ante diem v idus martias

• Festival of Mars continues(day 11)
• 222 A.D. -- murder of the emperor Elagabalus
• 259 A.D. -- martyrdom of Candidus and companions in Alexandria or Carthage
• 263 A.D. -- martyrdom of Heraclius in Carthage
• c. 300 A.D. -- martyrdom/crucifixion of Trophimus at Laodicea
•  1903 -- birth of Ronald Syme (author of the Roman Revolution, and numerous others)

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:39:48 AM::
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Today's selection:

eclectic @ Merriam-Webster

It's been a slow week ... although we can point to the Classics Technology Center's My Word feature, which focusses this week on words for food professionals ...

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:32:16 AM::
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This turned up in one of my scans ... I'm not sure how recent it is, but William Harris has put up an essay by Calvin Coolidge (yes, the Calvin Coolidge ... how many others could there be) entitled The Classics for America ... there's actually two versions, one with Coolidge's essay, and one with the essay interspersed with Dr. Harris' comments ... definitely worth a read.

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:26:22 AM::
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::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:17:48 AM::
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Inside Bay Area mentions a potentially interesting talk:

FILMMAKER Oliver Stone will discuss his recent epic, "Alexander," in connection to the pursuit of the classics, as part of "The College Presents" series at the University of California's College of Letters & Science in Berkeley.

Director of the Oscar-winning "Platoon," "The Doors," "Born on the Fourth of July," "JFK," "Nixon" and "Any Given Sunday," Stone will take part in the free event at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Wheeler Auditorium on the UC campus.

The director will talk about the responsibilities, challenges and attraction of being a filmmaker.

Ralph Hexter, UC professor of classics and comparative literature and dean of arts and humanities, will host the discussion, which will center around representing ancient history to a broad, modern audience.

A question-and-answer session with the audience will follow.

"Alexander" is based on the story of Alexander the Great, who conquered most of the known world by his mid-20s. Colin Farrell plays the legendary Greek in the movie.

Brave man, that Oliver ...

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:13:39 AM::
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Nice little piece of comparanda in the Guardian:

Italy's soothsayers and magicians were contemplating a future condemned to darkness yesterday after the national media watchdog said it was banning them from daytime television.

Scores of tiny regional and private channels teem with programmes featuring tarot readers and others claiming prophetic powers. Their activities have become a matter of concern in a country where superstitious beliefs are increasing.

An official of the communications guarantee authority said the ban was "to combat any kind of exploitation of superstition or credulity among members of the public". [more]

Cf Livy putting a speech into the mouth of a certain Postumius in regards to the Bacchanalian thing of 186 (via the Ancient History Sourcebook):

"How often in the ages of our fathers was it given in charge to the magistrates, to prohibit the performance of any foreign religious rites; to banish strolling sacrificers and soothsayers from the forum, the circus, and the city; to search for, and burn, books of divination; and to abolish every mode of sacrificing that was not conformable to the Roman practice! For they, completely versed in every divine and human law, maintained that nothing tended so strongly to the subversion of religion as sacrifice, when we offered it not after the institutions of our forefathers, but after foreign customs...

Tiberius also banished soothsayers of various stripes from Rome, as did several other emperors ...

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:10:24 AM::
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9.00 p.m. |DISCC| Mysterious Death of Cleopatra
The daughter of an incestuous marriage, Cleopatra married and murdered her brothers, inheriting the throne of Egypt at age 17; her life was filled with the unexplained; experts reexamine the circumstances of Cleopatra's untimely death.

11.00 p.m. |DTC| The Quest for the True Cross
Based on the New York Times best-seller, scholarly detective work and historical adventure draw conclusions about the remains of Christ's actual cross. This comprehensive study could overturn centuries of academic assumptions about the crucifixion.

12.00 a.m. |DTC| Spear of Jesus
In the Hofsburg Museum in Vienna, Austria, lies a metal spearhead said to have been used to pierce the side of Christ during his crucifixion. For the first time, scientific testing will establish if this ancient relic really is the Spear of Christ.

DISCC = Discovery Channel (Canada)

DTC = Discovery Times Channel

::Friday, March 11, 2005 5:01:09 AM::
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