Like Odysseus, I’m on a homeward journey today…

So I’ll keep it short and sweet!

This week, to mark the release of the new film version of the Odyssey, we’ve been taking all about Homer’s epic.

So, there’s no better time to test your knowledge of it!

As always, all questions are based on articles and resources published this week here at Classical Wisdom. A full roundup of them all is available just after the quiz, alongside the answers.

If you’ve seen the film and want to know what ‘Zeus’s law’ is all about, or what the ancient Greeks REALLY said and thought about Helen, you’re in the right place…

We’ve included a few extra bonus Odyssey related resources from our recent archives in our roundup this week as well, just for fun!

Members can access ALL of our resources and go deeper into the world of the Odyssey and the Classics, including a recording of our recent live, in-depth event on the Odyssey with Homer expert Professor Joel Christensen. Check it out HERE!

Not a Member? Join today to unlock the wisdom and learn all about ancient history, mythology, literature, philosophy, and more.

Become A Member

So, are you ready? Let’s take to the seas…

1. In Homer’s Odyssey, who is the first suitor killed when Odysseus strings the great bow?

A. Eurymachus
B. Amphinomus
C. Leodes
D. Antinous

2. Which pair rescued the young Helen after she was abducted by Theseus?

A. Agamemnon and Menelaus
B. Achilles and Patroclus
C. Hector and Paris
D. Castor and Pollux

3. James Joyce reimagined Odysseus as which character?

A. Stephen Dedalus
B. Leopold Bloom
C. Buck Mulligan
D. Simon Dedalus

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4. Which character is commonly interpreted as a possible self-insert for Homer?

A. Odysseus
B. Telemachus
C. Achilles
D. Demodokus

5. What did King Priam say about Helen’s responsibility for the Trojan War?

A. She alone was guilty.
B. He blamed the gods instead of Helen.
C. Paris deserved the blame.
D. Menelaus was truly responsible as he neglected her.

6. How many suitors are said to consume Odysseus’ household resources?

A. 50
B. 75
C. 108
D. 120

Bonus Resources:

Answers

1. D – Antinous (Why Zeus Cared About Good Manners)

2. D – Castor and Pollux (Who Was Helen of Troy)

3. B – Leopold Bloom (The Odyssey’s Greatest Legacy)

4. D – Demodokus (The Odyssey’s Greatest Legacy)

5. B – He blamed the gods instead of Helen (Who Was Helen of Troy)

6. C – 108 (Why Zeus Cared About Good Manners)

The Odyssey Wisdom Scale ⚓🏺

0 – 2 correct: 🏹 Apprentice of Telemachus
You’re setting out in search of wisdom, just as Telemachus set out in search of his father. Every answer brings you one step closer to becoming a true hero of the mind.

3 – 4 correct: 🦉 Favoured by Athena
Athena has clearly been whispering good advice in your ear. You navigate the twists and turns of The Odyssey with growing confidence and cleverness.

5 – 6 correct: 🚢 Master of the Wine-Dark Sea
Like Odysseus himself, you’ve weathered every challenge with intelligence and perseverance. Whether facing Cyclopes, Sirens, or impossible quiz questions, you always find a way through.

I hope you made it home to Ithaca! I’ll see you again next week.

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

It is so apt for the moment. Enjoy! - Anya

Ithaka

By C. P. Cavafy

As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:
you’ll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope your road is a long one.
May there be many summer mornings when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you enter harbors you’re seeing for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind—
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to learn and go on learning from their scholars.

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you’re destined for.
But don’t hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you’re old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you wouldn't have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you’ll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

Translated by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard.

Source: C.P. Cavafy: Collected Poems (Princeton University Press, 1975)

Thank you to everyone who joined us live for our conversation with Emily Wilson. It was truly a pleasure!

We ranged widely, as one does when “Homer” is in the room. Emily guided us through the mysteries of Homer’s identity, the power and complexity of the oral tradition, and the delicate (sometimes maddening) task of translating ancient poetry for modern readers.

Along the way, she illuminated the extraordinary narrative sophistication and emotional depth of the epics, including rage, grief, love, loss, and the tangled web of human communities that feel as relevant now as they did three millennia ago.

We explored how landscape shapes story, how gods meddle (enthusiastically) in human affairs, and why Homeric color terms can give even the best translators pause. Audience questions took us into the brutality of myth, the fraught dynamics of parents and children, and the way physical places can influence how a text is understood and translated.

The highlight was most certainly Emily’s recitation from the Iliad, first in ancient Greek and then in English! I can honestly say we were all transported straight into Homer’s world.

Conversations like this remind us why these poems endure. Not because they are ancient, but because they refuse to stop asking difficult, deeply human questions.

Thank you again to everyone who joined us, and for giving your time and attention to such a thoughtful exchange. I’m grateful to share this community with you.

And thank you, always, for being part of our beautiful fellowship devoted to the love of history, mythology, literature, and philosophy. It really is a pleasure!

Warmly,

Anya Leonard

Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom

Like us, they are passionate about exploring the ideas, stories, and traditions that continue to shape our world, making this collaboration a natural one.

With Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey arriving in cinemas, I wanted to contribute an essay exploring one of Homer’s most enduring questions: what does it really mean to come home?

We often think of the Odyssey as the story of a man trying to return to Ithaka…but Homer, I believe, had something far more interesting to convey in mind.

Below you’ll find the opening of the article. To continue reading, please visit The Golden Thread, and while you’re there, I hope you’ll take a look around. If you enjoy Classical Wisdom, I suspect you’ll find much to appreciate in their thoughtful exploration of the Western tradition.

Explore Golden Thread

What It Really Takes to Return: The Odyssey and the Meaning of Home

by Anya Leonard, Classical Wisdom

You could be forgiven for thinking the Odyssey is simply the story of a man trying to get home.

After all, home is the force that drives the entire epic. It is the hope that keeps Odysseus rowing through storms, resisting temptation, and enduring shipwreck after shipwreck. It is what gives purpose to every monster he outwits, every island he leaves behind, and every mile of sea he crosses. If asked to summarize the Odyssey in a single sentence, many would probably say exactly that: it is the story of a hero returning home after the Trojan War.

Homer, however, had something far more profound in mind.

