ante diem xv kalendas novembres

• 48 B.C. -- Octavian dons his toga virilis
• 17 A.D. -- restoration of the Temple of Janus at the Theatre of
  Marcellus (and associated rites thereafter)
• 31 A.D. -- Execution of the commander of the Praetorian Guard,
  Lucius Aelius Sejanus, after revelation of his activities
  against the emperor Tiberius.
• 33 A.D. -- Death of Vipsania Agrippina (Agrippina 'the elder'),
  wife of Germanicus and mother of the emperor Gaius (Caligula),
  among others.
• 84 A.D. -- martyrdom of Luke

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:54:41 AM::

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:37:27 AM::

Over at Michael Shanks' blog we read some more comments from Guy Sanders on that discovery of  two large sarcophagi at a site near Corinth. Meanwhile, we get a nice piece from Kathimerini which includes a photo of one of the sarcophagi:

... and it accompanies a nice article relating the work of various 'foreign schools' at Athens. Here's an excerpt:

The Danish Archaeological School also had something to brag about. Its research, conducted with the Ephorate at Zea Harbor in Piraeus, has yielded new evidence of the boat sheds of the Classical period which housed some 200 boats, and about the size of the Athenian trireme. Recent research revealed that the boat sheds were 60 meters long, not 45 meters as was previously believed. The Danes made a further discovery: Since antiquity, the sea level has risen 2 meters in the area.

The Canadian Archaeological Institute reported on its research with the Ephorate for Underwater Antiquities and the Greek Center for Marine Research (ELKTHE) into Persian shipwrecks. The Canadians found two bronze helmets on the Athos peninsula and have plans to seek more Persian wrecks in the tricky waters off Salamina.

Doubtless with the intention of forging closer, more systematic cooperation, Deputy Culture Minister Petros Tatoulis indicated that there would be more communication from now on, saying it was a priority for the ministry.

“The aim is to have a one-day conference once you have reached conclusions about more elaborate reports,” said Tatoulis, who intends that two or three of the schools should present their work together in the spring.

This year 17 foreign archaeological schools (some of them with a long history in Greece) were active at more than 50 archaeological sites.

At Lefkanti in Evia, for example, research by the British School showed that the ancient inhabitants ate a healthy diet containing figs, pulses and cereals.

The Dutch Institute discovered a Hellenistic town at Alos in Thessaloniki, while the German School’s work this year included restoration work at the Philippeion and the Temple of Zeus at Olympia and refurbishment of Kerameikos. [more]

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:26:58 AM::

The Register-Mail has a review of the 12 Black Classicists exhibition:

"Twelve Black Classicists: A Photographic Installation" is currently on display in Monmouth College's Hewes Library through the end of October.

The installation was created by Michele Valerie Ronnick and funded by the James Loeb Classical Library Foundation at Harvard University. Ronnick is an associate professor of Classics, Greek and Latin at Wayne State University.

The classicists depicted in the exhibit are Edward Wilmot Blyden, Richard Theodore Greener, William Sanders Scarborough, James Monroe Gregory, Frazelia Campbell, Wiley Lane, William Henry Crogman, John Wesley Gilbert, Daniel Barclay Williams, Lewis Baxter Moore, Reuben Shannon Lovinggood and George Morton Lightfoot. The dozen African-American classical scholars all made groundbreaking achievements in education in the post-Civil War era, helping to pave the way for future generations of African-Americans entering American universities.

"With them," said Ronnick, "begins the serious study and teaching of philology (the study of language) by African Americans. All who study language and literature in the U.S. today, be it Italian, Swahili, Sanskrit, English or Arabic, trace the origin of their disciplines to the men and women featured in this photo installation."

Each classicist has his or her own story, including Gilbert, the son of slaves in Hephzibah, Ga. He rose from that background to earn his bachelor's and master's degrees in Greek from Brown University. In 1890, he was the first black to go to the American School in Athens, Greece. Gilbert then taught at Paine College until his death.

Said one reviewer, "(Ronnick) has tapped into a bottled up and frustrated feeling among thoughtful folks that someone somewhere should honor the courageous intellectual exemplars from black American society. People are expressing gratitude (to her) for doing the work required to shatter crippling stereotypes and perhaps inspire young people to not accept hip-hop and illiteracy as their 'authentic' cultural expression."

