In the previous posts in this series we looked at descriptions of hair for males and for females. This time we look at some examples of how hair features in ritual events as depicted in the texts. Ritual offering of hair Achilles and his companions cut their hair and offer it in commemoration at the funeral of Patroklos: In the midst of them his comrades bore Patroklos [135] and covered… Read more
The classic example of cartography exercised as science is by Claudius Ptolemaeus of Alexandria (87–150 CE). The Romans, however, followed their own methodology, generally qualified as a decline relative to the Greek art and science of cartography, but with a logic that is the subject of this post. The Ptolemaic approach comprised a system of orthogonal terms, being the coordinates of latitude and longitude. The advanced mathematical basis that is… Read more
We were pleased to welcome again Jeffrey Rusten of Cornell University, Department of Classics, for an Open House discussion on Thucydides on Early Greece and the Trojan War. For the Open House Jeffrey Rusten invites us to think about and discuss the following questions: How does Thucydides approach the Iliad and think it has historical value? Is his analysis flawed in any way? Is it anachronistic? Is it in any… Read more
Our first Book Club selection for the new year is from Claude Calame: Choruses of Young Women in Ancient Greece, which is available from the Center for Hellenic Studies Publications website. We will all read Chapter 1, “Introduction”, and then if you wish you can read any other chapter of your choice. You can find the Alcman Fragment 1 “Partheneion,”—translated by Gregory Nagy—in the Sourcebook, or on the CHS website. The… Read more
Whether you are new to the group, or would like to catch up with items you might have missed or want to revisit, welcome to this round-up of highlights from the content, community, and conversation at Kosmos Society over the past year. January saw changes to the community’s identity as the former “Hour 25” became the Kosmos Society, reflecting its broader scope. Online Open House discussions This year’s series of… Read more