Indeed, if the Odyssey were merely about reaching Ithaka, the poem would end the moment Odysseus stepped onto its shores. Instead, he arrives ‘home’ almost exactly halfway through the epic, with twelve books still remaining.

Continue reading on The Golden Thread →

Read Here

I simply had to look it up.

Now, a while back, there was a popular ad that used to run on Irish TV, based around the story of the Trojan War.

I’ll say no more, except that I think it really captures something about Irish humour. I’ll just leave it HERE!

Now, it turns out that the ad ran right around the time of the Brad Pitt Troy film, which I’m shocked to realize was now over twenty years ago.

Yet there’s something fitting that, just about twenty years after Sean Bean’s Odysseus set out to the Trojan War alongside Brad Pitt’s Achilles, a different Odysseus is finally returning home…

As I’m sure you already know, after many months of buildup, speculation, and hype, the much anticipated release of Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of The Odyssey is finally upon us.

To mark the occasion, today’s Members article looks at the rich legacy of the Odyssey across the centuries, artists it has inspired from antiquity to the present day, and the real main character of the Odyssey.

Not A Member? Sign up today to go deeper in to the world of the Classics and unlock ALL of our resources, including a recording of our recent in-depth live event on the Odyssey with Homer expert, Professor Joel Christensen.

Become A Member

So read on below to discover the way Homer became a cornerstone of ancient and modern literature, how reinterpretations of the Odyssey are nothing new, and the ways the ancient Greeks had a laugh over Homer.

I think they might have even approved of that beer ad!

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

The Odyssey and the Legacy of Storytelling

by Sean Kelly, Managing Editor, Classical Wisdom

It’s the big blockbuster film of the summer, with an all-star cast and a big name director… and not without its share of controversies!

So, what is the Odyssey? Well, the obvious answer is that it’s an ancient Greek epic about a warrior’s dramatic journey home; the tale of Odysseus’ homecoming.

Yet it’s so much more than that.

And despite the work itself being named after Odysseus, in a sense, we never truly meet the most important character in the Odyssey.

Yes, of course, Odysseus himself is one of the most famous protagonists in literature, but there is another figure who is yet more central.

Read more

Perhaps one of the greatest controversies surrounding the upcoming Christopher Nolan movie is the casting of Helen of Troy…

Now, I have no desire to weigh in on the fray or opine on a distracting discussion. I know nothing of the many multivaried decisions that take place in Hollywood, the hands that are shaken, the rings that are kissed, the long hours of marketing polls…

I haven’t seen the movie, and I’ll stay a (happy) skeptic until I do… because I don’t care what Helen looks like, if she does a good job.

As a lover of history, that might surprise some.

After all, the actress is a clear departure from the literary tradition (as you will see below). But, as a lover of the Classics, I’m also fully aware that myth is a very malleable thing. It may be a window into the human mind and condition, but it’s also a mirror for every generation that communes with it.

Whether it’s Euripides reimagining Helen’s whereabouts, Virgil making much of a minor character (ahem, Aeneas), or Stesichorus insisting that Helen never went to Troy at all, these stories have a long history of being adapted for new audiences to reflect their interests, worries, and, dare I say, ideals.

Trying to encapsulate the most beautiful woman is no easy task, as the history of art well demonstrates! Indeed, even our understanding of beauty changes dramatically across time and place, as fans of Rubens and Twiggy can confirm.

So let us leave the myth-making to the movie directors. Nolan is creating entertainment, after all, not a history documentary. We go to him to spend three hours enthralled, but elsewhere for ancient wisdom… somewhere like these humble pages…

As such, I’d like to dedicate today to the historicity of Helen, for those who are interested in her incredibly important past and tomorrow we can enjoy whatever interpretation Nolan offers.

The truth is, to the Mycenaean Greeks, Helen was much more than meets the eye.

First off, she wasn’t Helen of Troy, but Helen of Sparta… and second, her face may have been the least important thing about her…

Read on for the real story of Helen, below.

All the best,
Anya Leonard

Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom 

P.S. Classical Wisdom Members: We will have a very big announcement in the next few days! It’s extremely exciting and involves the wine dark seas... Make sure to keep a lookout... time is of the essence.

The Bronze Age Queen—Helen of Sparta

By Mary Naples

Celebrated as the most beautiful woman in the world, the allure of Helen of Troy née Sparta was the yardstick for which all women were measured—-and found inadequate. Her scandalous abduction by Paris from her Spartan home triggered a ten-year-long siege on Troy which was responsible for the countless deaths of Trojans and Greeks alike.

Yet despite the abysmal carnage for which she was largely held culpable, Helen escaped Troy without a hair out of place. In one tradition Helen winds up in Egypt after the war, but if Herodotus is to be believed, she spent the entire time there. Doubtless, the Greeks were unduly obsessed with a heroine they loved to hate and have the stories to show for it. 

Unsurprisingly, most of the myths which encircle this fairest of all women, involve rape. Helen herself was the product of the rape by Zeus almighty, king of the gods, of the lovely Leda, queen of Sparta. While Leda was sunbathing on the banks of the River Eurotas, an enamored Zeus turned himself into a magisterial swan and had his way with her.

As a daughter of the almighty Zeus, it is no small wonder that Helen was radiant. By some accounts, at the tender age of seven Helen was then kidnapped or raped by Theseus, the mythological first king of Athens. Theseus, like Zeus before him, was accustomed to defiling the gentler sex but a romantic interest in another daughter of Zeus—Persephone herself—-would soon lead him astray.  Ultimately, Helen’s twin brothers—Castor and Pollux— restored her to their Spartan home. 

All the same, Helen the “richly tressed” Spartan queen is best known for fleeing with Paris to Troy after his “diplomatic” visit to Sparta. But a question that has plagued many throughout the ages is did she elope with the flamboyantly handsome Prince Paris of her own volition?

And what role, if any, did the goddess of love, Aphrodite, play in her kidnapping?

Finally, could the kidnapping of a queen—even one as dazzling as Helen— have been the sole reason behind a ten-year-long war between East and West? 

Recognized throughout the ages as Helen of Troy, she had always been Helen of Sparta to the Greeks.

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Did Calypso really hold Odysseus captive? When reexamining the roles of women in the ancient world -their jobs and abilities- does their relationship take another shape?And what can other surprising archeological finds tell us about the stories of both the historical and mythological women from Homer’s world?

