem the Iliad, which details his adventures in the final year of the Trojan War. He’s also gone down in history for his passionate love for his companion, Patroclus. Sources and mythology differ as to the nature of their relationship, and in this episode, we ask the question: was it really erotic? What do the sources say? Does our definition of love differ from that of the Ancient Greeks? And, how did it inspire one of the greatest military generals in history: Alexander of Macedon? To help explore these themes, host Tristan Hughes is joined by returning guest Professor Alastair Blanshard from the University of Queensland.

For the god of healing, Apollo sure does a lot of the exact opposite. Born to a mother on the run from a giant snake, Apollo’s life only gets more chaotic and destructive from there.

The Antonine Plague was a mysterious pandemic that hit the Roman Empire at the peak of its power. Historian Colin Elliott and I discuss what this historical pandemic was like, how the Romans reacted, parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic, and much more.

Book Reviews

Online Talks and Conference-Related Things

Jobs, Postdocs, and other Professional Matters

Alia

Diversions

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends the lower classes gaining advantage over the upper classes and a period of healthy, mild air.

… 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 October 3, 2023

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. V Non. Oct. 2776 AUC ~ 19 Boedromion in the third year of the 700th Olympiad

In the News

In Case You Missed It

Greek/Latin News

Fresh Bloggery

Other Blog-like Publications

Assorted Twitter Threads

  • @DocCrom on Horace, Epistles, 2.2.106-121

Fresh Podcasts

Amanda Dylina Morse is a public health researcher, lecturer, and PhD student at Queen’s University, Belfast. She studied her undergraduate degree in Classical Studies and Ancient History at the University of Washington before embarking upon a Master’s in Public Health. She then became a surveillance epidemiologist leading and supporting investigations using emergency department, hospitalisation, and outpatient data in the United States. In this episode, we discover how the ancient world has been a thread throughout her varied career, her take on the differences between life in the US, UK and Ireland, and why she’d dress like Livia, kill Theseus, and always make sure the meat at a Roman banquet was fully cooked!

Aurelian is known as a conqueror, a general and a restorer, and his reputation is based on those achievements. But in his short rule of five years, he was also an Emperor, and made efforts to leave his mark on Rome. Part IV of ‘Aurelian’ Guest: Associate Professor Caillan Davenport (Head of the Centre for Classical Studies at the Australian National University).

PHRYNE! You’ve all seen the meme of the Hetarae who stripped in an Athenian courtroom to prove her innocence, right? Well that *may* have happened, but she was amazing regardless. Dr. Melissa Funke shares endless Phyrne and Hetarae stories of ancient Athens.

Liv is joined by Amy Pistone to talk all things reception of Sophocles’ Antigone, all the varied ways the play has been used to depict modern stories of resistance, in all its forms. Learn more about the Playing Antigone contest through Out of Chaos Theatre

Liv speaks with Rebecca Futo Kennedy about all things Athens: the politics behind Theseus’ mythology, immigration and the rights (and absolute lack thereof) of foreigners in the city depending upon the time period, and particularly, how women fit in.

It’s that time of year again… When we talk about the most horrifying stories from myth. Today, that cursed and murderous family, the Tantalids.

After her translation of Homer’s The Odyssey the classicist Emily Wilson tackles his epic, The Iliad. She brings to life the battle cries between the Greeks and the Trojans, the bellicose leaders, the political manoeuvres and the deals with the gods. Mary Beard looks at the expression of power in the ancient Roman world in her new study of Emperor of Rome. From Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus nearly two hundred years later, she explores just how much control and authority these rulers had, and the lengths they had to go to in order to cling on to power.

Book Reviews

Online Talks and Conference-Related Things

Jobs, Postdocs, and other Professional Matters

Alia

Diversions

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends hurricanes and the uprooting of trees; the lives of the common people will be greatly disrupted.

… 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 October 2, 2023

~ David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist ~ Leave a comment

Hodie est a.d. VI Non. Oct. 2776 AUC ~ 18 Boedromion in the third year of the 700th Olympiad

In the News

Classicists and Classics in the News

Greek/Latin News

Fresh Bloggery

Association/Departmental Blogs and News

Other Blog-like Publications

Fresh Podcasts

Step back in time once again to the second year of the Peloponnesian War and immerse yourself in the heart of ancient Athens, a city grappling with a devastating plague. But in this intriguing narrative, our journey takes a unique twist, leading us northward to the Chalcidice, where Athens has dispatched additional forces to besiege Potidaea. Along this expedition, we’ll uncover the intricate tapestry of diplomacy in Thrace and Macedon.

It’s time for Jeff and Dave to finish off their brief foray into all things Philistine and Mycenaean. This week we wrap up our look at Neal Bierling’s short but deep monograph on the state of excavation in Palestine. After a quick review of inscriptional and ceramic evidence, the Phaistos Disc, anthropoid coffins, and more, the conversation takes us on to the different eras in Philistine history: Judges to David, David to Solomon, Solomon to Hezekiah, and finally to the eventual dissolution or absorption of the Philistine people at the time of Babylonian Nebuchadnezzar’s devastating invasion. Things get a little testy in the vomitorium when it comes to the trickster archetype, Jungian analogues, and the exact relationship between Samson and Hercules (and Paul Bunyan?) 

Bardylis united the tribes of Illyria in the late 5th and early 4th century BC, created a powerful kingdom that held sway over Macedon and threatened the Peloponnese, and may have helped drive the development of the combined warfare that would allow Alexander to conquer the Persian Empire.

What did it take to become a Roman emperor? Pliny the Elder wrote that a ruler should be generous, victorious in battle and a father to his people. But how many emperors were able to live up to these expectations? And were these really traits that the typical Roman cared about? Dan is joined by the acclaimed scholar of Ancient Rome, Mary Beard, author of Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient World. Mary explains how the system of one-man rule was established, the skills it required, and why the Roman people put up with it.

In this episode, we tackle the years 415 and 414 BCE and the downfall of Postumius, a very wronghead man.

The fabulous Mary Beard is back!!! She joins us to talk about her new book “Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient World”. We discuss Augustus among other Emperors.

Part 2/2. Of unknown authorship, the Dead Sea Scrolls – also known as the Qumran Scrolls – are some of the most important ancient documents ever discovered. Found by a young boy in a cave by the Dead Sea, the scrolls offer invaluable insight into what life was like in Qumran and the surrounding areas 2 millennia ago. But who, if anyone, actually lived there, and what does John the Baptist have to do with it? In our second episode on the Dead Sea Scrolls, Tristan is once again joined by Dr Jodi Magness from the University of North Carolina, to help us understand the invaluable nature of these artefacts. Looking at how Jewish religion was organised at this time, early examples of etymology, and even some millennia old puns – what can we learn about the Dead Sea Scrolls, and why are they so valuable in our understanding of the ancient past?

Book Reviews

Online Talks and Conference-Related Things

Jobs, Postdocs, and other Professional Matters

Alia

Diversions

‘Sorting’ Out Your Day:

Today on the Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar:

If it thunders today, it portends prosperity but damage by mice on dry land.

… 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)