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Snow for the ancient Greeks

And if one were to tell of the wintry-cold [kheimōn], past all enduring, when Ida’s snow [khiōn] slew the birds; [565] or of the heat, when upon his waveless noonday couch, windless the sea [pontos] sank to sleep—but why should we bewail all this? Aeschylus Agamemnon 563–567, adapted from Sourcebook[1] Many areas in the northern hemisphere are currently experiencing heavy snow and freezing temperatures. So we are sharing some passages… Read more

The Punic Wars | Part I

The Punic wars were a series of conflicts encompassing 43 years of war over more than a century, from 265 BCE to 146 BCE. They led to the Roman Republic controlling much of the Mediterranean world, to the ruin of a great North African civilization, and to many modern people speaking a Latin-based or Latin-influenced language. They occurred about 120 years before the Empire was established under Augustus Caesar in… Read more

Phalanx Warfare Transformed: Innovation in Ancient Greek Warfare 431–331 BCE | Part 1: Mantinea

Three great battles—Mantinea (418 BCE), Leuctra (371 BCE), and Gaugamela (331 BCE)—demonstrate the development of Greek and Macedonian warfare from the simple hoplite phalanx employed by Greek farmers defending their fields, into the powerful, tactically flexible army which allowed Alexander the Great to conquer the Persian Empire. Arising at some point toward the end of the Dark Ages (approximately 800 BCE to 600 BCE), the phalanx of farmers armed with… Read more

Hermione’s Birth Suddenly Triggered Zeus’s Plan

To say my mother was “a force of nature” is an understatement! As Hilda Doolittle wrote, she [Helen] is “the admitted first cause of all time and all history.” She was, is, and will always be “the destroyer of worlds,” well at least the world before my birth. I can’t begin to tell you how inhumanly beautiful she was. The effect the very sight of her had on men and… Read more

The Idealized Ship | Part 2: Huge, hollow and swallowing

In this section we will consider the ships that are described as megakētēs [μεγακήτης], usually translated as huge, hollow, and gaping. The word is made up of two parts, mega [μέγα-, “great”], and an adjective form of kētos [κῆτος, “any sea-monster”]. A related word is kētōeis [κητώεις], which means “full of hollows”. In a ship’s geometry the epithet describes the threatening form of the forefoot [steira] of the ancient Greek… Read more

Beauty in Homeric Iliad and Odyssey

Beauty: a concept of the mind that is intangible, culturally influenced, and fluid. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, say many. The realm of beauty is as old as humanity. The topic canvasses from philosophy to religion from natural to man-made. This is a huge topic, from which I will focus on the Homeric Iliad and Odyssey, and explore how people in antiquity thought about beauty. I have… Read more

A Memorable Trip to Egypt: Cairo, Alexandria and a Nile Cruise

Day 1: Arrival We arrive at our hotel which is in Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, conveniently situated for the Pyramids. Day 2: Giza Early morning wake-up call, the first one of so many more to come! A small drive by coach to the Pyramids of Giza, their silhouettes looming on the horizon from afar: The largest of the three, the Great Pyramid of Khufu, is the only survivor… Read more

Homeric Greek | Odyssey 1.136–143: Dining, and serving food

We are pleased to revisit this segment in the series on reading Homeric epic in ancient Greek. In each installment we read, translate, and discuss a small passage in the original Greek in the most accessible way. If you’ve ever dreamed of reading Homer in the original, here is your chance to do so with teachers who have spent a lifetime thinking about this poetry. With their guidance even new… Read more

Gallery: Jewels and Precious Objects

Gold openwork hairnet with medallion (200–150BCE) This Gallery is going to show you some jewels and some precious ornaments or objects. The pictures were taken at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. In this passage, when Hera wants to seduce Zeus, she goes to her room to prepare herself. Earrings are part of her attire. [170] She cleansed all the dirt from her fair body with ambrosia, then she anointed… Read more

Open House | Linked Open Data for the Graeco-Roman World with Dr. Monica Berti

We are delighted to welcome Dr. Monica Berti, of Leipzig University, to join members of the Kosmos Society for an Open House discussion on the principles and recommendations of the so called “Linked Open Data” (LOD) to share and reuse data across the web. The focus will be on the use of LOD in the field of Graeco-Roman antiquity. Examples will be taken from the project “Linked Ancient Greek and… Read more

Upcoming Events

Feb
10
Mon
9:00 am Odyssey Study Group (Phaeacians)
Odyssey Study Group (Phaeacians)
Feb 10 @ 9:00 am – 10:00 am
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11:30 am Poetry Study Group (Mnēmai)
Poetry Study Group (Mnēmai)
Feb 10 @ 11:30 am – 12:30 pm
Poetry Study Group (Mnēmai)
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1:00 pm Iliad Study Group (Scamandrians)
Iliad Study Group (Scamandrians)
Feb 10 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Iliad Study Group (Scamandrians)
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Feb
11
Tue
10:00 am Latin
Latin
Feb 11 @ 10:00 am – 11:00 am
Latin
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3:00 pm Drama Aeschylus Agamemnon (Thesp...
Drama Aeschylus Agamemnon (Thesp...
Feb 11 @ 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm
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Feb
12
Wed
11:00 am Herodotus Translation Study Group
Herodotus Translation Study Group
Feb 12 @ 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Herodotus Translation Study Group
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Feb
13
Thu
4:00 pm Thucydides Book One
Thucydides Book One
Feb 13 @ 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Thucydides Book One
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Feb
14
Fri
11:00 am Members’Meeting
Members’Meeting
Feb 14 @ 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Members'Meeting
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4:00 pm Plato|Symposium
Plato|Symposium
Feb 14 @ 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Plato|Symposium
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Feb
17
Mon
9:00 am Odyssey Study Group (Phaeacians)
Odyssey Study Group (Phaeacians)
Feb 17 @ 9:00 am – 10:00 am
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