It’s time to journey to the Mycenaean age to look at the women, from queens to slaves, who played critical roles in the Odyssey... and yet are often overlooked.

This month’s Podcast with professors is with Emily Hauser, an award-winning ancient historian and author, and world-leading voice in rediscovering the women of Greek myth. Having studied at Harvard, Yale and Cambridge (where she won the prestigious Chancellor’s Medal for Classical Proficiency), she is the author of acclaimed novels rewriting Greek mythical women, including For the Most Beautiful, as well as her most recent book, Mythica: A New History of Homer’s World, Through the Women Written Out of It, of which we speak about today.

Members, you can watch above, read the transcript and also download the audio below:

Read more

Most of us like to think we’re good hosts.

We offer friends a drink when they come over. We make up the spare bed. We apologise if dinner is a little overcooked. We tell guests to make themselves at home.

The ancient Greeks would have approved...but probably not for the reasons you imagine.

For Homer, hospitality wasn’t simply about being polite. And it wasn’t good just etiquette or social convention. It was a sacred duty, watched over by Zeus himself.

Get it right, and you might earn lifelong friendships, powerful allies, or divine favour. Get it wrong, and kingdoms could fall, wars could begin, and heroes could die.

So yeah, it mattered!

Now, that may sound like an extraordinary amount to place upon offering someone dinner. Yet once you realise it, hospitality is everywhere in the Odyssey. It quietly shapes almost every major encounter, determines who is noble and who is monstrous, and even explains why Odysseus spends ten years struggling to return home.

You could say the whole epic begins and ends with Xenia…

I know lots of folks tend to remember the Cyclops, the Sirens, and the Trojan Horse... but Homer wanted us to notice something else as well… the way we welcome the stranger standing at our door.

Read on to understand this fundamental aspect to the epic that continues to inspire.

All the best,

Anya Leonard
Founder and Director

Classical Wisdom

The Odyssey: Be Our Guest with Xenia

By Ben Potter

If your mother taught you say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’, to not sit down until offered a chair, to bend over backwards to make guests feel welcome, and to always wipe your feet before before going in, then she might have picked up on the theme of xenia (hospitality) in The Odyssey.

However, it is unlikely she enforced it for the same reasons as the Homeric Greeks.

They were worried that they might have been talking to a powerful god in disguise and should, therefore, show good manners.

There are many rich and varied themes in The Odyssey: blood, guts and gore, tall-tales, deceptions and subterfuge, sex, glory, gold, family, love and gods. However, it may be surprising that above all these, it is one that appears so simple, xenia, that has a hugely dominant role to play.

However, we’re getting ahead of ourselves, what exactly was xenia?

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Xenia has been broadly interpreted as comprising aspects of hospitality and generosity directed towards foreigners (i.e. those not from your town).

However, it was more than merely a set of manners and social customs, but actually a religious ritual which placed demands both on hosts and guests.

The god Zeus Xenios oversaw appropriate observation of the xenia laws. Slightly confusingly, Zeus Xenios is merely an aspect of the head god Zeus, and not a entirely separate being.

A good executor of xenia should:

• Welcome strangers into the home

• Offer them food, drink, and a bath

• Give up the most comfortable chair for them

• Not ask them any questions until they are satisfied and comfortable

• Give them a gift to depart with

• (When a guest) be respectful, charming, entertaining, don’t outstay your welcome and give a gift if you have one

Xenia was actually the root cause of all the troubling situations Odysseus found himself in throughout The Odyssey. This is because the casus belli of the Trojan war, Paris’ abduction of Helen, was a most serious breach of xenia etiquette.

Whilst The Iliad, with its tensions and tantrums of the Greek commanders during the tenth year of the Trojan War, was predicated on a breach of hospitality, The Odyssey deals with it at every turn.

In fact the entire poem, chronicling the plight of a man trying to combat gods and monsters on his way home, is largely preoccupied with entertaining, or being entertained.

So much so that xenia underpins most of the significant scenes.

The moral/heroic quality of the majority of characters is determined (or reflected) by their adherence to, or rejection of, the conventions of xenia.

As early as book 1 we see that Odysseus’ wife, Penelope and son, Telemachus are obliged to entertain the 108 Suitors who are looking to usurp Odysseus. As Telemachus puts it, they are “eating up my substance, waste it away; and soon they will break myself to pieces” [1.251-252].

Such is the importance of xenia that, by honouring it, Telemachus would rather risk ruin and murder from the Suitors than wrath or disfavour from Zeus.

It is this quality of the often weak and emasculated Telemachus that shows his nature is truly heroic. e.g. Upon seeing a stranger in his house he “went straight to the forecourt, the heart within him scandalized that a guest should still be standing at the doors” [1.119-120].

He is held up in direct contrast to the blasphemous Suitors who are not only eating him out of house and home, but also show disrespect to the disguised Odysseus by throwing an animal hoof and a stool at him when he comes begging for food.

In books 1-4, Telemachus develops the xenia theme further by visiting the courts of Menelaus and Nestor. Here we have the chance to see how xenia should be properly conducted by wise and noble Homeric heroes.

The exception to this being Menelaus‘ wanton wife Helen, who refuses to accept personal responsibility for her xenia-breaching collusion with Paris: “I grieved for the madness that Aphrodite bestowed” [4.261-262].

Additionally, she commits the great sin of drugging Telemachus’ wine!

Our hero himself, Odysseus, is not exempt from incurring the wrath that goes hand in hand with disrespecting the laws of hospitality.

A key reason Odysseus’ journey home takes ten long years is because he angers the god Poseidon by blinding his son, the Cyclops. In itself, the act may be justified, but because it is done in the Cyclops’ home (well…cave anyway), Odysseus is breaking the xenia laws. He is being the ultimate bad guest.

In fact, Odysseus is doubly culpable in this case as, in addition to blinding his ‘host’, he also has the temerity to steal his cheese!

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Likewise, Odysseus shows very poor hospitality by slaughtering the 108 suitors in his own house. He also brandishes a sword on the nymph Circe when he and his men pay a visit to her island.

These xenia transgressions of Odysseus are only forgivable because, even though he is sinning as both host and guest, he is sinned against even more gravely.

The poem’s ultimate retribution for transgressing xenia comes in a moment of bloody climax at the court of Odysseus.

