Category Archives: art

Thrush to Judgement

Posted on July 3, 2024 by JE

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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Fair or Unfair?

Posted on November 5, 2023 by JE

In the course of an ultimately frustrating and pointless conversation online today, I found myself thinking of the multiple meanings of fair in English–at once, “light-skinned/light-haired”, “beautiful”, and “just, even-handed”. The meanings are so different that I wondered if they … Continue reading →

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Wearing the Mask

Posted on September 30, 2023 by JE

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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Creepypasta

Posted on September 23, 2023 by JE

Seen on Bluesky: Gustaw Gwozdecki’s “Evening Melancholy”, c.1905. I didn’t know it on sight, but somehow it felt familiar. I wonder if I saw it a long time ago and it re-surfaced from my subconscious when I needed a creepy … Continue reading →

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Vale!

Posted on September 14, 2023 by JE

Whenever I see a news item about Romney, I think it’s about the English artist who did such great drawings of Orpheus and Eurydice. I am always disappointed. This is made even worse by the fact that the artist’s first … Continue reading →

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Actaeons Have Consequences

Posted on August 15, 2023 by JE

“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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My Object All Sublime

Posted on July 25, 2023 by JE

Typo of the day is snicjkered, which I take to be an especially insidious style of snickering. e.g. “He didn’t just snicker at me–he snicjkered! So I impaled him on my snickersnee.”

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Antiquus sed Bonus

Posted on July 13, 2023 by JE

Igpay Atinlay by Antgray Idersnay.

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ΧΑΟΣ

Posted on July 12, 2023 by JE

I don’t know if you knew this about me, but I’ll buy a book every now and then. Because I am not a crazy person (anyway, I’ve never been officially diagnosed), before I’ll buy a book I see if I … Continue reading →

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Rumba with the Rhomboi

Posted on June 23, 2023 by JE

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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