Ancient Greece
In the ancient world, the Greek world encompassed a far larger area than that currently occupied by the modern country of Greece. In the first half of the first millennium BC, they spread to the western coast of Asia Minor, Southern Italy, Sicily, Spain, southern France, and the coast of the Black Sea. By the fourth century BC, the Athenian philosopher Plato was able to state that the Greeks had spread around the Mediterranean Sea “like frogs around a pond” (Phaedo 109b).
Ancient aristocracy
The ancient concept of “aristocracy” was quite different from how we, in our post-medieval world, would perhaps define it.
Titanic Titans?
Were the ancient Greek Titans really gigantic? No, they weren’t. But let’s explore where this idea came from in the first place.
Hercules the drunk
A funny statue of Hercules in an exhibition on Carthage depicts him as a drunk relieving himself.
A Laconian cup from Vulci
A beautiful Laconian cup depicts Arcesilaus II, the King of Cyrene, overseeing the weighing and loading of goods.
Water clocks
Keeping track of time in Antiquity
Water clocks were a common method of telling time in the ancient world; in addition, they served as timers.
A portrait of Socrates?
There are many portraits of the Athenian philosopher Socrates. But do these accurately reflect what he might have looked like?
Ancient Greek faith in myths
Did the ancient Greeks actually believe in their own myths?
Teaching Greek mythology
Some comments inspired by a few years’ worth of experience teaching Greek mythology to broad audiences.
The purpose of an archaeological museum
An archaeological museum shouldn’t be about the past; it should be about archaeology as a discipline.
The world of Homer
How do the worlds created by Homer in his epic poems relate to historical and archaeological realities?