Having been beaten and abused by the Suitors, Odysseus picks up and manages to string a mighty bow. A bow so large and cumbersome that nobody but the hero himself could manage to wield it.

He takes aim and fires straight through the neck of the chief Suitor, Antinous.

The giant, almost inoperable bow had, aptly, been a xenia gift to Odysseus from Iphitos.

107 more Suitors fall to sword, spear and bow.

Thus blood pays for the dishonouring of host and household. The almighty Zeus finds a way to punish those who fail to show appropriate levels of honour and humility.

The hubristic and impious are slain without mercy.

Justice is done.

Xenia has won.

So next time, remember to wipe your feet.

Do YOU know the Odyssey?

Because, well, I thought I did!

But then I helped out this week at Classical Wisdom’s special, in-depth event on the Odyssey with Professor Joel Christensen.

He discussed with Anya how and why the Odyssey still speaks to us today in the modern world, as well as the many, many layers and subtleties of Homer.

It was a mind-expanding conversation…To pick just one example, his insights into Odysseus’ encounter with the Cyclops was, if you’ll pardon the expression, truly eye-opening.

It really is an essential watch for anybody interested in Homer, the Odyssey, or the upcoming movie. Members can watch it HERE!

Not a Member? Sign up today to support the Classics, unlock ALL our resources, and join our ever-growing community of Classics enthusiasts.

Become A Member

Now, once again, it’s time for the Weekly Wisdom Quiz!

As always, all questions are based on articles and resources published this week at Classical Wisdom.

In addition to our Odyssey event, this week we also looked at Medusa, and the lives of everyday Romans as well. So you can expect some questions on those too…

Are you ready?

1. What does the Greek word “polytropos,” associated with Odysseus, suggest?
A. A person who is physically powerful
B. A person who is always truthful
C. A person of many ways, forms, or strategies
D. A person chosen by the gods

2. Why is Medusa’s origin story difficult to understand today?
A. Ancient Greeks never wrote about Medusa
B. Different sources tell conflicting versions of her story
C. Medusa was not part of Greek mythology until modern times
D. Archaeologists have found no evidence of her existence

3. How long does Odysseus remain away from home before returning to Ithaca?
A. Ten years
B. Seven years
C. Twenty years
D. Thirty years

4. According to Hesiod, what important difference separated Medusa from her sisters?
A. Medusa was the strongest of the Gorgons
B. Medusa was the only Gorgon who lived underwater
C. Medusa was the only Gorgon who could fly
D. Medusa was the only Gorgon who was mortal

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5. What does Odysseus’ scar represent?
A. His connection to the gods
B. The trauma and experiences that shape his identity
C. His victory over Achilles
D. His rejection of his past

6. Why was the archive of the Egyptian farmer Satyricus’ family especially valuable to historians?
A. It preserved a complete copy of the Aeneid.
B. It contained letters exchanged with Roman emperors.
C. It showed that ordinary farmers were highly educated philosophers.
D. It revealed how an apparently illiterate family managed its finances through documents and records.

7. According to Joel Christensen, how did many ancient audiences experience The Odyssey?
A. By watching stage performances only
B. Through short passages and episodes rather than the entire poem
C. By translating it into local dialects
D. Through philosophical dialogues similar to Plato’s works

8. What does Kim Bowes suggest archaeology increasingly allows historians to understand about ordinary Romans?
A. Only the military campaigns they fought
B. The speeches they delivered in the Senate
C. Their daily economic lives through evidence such as skeletons, tools, and environmental remains
D. The exact voting results in provincial elections

Answers

1. C) A person of many ways, forms, or strategies. (Odysseus the AntiHero?)

2. B) Different sources tell conflicting versions of her story (The Many Myths of Medusa)

3. C) Twenty years (Odysseus the AntiHero?)

4. D) Medusa was the only Gorgon who was mortal (The Many Myths of Medusa)

5. B) The trauma and experiences that shape his identity. (Odysseus the AntiHero?)

6. D) It revealed how an apparently illiterate family managed its finances through documents and records. (How Ordinary Romans Really Lived)

7. B) Through short passages and episodes rather than the entire poem. (Odysseus the AntiHero?)

8. C) Their daily economic lives through evidence such as skeletons, tools, and environmental remains. (How Ordinary Romans Really Lived)

The Wisdom Scale 🌊⚔️

1 - 2 correct: 🐚 Curious Castaway of Calypso’s Shore
Your journey has begun! Like Odysseus on his long voyage, you are just setting sail. Keep exploring the seas of knowledge, and wisdom will find its way back to you.

3 - 4 correct: ⛵ Clever Sailor of Ithaca
You have learned some of the tricks of the voyage and can navigate a few challenges. With more study, you may soon outwit the Cyclops and find your way home.

5 - 6 correct: 🦉 Trusted Companion of Odysseus
You understand the trials, triumphs, and mysteries of the epic journey. You possess the wisdom, strategy, and resilience needed to navigate even the most dangerous waters

7 - 8 correct: 👑 The Many-Minded Hero of Ithaca
Your knowledge is as adaptable as Odysseus himself. Athena herself would recognize your brilliance!

So, how did it go? Did you make it home to Ithaca or get lost at sea?

Let us know in the comments below!

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

Next week, Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey finally arrives in cinemas.

Like many of you, I’m enormously curious to see what he does with one of the greatest stories ever told. But before Hollywood offers us its interpretation, I wanted to return to the source… and to ask deeper questions, such as:

Why has the Odyssey endured for nearly three thousand years?

Why does Odysseus seem, in many ways, more relevant today than ever before?

And what does it really, truly mean?

To explore those questions, I could not imagine a better guide than Professor Joel Christensen. Joel is one of the world’s leading Homeric scholars, the editor of the Oxford Critical Guide to Homer’s Odyssey, and the author of numerous books on Homer, including The Many-Minded Man and his latest work, Why Odysseus?

He also runs a regular newsletter, No Other Odysseus! – SENTENTIAE ANTIQUAE

Every conversation with Joel leaves me seeing these ancient texts in an entirely new light… and this discussion certainly did that!

