The Antikythera Mechanism is one of the most debated – execpt perhaps the Elgin Marbles – Greek artefacts. Where the frieze of the Parthenon leaves us with mainly one single question, ‘Who does it belong to?’, this no-doubt ingenious ancient device raises a myriad questions like, ‘When and by whom was it created?’; What purpose did it serve?’; ‘How did it look in its entirety?’ and, ‘What was it doing on board of the Antikythera Wreck?’ Scholars around the world are working hard to resolve these issues, and every year new answers surface. One thing all the scholars agree on,…
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When the British Museum is explaining why they should not return the Elgin Marbles – and how they acquired them in the first place – they often offer two old letters as proof of their entitlement on the Parthenon Friezes: a copy of letter written by Philip Hunt talking about the ‘Firman’, a letter of permission, as well as a translation of the Firman in Italian dating to 1801. But was ‘feel free to ship half the Parthenon to Britain’ really what the Ottoman Firman said? In a recent statement Neil McGregor, director of the British Museum, said on the…
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Lost for moves? Tired of busting out the same old body popping/moonwalk/drunk-uncle-at-a-wedding? You could take your dancing lines from Jacko, Wade Robson or even Michael Flatley (if you don’t mind being alone for the rest of your life). But how about Tutankhamun? The boy-king may be making waves in stateside museums right now, but he’s been influencing the best underground dancers on both sides of the Atlantic for over twenty years with the ‘Tut’ – and I don’t mean Steve Martin’s Saturday Night Live performance. Amateurs be warned: it may take a bit more practice than karaoke night down the…
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Dr Zahi Hawass and a huge team of experts have just finished laser scanning the Great Sphinx, and now the Pyramids of Giza are being surveyed using the latest laser technology. Dr Hawass, who reports on the project in his blog, has employed the services of the National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences at the Mubarak Institute for the project, which saw Djoser’s Step Pyramid at Saqqara subjected to the same techniques in June by a Japanese group. The team hope to get the most accurate representation of the wonders to date, as Egypt attempts to model the…
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Native American protesters are standing firm this week, over the ongoing destruction of an ancient sacred mound near Oxford, Alabama. Local tribes are disgusted at a building project, which is stripping the mound’s earth as ‘fill-dirt’ for a retail complex across the road. A Creek Tribal Elder tells NBC13 in this video interview, “It just absolutely makes me sick. I have a really hard time even coming down here and looking at it.” Jackson explains that the tribe have gone down every avenue to secure the future of the mound; the state’s largest. But letters, petitions, emails and protests have…
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It seems that while thousands of Athenians have lost their homes, and forests in the area have been reduced to ashes, one of Greece’s most famous ancient cities has avoided the flames. Yet as the inferno enveloping Marathon subsides, its mayor claims government authorities did nothing to protect it from the worst wildfires to hit the country in over two years. “(We were) begging the government to send over planes and helicopters,” says mayor Spyros Zagaris. Yet none were forthcoming, and the city narrowly escaped flames which ‘raced’ down a hill to threaten ancient museums and monuments. Marathon‘s close call…
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The city of Cahokia is the latest ancient site to go virtual, thanks to a reconstruction and online map published. Ancient Cahokia was a Mississippian city that flourished between 1000 -1400 AD. At its peak, in the early 13th century, it had a population between 10,000 and 20,000and covered nearly six square miles. This makes it larger than London ca. 1250 AD. It had about 120 mounds during this time, some used for burial, others for religious purposes. It also had palisades, communal plazas, houses and fields full of crops. The Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, has an interesting online…
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Antoninus Pius was born Titus Aurelius Fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus in 87AD and was Emperor of the Roman Empire from 138 – 161AD. His rule is universally recognised as one of peace and prosperity. When Emperor Hadrian’s adopted son Verus died, he adopted Antoninus Pius as his son. In turn, Antoninus Pius adopted the future Emperor Marcus Aurelius. When Emperor Hadrian died, Antoninus showed such piety that he earned the name “pius.” When his wife, Faustina, died in late 140 he founded the Puellae Faustinianae, a charitable institution for the daughters of the poor, in her memory During his 23-year…
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A cave containing the bones of hundreds of pygmy hippos has turned a long-held belief about the fate of these miniature creatures on its head. The cave is at the site of Akrotiri-Aetokremnos, on the southern tip of the Mediterranean island of Cyprus and archaeologists in the past have generally accepted the idea that the pygmy hippo must have died out before neolithic man first set foot on the island in around 10,000 BC. However, a team of experts who excavated the site has strong evidence to suggest otherwise. They argue that the animal bones are from the same era…
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Attribution: lyceo_hispanico 76 – 138 Relationship People Children Antoninus Pius Associated Marcus Aurelius, Plutarch On the day after the death of Roman emperor Trajan, Publius Aelius Hadrianus was revealed to be his adopted son. Although Hadrian was related to Trajan on his father’s side, and had been groomed for succession by Trajan in a number of military campaigns and civil posts, his accession was not universally approved. Dissent within the senate quickly led to the executions of four senators accused of plotting treason. Trajan’s reign of warfare and territorial expansion saw Rome grow to its greatest extent. In contrast, Hadrian’s reign was one of peace and…