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:17:17 AM::

A local Fox affiliate tells us:

Brown University has established a new institute for the study of archaeology and the ancient world.

Previously, work on ancient studies at the university has been split among several academic departments.

Brown says with the new institute, it will expand its ancient studies faculty.

The new institute will also replace the existing Center for Old World Archaeology and Art. It will be housed in Rhode Island Hall, on the College Green, which will be renovated for the purpose. [...]

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:14:20 AM::

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:11:08 AM::

The Department of Classics of Northwestern University invites applications for a tenure-track assistant professorship, beginning September 2005. Candidates must demonstrate broad and innovative intellectual interests, outstanding scholarly abilities and commitment to teaching. The field of specialization is open (both Greek and Latin/Roman literature and history). The successful candidate will contribute to the departments cross-disciplinary faculty collaborations for graduate education in comparative literary studies, ancient philosophy, political and social thought, or will be able to develop collaborations in other fields, as well as help develop our undergraduate classics curriculum in imaginative ways. In addition to membership in the Department of Classics, the successful candidate will be a core member of Northwestern's Classical Traditions Initiative (CTI), a multi-disciplinary forum for discussion of the cultures of classical antiquity and their reception, involving faculty in classics, comparative literature, philosophy, English, art history, political theory, rhetoric, theatre, religion and history. AA/EOE. Women and minority scholars are encouraged to apply.  The deadline for applications is November 10.  We plan to interview at the APA.   Candidates should send a letter of application, CV and a writing sample (25 pp max), and have three letters of recommendation reach the search committee by the deadline.  Materials may either be submitted on-line at http://www.classics.northwestern.edu/opportunities.htm or mailed to Sara Monoson, Search Committee Chair, Department of Classics, Northwestern University, Evanston IL 60208-2200.

... seen on AegeaNet

::Monday, October 18, 2004 5:06:43 AM::

Some interesting/potentially-disturbing excerpts from an opinion piece in the Telegraph:

For rent: amphitheatre, 160ft high, with seating capacity for 50,000. In need of refurbishment. Central location in eternal city, suitable for games, circuses and gladiatorial contests.
 
They have not put a price on it yet, but if you fancy taking on the ultimate wreck as a second home, you might be able to rent the Colosseum in Rome. No, really. The giant arena, built by the emperor Vespasian in ad72, could soon be available as part of a programme by Silvio Berlusconi's government to meet its urgent need for cash.

Here is what Daniele Molgora, a junior economics minister, said in an interview last week: "Selling the Colosseum? No. The national patrimony must be protected. But we have the most beautiful artistic possessions in the world and to think of leasing them to private individuals, under the control of local cultural authorities, would mean to raise income for the country."

Mr Molgora risks being dispatched by some Russell Crowe lookalike, judging by the reaction of the Italian media and opposition parties. Just imagine the cries of indignation if some trunk-wearing Brit moved into a ruin in Pompeii, or Starbucks opened a branch in the Roman Forum.

[...]

Mr Berlusconi wants to give the Italian economy a boost by cutting taxes. This method of lifting the animal spirits was pioneered by Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan. The theory is that a short-term deterioration in the government's finances will be healed over time by faster economic growth, which will send revenues pouring into the Treasury's coffers.

But even a temporarily large deficit in Italy would be another act of defiance as far as the Stability and Growth Pact is concerned. Hence the proposal to rent out the Colosseum.

[...]

City economists are also taking that view. Standard & Poor's has reduced Italy's credit rating by one notch, from AA to AA minus. Joachim Fels, of the investment bank Morgan Stanley, tells us the eurozone is in fiscal disarray and there is "no credible framework to prevent countries running excessive deficits in the EU".

The markets, distracted by the fiscal disarray in Washington, are not yet impressed by such extravagant warnings, although Byron might have been. He wrote in Childe Harold's Pilgrimage:

While stands the Colosseum,
Rome shall stand,
When falls the Colosseum,
Rome shall fall,
And when Rome falls, the world.

::Monday, October 18, 2004 4:55:37 AM::

::Monday, October 18, 2004 4:39:13 AM::