We explored why the Odyssey has enjoyed such an extraordinary resurgence over the past quarter century, long before Christopher Nolan ever announced his film. We examined why modern readers seem increasingly drawn to Odysseus rather than Achilles, and what that shift reveals about our own age. We delved into one of the most famous opening lines in world literature, asking what Homer really meant by describing Odysseus as polytropos, a single Greek word that continues to challenge translators thousands of years later.

Joel also discussed fascinating insights into the psychology of the Odyssey, the poem’s surprising relationship with identity, survival, and war, and why its central questions may be even more pressing in the twenty-first century than they were in antiquity.

We also ventured into some wonderfully unexpected territory, from ancient allegorical readings of the Cyclops to how later generations transformed Odysseus into one of mythology’s most controversial heroes.

And of course, we talked about which translations are the best…

So before Nolan offers us his version of the Odyssey, I hope you’ll join us for a journey back to the original. Whether you’ve read Homer dozens of times or are simply wondering what all the excitement is about, I think you’ll come away with a richer appreciation not only of this extraordinary poem, but also of why it continues to speak so powerfully to us today.

Classical Wisdom Members, you can enjoy the full podcast and transcript above. If you aren’t a member yet, make sure to subscribe today to unlock all our resources, including events, podcasts, ebooks and more…

Subscribe now

All the best,

Anya Leonard
Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom

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It’s all the talk these days…

So, we’re only a week away from the release of this year’s blockbuster version of the Odyssey!

And well, naturally, there’s been a lot of hand-wringing about how faithful it is going to be to the original. After all, there’s been no shortage of, shall we say, questionable adaptations of beloved works of literature across Hollywood’s history.

It’s definitely an understandable impulse, yet I can’t help but think some of the worrying is misplaced.

You see, to the ancient Greeks, myth was a fluid thing; changes to mythology were embraced rather than feared. Homer’s work, after all, is a product of an ever-shifting oral storytelling culture, and that’s not to mention the frequent radical departures to well-known myths in the world of Greek tragedy. Plays like Euripides’ Helen, for example, offered totally different versions of key mythic stories.

An excellent example of all this is Medusa, the snake-haired gorgon with the power to turn people to stone.

She gets a shout out in the Odyssey, but her tale from that point onward takes on an odyssey-like journey of its own.

So when I say that today’s Members’ article looks at the myth of Medusa… Perhaps I should say the myths.

Read on below to discover how Medusa was reinterpreted again and again across antiquity from Homer and Hesiod to Ovid, and how those various reinterpretations and changes have echoed across centuries, to right now in our modern world.

Not a Member? Unlock ALL our resources and go deeper into the world of ancient history and mythology, by joining our ever-growing community of Classics lovers today.

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It all reminds me of something Natalie Haynes said at one of our events with her: that when it comes to myth, ‘there is no original version’.

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

The Many Myths of Medusa

By Nicole Saldarriaga

What does it take to feel sympathy for a monster? In the case of Medusa, it may not be much. Though she is considered one of the most horrifying creatures of Ancient Greek mythology, her origin story is much more complex than many people realize.

This may be simply because the sources available to us today differ so widely in the telling of Medusa’s story. The tale is a brilliant example of the way in which myths evolve over time to suit changing societal needs. Though the myth started out simple, it quickly grew and, in some ways, changed drastically, leading to a great deal of confusion when modern readers and researchers attempt to put the pieces together into an accurate representation of ancient thought.

There is, of course, some information about Medusa that never changes no matter what source you choose to look at. These are details that are incredibly well known, and seem to be passed along through a process of natural cultural osmosis. Medusa is a kind of creature called a Gorgon, she has hundreds of wild, venomous snakes for hair, and she can turn any person to stone with a single look. This concept has fascinated people for centuries, and various kinds of paintings, sculptures, cartoons, video games, and even brand labels have explored Medusa as a subject and character.

But these are the details almost everyone knows. Almost everyone knows who Medusa is, or at least what she can do. What is more interesting is how Medusa became the monster she is considered to be, and this is where the myth begins to warp and change as sources begin to disagree.

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When we think about Ancient Rome, we usually think of emperors, generals, senators, and philosophers...

Yet these folks made up only a tiny fraction of the empire!

So... what about everyone else?

The overwhelming majority of people were farmers, laborers, merchants, craftspeople, and families simply trying to earn a living. People who worried about prices, taxes, debt, bad harvests, and making enough to support their children.

So how did ordinary families make ends meet?

What happened when prices rose, debts mounted, or harvests failed?

How did people survive in one of history’s first truly interconnected economies?

And what can archaeology tell us about the lives of people who left behind no great speeches or famous histories?

In this month’s Members Podcast, I speak with Kim Bowes, Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and author of Surviving Rome: The Economic Lives of the Ninety Percent, about ordinary Romans, the ones that make up 90% of the population...

Drawing on remarkable archaeological discoveries, from microscopic grains of pollen to forgotten financial records, Professor Bowes reconstructs the daily lives of those whose stories rarely make it into history books.

We talk about inflation, multiple income streams, consumer culture, global trade, and the remarkable ingenuity ordinary Romans employed simply to get by.

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I have to admit, I was really surprise! The ancient Romans’ economic ingenuity and the many ways they found to make ends meet are things I see around me every day... both here in Argentina as well as in the United States. It really dissolved the millennia and brought me into their ancient homes.

So while the emperors, gladiators and senators usually get the spotlight (and for good reason), it’s important to remember that history wasn’t determined by them alone. It was also shaped by millions of ordinary people whose daily struggles, ambitions, and resourcefulness kept an empire alive.

Classical Wisdom Members: You can enjoy the full podcast above, along with the transcript and the audio only version below.

ALSO: We have an exciting news that we will be announcing soon… something that, as the ancient Greek proverb goes, might make "you sing as if sailing into Delos" (ᾌδεις ὥσπερ εἰς Δῆλον πλέων).

So please keep a look out!

Now, put on your economist caps and be inspired by the hustle and gumption of the everyday ancient Roman in this month’s Podcast with Professors.

All the best,

Anya Leonard
Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom

P.S. Not a Member? Subscribe now to enjoy our Classical Wisdom resources, such as today’s Podcast with Professors, as well as our Extensive Ebook library and Members’ only events.

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Classical Wisdom Members, you can enjoy the audio only version here:

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This World Cup has been a bit complicated for me...

