Category Archives: ancient art

Thrush to Judgement

I’ve been rereading Petronius’ Satyricon, to take my mind off the imminent death of democracy in America. It’s not working that well, because Trimalchio (the wealthy boor who is the anti-protagonist of his own episode in the novel) keeps reminding … Continue reading

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Wearing the Mask

I’m rereading Seneca’s De Beneficiis, using Kaster’s shiny new OCT edition, and came across this crunchy line: hanc personam induisti: agenda est.—Seneca, De Beneficiis 2.17.2“You’ve put on this mask; you have to act out the part.” Seneca’s line is almost … Continue reading

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Actaeons Have Consequences

“διὰ τί, πολλῶν ὄντων ἐν Ῥώμῃ ναῶν Ἀρτέμιδος, εἰς μόνον τὸν ἐν τῷ καλουμένῳ Πατρικίῳ στενωπῷ ἄνδρες οὐκ εἰσίασιν;” ἢ διὰ τὸν λεγόμενον μῦθον; γυναῖκα γὰρ αὐτόθι τὴν θεὸν σεβομένην βιαζόμενός τις ὑπὸ τῶν κυνῶν διεσπάσθη, καὶ ἀπὸ τούτου δεισιδαιμονίας … Continue reading

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Rumba with the Rhomboi

This image of the Kylix of Durides and Calliades came up in my Mastodon newsfeed today. (The source wasn’t attributed, but see some more images here.)

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Vintage Archaeology

Emlyn Dodd has a nice piece up today at The Conversation about a newly excavated winery from the later Roman Empire. The property originally belonged to the Quintilii brothers, and then became part of the emperor’s holdings after Commodus had … Continue reading

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Sky Beasts of the Deep Past!

Some interesting stuff at the Grauniad today. “Ancient writing system” is something of a misnomer. It seems to be a lunar calendar, with relevance for ancient astronomy. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/jan/05/amateur-archaeologist-uncovers-ice-age-writing-system

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“Look Up, Not Down!”

Κύκλοψ: βλέπετ᾽ ἄνω καὶ μὴ κάτω. Χορός: ἰδού: πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν Δί᾽ ἀνακεκύφαμεντά τ᾽ ἄστρα, καὶ τὸν Ὠρίωνα δέρκομαι. —Euripides, Cyclops Cyclops: Look up, not down. Chorus: I am looking up! I’m looking ‘way up!

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Let’s Give Vespasian a Great Big Hand

Prandente eo quondam canis extrarius e trivio manum humanam intulit mensaeque subiecit. —Suetonius, Divus Vespasianus 5.4 “Once, while he was having lunch, a stray dog carried in a human hand  from the crossroads and threw it under his table.” This is one of the … Continue reading

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Coca þola

I was looking up þola in Cleasby & Vigfusson this afternoon even though I was pretty sure I knew what it meant, which is a totally normal thing to do. They said it meant “endure”, as I expected, and connected … Continue reading

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Cave, canis.

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