Found in Antiquity

  • Real men wear moisturiser

    Dear modern society, Men should be allowed to rub skin cream into their skin. Deal with it. The message I’m writing really should not need any historical precedent. For one thing, we accept that men and women both have teeth, and not only is it permissible for both men and women to brush their teeth,… Read more

  • Another Latin word for kill

    While I was translating some unseen Latin passages with my high school tutoring student, lo and behold, we came across another word for kill which I hadn’t yet collected! This word is: cōnficiō, cōnficere, cōnfēcī, cōnfectum (con [with] + facere [make]) to make, effect, complete, accomplish; to wear out, consume, destroy; thus, to put an… Read more

  • Greek words for love, in context

    A while ago, I tallied up the Latin words for kill. Today I’m doing something different: I’ll be studying the Greek words for love. Can I hear an “aww” from the audience? Or… was that a sigh of impatience? Because to be honest, I’m tired of people talking about the Greek words for love.  It’s… Read more

  • Romans paint better perspective than Renaissance artists

    Visitors who see this fresco at the Met museum are often amazed at what seems to be a pre-Renaissance understanding of perspective. One visitor wrote that this “looks like an entire city–perspectivally rendered! The Middle Ages lost those lessons on perspective for sure.” The statement picks up on a very common triumphalist attitude towards perspective.… Read more

  • How to beg for mercy in Latin

    How to beg for mercy in Latin

    What do you do when you have committed a sacrilege, when the Emperor has overheard your snide remark,[1] when you handed in your essay late, or you forgot to attend a meeting with your superior? You may have offended a higher power, who would rightly chastise you for your misdeeds. You must now avail yourself… Read more

  • What would happen if Vesuvius erupted again?

    Here’s the deal. Vesuvius has erupted dozens of times since its last massive eruption in AD 79. But news reporters and documentaries, the most easily consumable sources of expert advice (that phrase badly needs inverted commas), tell me the volcano is overdue for another catastrophic eruption.[1] I haven’t got a background in the earth sciences,… Read more