You see, our small family of three had, until recently, four countries to cheer for (sorry, Australia and the US). It’s a situation that makes one contemplate identity, allegiances, and oh so much more...

Indeed, your Norwegian-born, Argentina-residing editor has been much conflicted, though fortunately spared, so far, from any direct competition. On the one hand, living in Buenos Aires requires a certain amount of dedication to the team, as it is the beginning and end of every conversation, whether it be with cabbies, waitresses, or lifelong friends. Not knowing (and consequently not cheering for) Argentine fútbol is tantamount to treason and heresy.

On the other hand, who doesn’t have a soft spot for the underdog, especially when it just happens to be the land of your birth and ancestors? Having not played in the World Cup for 28 years, Norway beat the top-ranked team, Brazil, over the weekend, the nation with more FIFA World Cup titles than any other in history.

If only choosing between the two sides were that simple...

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But perhaps the hardest complication of all is the fact that both teams have fantastic leading men, guys who actually seem... nice.

On the Argentine side is the one and only Lionel Messi, a man who overcame health issues and extreme pre-game nerves (he was long known for throwing up before matches) to become arguably the most famous athlete playing in the world today.

In Norway, the young Erling Haaland is making a name for himself as a funny, wholesome fellow who charges strategically and meditates when necessary.

Both guys remain devoted family men despite the immense temptations that no doubt come with sports fame. Messi is still with his childhood sweetheart, while Haaland is with someone he has known since their youth football days in Bryne. They radiate humility and honesty, avoiding drama and staying grounded. You could ask Messi and Haaland to mind your kids as easily as share a beer.

And surely that’s the ultimate test!

It’s crazy to imagine that, at the highest level of sport, there could exist players who inspire... You might even call them modern-day heroes.

Which naturally raises the interesting question of what exactly do we mean when we call someone a hero?

Now, perhaps that sounds dramatic, like someone who has lived in Argentina for too long and, bizarrely, become a fútbol fanatic without realising it... I know! My younger self, whose sporting “career” consisted of one semester on the Volleyball Team 2-B, is also shocked... But hear me out...

In a world where, fortunately, the vast majority of men aren’t going to war, fighting off invaders, embarking on dangerous hunts, or undertaking necessary explorations, it would be hard to distinguish someone as “hero” material. The circumstances simply don’t present themselves so readily!

As a result, there are very different situations in which perseverance, dedication, teamwork, and leadership can shine through... where performing under pressure determines who is heroic... and who is not.

Surely, with this in mind, we can see how fútbol stars (or any other high-performing athlete) can become “heroes,” especially to the young fans who watch them at every game and every event.

Now, this is where things get a bit more complicated... a bit more philosophical...

Because if you were to ask the average Argentine man, regardless of age, who his hero is, you would most likely receive one of two answers: Messi or Maradona.

And that is where things become truly interesting... because the two heroes could hardly be more different.

If you aren’t steeped in Argentine fútbol history, don’t worry. Neither was I until a few years ago... For the uninitiated, Diego Maradona is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential football players of all time, and the driving force behind Argentina’s 1986 World Cup victory. From very humble beginnings, he became a cultural icon and a working-class hero... but he was not without a healthy dose of controversy.

From his “Hand of God” goal in Mexico and his butt-heading confrontations in front of the King of Spain to his continuous drug use, alleged mafia connections, and multiple highly publicised paternity battles, it might be hard for many to imagine Maradona as a “hero.”

And yet... is he really so different from many of the ancient Greek heroes?

Perhaps our discomfort says less about Maradona than it does about ourselves. Modern audiences often expect heroes to be morally exemplary and yet the Greeks rarely did.

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One only has to contemplate the many flaws and unvirtuous actions of mythological figures such as Jason, Perseus, Heracles, or Achilles... Men who killed their families, threw hissy fits, turned enemies to stone (including Titans and wedding guests), or abandoned the wives who had sacrificed everything for them.

Complicated figures such as Odysseus, famed for his cunning, lying, and deception, force us to ask (and just in time for Christopher Nolan’s much-anticipated movie) what makes a hero?

Should a hero be... better than us? Should they be noble and true? Or relatable and full of faults?

Is there a universal hero? Or has what constitutes a hero changed over the centuries and across the world?

And who, if anyone, is a hero today?

Comment below and take part in the conversation...

Also, make sure to join us on Friday as we discuss Odysseus, Homer, and what the Odyssey is really all about... Featuring Joel Christensen, leading Homeric scholar, Professor of Classics, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at the CUNY Graduate Center, and editor of The Oxford Critical Guide to Homer’s Odyssey.

Joel is the author of numerous books and studies on Homer and the ancient world, including Storylife: On Epic, Narrative, and Living Things; The Many-Minded Man: The Odyssey, Psychology, and the Therapy of Epic (Myth and Poetics II); Homer’s Thebes: Epic Rivalries and the Appropriation of Mythical Pasts; and, most recently, Why Odysseus.

Honestly, we couldn’t ask for a more knowledgeable or passionate speaker on the topic!

Make sure to register to join us on Friday at noon EST:

The Real Odyssey

I look forward to seeing you there!

All the best,

Anya Leonard

Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom

I suspect just about every Classics lover who is out of the closet has been asked about the upcoming Christopher Nolan retelling of The Odyssey.

After all, it may be the most anticipated Classical film in decades... and in true Hollywood fashion, the PR teams have worked hard to create a ‘buzz’. Clearly, it has already sparked excitement, speculation, and debate...

Millions of people who have never read Homer will soon encounter Odysseus and his world, while longtime readers are already wondering what Nolan will bring to one of the greatest stories ever told.

In moments like these, it is easy to get caught up in the noise.

But at the same time, we here at Classical Wisdom would be remiss to ignore such a public Classics event!

So before the reviews are written, before opinions harden, and before audiences decide what they think of Nolan’s vision, we invite you to do something different:

Let’s start with Homer.

On Friday, July 10th, at noon EST, join me for a live conversation with Joel Christensen, one of the world’s leading Homer scholars:

Professor of Classics, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at the CUNY Graduate Center, editor of The Oxford Critical Guide to Homer’s Odyssey, Joel is the author of numerous books and studies on Homer and the ancient world, including his newly released book, Why Odysseus?

Together, we will return to the original epic and explore the story that has captivated audiences for nearly three thousand years… Asking:

What made the Odyssey such a masterpiece in the ancient world?

Why has Odysseus remained one of literature’s most compelling and controversial heroes?

And what might modern audiences miss when they encounter Homer through the lens of a modern adaptation?

Whether you are discovering the Odyssey for the first time or have returned to it throughout your life, enjoy fresh insight into a work that continues to shape our literature, our culture, and our understanding of what it means to be human.

Join us as we cut through the noise and return to the source...

Register your spot here:

The Real Odyssey

Can’t attend live? Everyone who registers in advance will receive access to the recording after the event.

I hope you can join us for what will certainly be an exciting discussion.

All the best,
Anya Leonard

Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom

P.S. With the release of Nolan’s Odyssey just days away, we expect strong attendance and encourage you to reserve your place early. Make sure to secure your spot:

Register Here

It’s a big day!

Today, America officially turns 250 years old…

And of course, it’s time for the Weekly Wisdom Quiz!

This week, we looked at how the lessons and philosophy of the ancients were hardwired into the foundation of America… But how much of it all do YOU know?

As always, all questions are based on articles and resources…

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I love a good reading list..

Especially when it’s Classically themed!

Earlier in the week, we had a look at Thomas Jefferson’s very Classical recommended reading list, and how it helped provide an insight into how the ancients influenced America’s founders.

So today I thought it would be a good time to look at the only author …

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Why did Rome’s Republic endure for centuries despite bitter political conflict?

What did Aristotle mean by civic friendship, and why did he consider it essential to self-government?

Why did America’s Founders fear the concentration of power more than political disagreement?

And can a society remain free if politics becomes nothing more than a struggle to defeat one’s opponents?

In this special Members discussion, historian, political thinker, and author of The Civic Bargain, joins Classical Wisdom to explore what the ancient world still has to teach us about preserving free societies.

(You can also find Brook’s articles on his Substack “The Civic Bargain”)

Together, we take a deep dive into why some republics have endured while others have collapsed…and what Americans can rightly celebrate, as well as what should give them concern….

The conversation also ventured into some unexpected territory!

We also explored what happens when we lose a common cultural heritage, whether modern citizenship has lost the sense of duty that defined the ancient world, and how the Roman Republic repeatedly avoided collapse through negotiation long before it finally succumbed to civil war.

Members can continue beyond the preview to watch the complete discussion, including audience questions and a far deeper exploration of what the ancient world can still teach us today.

It strikes me as a fitting way to commemorate the upcoming 250th anniversary of the United States. Such milestones are exceedingly rare, and they deserve more than celebration alone—they invite reflection, contemplation, and, of course, a healthy dose of philosophizing.

If you aren’t yet a member, be sure to take advantage of our Founding Fathers, Founding Members offer and join us for the full discussion.

Subscribe now

All the best,

Anya Leonard

Founder and Director

Classical Wisdom

P.S. Classical Wisdom Members can also download the audio only version of the discussion here:

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This Saturday, the United States will mark its 250th anniversary.

Across the country, there will be celebrations. Friends and families will enjoy bbqs and banners, fireworks and fried food. There will even be world cup matches...and celebratory Europeans.

But among the festivities, there will also be reflections on the extraordinary events of 1776...

Of course, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Founding Fathers will all receive their well-deserved attention.

Yet there is another story, one that lies behind them.

You see, long before a republic was declared, it was imagined... and before it was imagined, it was studied.

The men who founded the United States did not believe they were creating a civilization from scratch. They looked instead to an older world, searching the works of Greek philosophers, Roman statesmen, and Enlightenment thinkers who had spent centuries wrestling with the same enduring questions:

What makes a good citizen?

How should a free people govern themselves?

And what kind of character allows liberty to endure?

Few documents reveal that intellectual inheritance more clearly than a reading list Thomas Jefferson compiled in 1771, five years before he drafted the Declaration of Independence...

But what was on this list? And what does it tell us about the kind of country they were trying to build?

Read on to discover the Books that Shaped a Republic... and get some fourth of July reading inspiration for yourself.

***Classical Wisdom Members: Don’t forget you are cordially invited to attend our Member’s Only discussion with Brook Manville THIS WEDNESDAY at 5pm ET.

We will delve into what makes America’s republic unique, the lessons we can learn from ancient governments as well as what is necessary for a flourishing American future.

Make sure to register in advance to get the link here:

If you aren’t a member, but would like to join this week’s conversation as well as enjoy our extensive resources from Ebooks and Magazine to exclusive podcasts with professors, subscribe today:

Subscribe now

All the best,

Anya Leonard
Founder and Director

Classical Wisdom

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The Books That Shaped a Republic

By Anya Leonard

In 1771, five years before Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration of Independence, he recommended a reading list to a young friend, Robert Skipwith, who was assembling a personal library.

At first glance, it appears to be little more than the sort of thoughtful catalogue one might expect from an Enlightenment gentleman...

But, if you look more closely, it reveals something far more significant: It offers a glimpse into the intellectual world that helped shape not only Jefferson himself, but ultimately one of history’s most ambitious political experiments.

Jefferson’s recommendations were:

1. John Locke’s Conduct of the Understanding in the Search of Truth

2. Xenophon’s Memoirs of Socrates, translated by Sarah Fielding

3. Epictetus, translated by Elizabeth Carter

4. Marcus Aurelius, translated by Collins

5. Seneca, translated by Roger L’Estrange

6. Cicero’s On Duties, by Gurthrie

7. Cicero’s Tusculan Disputations

8. Lord Bolingbroke’s Philosophical Works

9. David Hume’s Essays

10. Lord Kames’s Natural Religion

What’s interesting is that there are no manuals on constitutional law...

There are no treatises on economics...

Nor military histories explaining how to win a revolution...

Lovers of the Classics, however, will have no doubt spotted a pattern. Nearly every road on Jefferson’s reading list leads back to the ancient world.

Indeed, even the more modern authors, such as Locke, Hume, Bolingbroke, and Lord Kames, were not abandoning Greece and Rome so much as continuing the Great Conversation that had begun centuries earlier. They borrowed from classical ethics, argued with it, refined it, and adapted it to the problems of their own age.

Jefferson was not constructing a list of isolated books by unrelated thinkers, he was immersing himself in a continuous tradition stretching across almost two thousand years.

But let us look a little more closely at his selection, to appreciate what he no doubt spent thoughtful time to consider...

The ancient thread begins, fittingly, with Socrates. In Xenophon’s Memoirs, philosophy rarely drifts into abstraction, but instead, it returns repeatedly to conduct, specifically how to exercise self-restraint, cultivate friendship, judge wisely and live honourably.

The Stoics carried that lesson into the Roman world. Whether slave, senator or emperor, Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius shared the conviction that the greatest victories are won within. Their message was neither passive nor detached, but demanding as well as simple: Before attempting to govern others, one must first learn to govern oneself.

That philosophical thread reaches its fullest expression in Cicero.

More than any other writer on Jefferson’s shelf, Cicero stands at the crossroads of antiquity and the modern world. He inherited the insights of the Stoics, the Academic Skeptics and other Greek schools, yet refused to become the disciple of any single philosophy. Instead, he compared arguments, borrowed freely, and fashioned a practical moral philosophy for citizens rather than specialists.

He synthesized the ideas that came before him, in just the same way Jefferson was likewise was learning from the past... and applied them to his essential task at hand.

Indeed, it is difficult to overstate his influence. If Socrates taught individuals how to examine their lives, Cicero asked what those examined lives owed to family, friends and the republic. In this way, Greek philosophy became Roman civic duty. And later, through the influence and impact of Cicero, it became part of the moral vocabulary of the Enlightenment itself.

Seen in that light, the remaining authors on Jefferson’s list appear less like departures from the ancient world than its heirs. Locke, Hume, Bolingbroke and Lord Kames each wrestled with questions the Greeks and Romans had already posed:

What is virtue? What makes a good society? What role should reason play in human life?

Even where they disagreed with antiquity, they did so from within its intellectual tradition...

Jefferson’s reading list is more than a catalogue of his favourite authors... It is a map of an intellectual inheritance. Ideas first debated in the agora of Athens passed through the Senate in Rome, were refined by Enlightenment philosophers, and eventually found their way into the libraries of America’s founders.

The republic they imagined was new, but the education they believed necessary to sustain it was anything but.

Indeed, his selection also reminds us that the Founders did not believe a republic could simply be designed into existence. A constitution, however carefully drafted, would never be enough on its own.

This is why the list begins not with politics, but with philosophy. The books he recommended are united by a common purpose; they each ask, in its own way, what kind of person one must become to build, or preserve, a free society.

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We often feel as though we are living through uniquely turbulent times, faced with challenges unlike any that have come before...

And yet the questions that occupied the minds of the Founders, and the philosophers they admired, were are the same ones we wrestle with today...

Such as, how should we live? What do we owe one another? How do we balance liberty with responsibility? How do we cultivate the judgment necessary to preserve a free society?

These questions have outlived empires, kingdoms and republics. And they remain waiting for each new generation of readers...

Perhaps that is the greatest value of Jefferson’s reading list. It encourages us to move beyond quotations, summaries and second-hand interpretations. It’s time to skip the podcasts and edutainment videos and instead sit down with the original works themselves…

The same books that shaped the minds of the Founders are still here, inviting us into the Great Conversation that has been unfolding for more than two millennia... we only have to take the time to read them.

If you are interested in learning more specifically about Thomas Jefferson’s reading list, I highly recommend Jeffrey Rosen’s excellent book (and from which I found the list), “The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America”.

It's one of the major controversies in the world of antiquities…

But how well do you know the story of the Parthenon Marbles?

Famously taken from the Parthenon by Lord Elgin, they have been the center of controversy and debate for over 200 years…

Members can check out our exclusive article looking at the history of the Parthenon Marbles, Lord Elgin, and how the consequences of his actions are still felt today.

Not a Member? Sign up today to support the Classics and unlock ALL of our resources, including exclusive podcasts, in-depth articles, and more.

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Now, it’s time once more for the Weekly Wisdom Quiz!

As always, all questions are based on resources published this week on Classical Wisdom. A full roundup is available just below, in case you want to revisit anything, or if you missed something first time round.

So let’s get to it!

1. During whose leadership was the Parthenon originally constructed?

a) Pericles
b) Cleisthenes
c) Solon
d) Themistocles

2. Which philosopher said, “Difficulties are the things that show what men are.”?

a) Marcus Aurelius
b) Socrates
c) Epictetus
d) Seneca

3. Which ancient civilization was the first to make jewellery from gold?

a) Romans
b) Greeks
c) Mesopotamians
d) Egyptians

4. After his return to Britain, why did Lord Elgin eventually sell the Parthenon Marbles?

a) Parliament ordered him to surrender them
b) Financial difficulties left him heavily in debt
c) He believed they belonged in a museum
d) He wished to donate them to Greece

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5. Seneca’s death was ordered by which Roman Emperor?

a) Nero
b) Claudius
c) Caligula
d) Augustus

6. When was gold coinage first developed?

a) 1000 BC
b) 200 BC
c) 500 BC
d) 700 BC

7. Who created the colossal statue of Athena Parthenos that once stood inside the Parthenon?

a) Polykleitos
b) Praxiteles
c) Phidias
d) Lysippos

8. How did gold contribute to the sack of Rome?

a) Gold had no role in the sack of Rome
b) Large amounts of plundered gold led to it decreasing in value, causing instability
c) The city’s opulence made it a target for sacking
d) The Emperor failed to pay his soldiers, leaving the city vulnerable

Answers

1. A) Pericles (The Story Behind the Parthenon Marbles)

2. C) Epictetus (Would You Run? The Stoic Test of Character)

3. D) Egyptians (Tears of the Sun)

4. B) Financial difficulties left him heavily in debt (The Story Behind the Parthenon Marbles)

5. A) Nero (Would You Run? The Stoic Test of Character)

6. D) 700 BC (Tears of the Sun)

7. C) Phidias (The Story Behind the Parthenon Marbles)

8. B) Large amounts of plundered gold led to it decreasing in value, causing instability (Tears of the Sun)

The Wisdom Scale 🏛️

0 - 2 correct: 📜 Curious Student
You’ve opened the scrolls and joined the debate in the Agora. Not yet a master, but you’re asking the right questions.

3 - 4 correct: 🏛️ Rising Thinker
With wisdom and wit, you can now spar with sophists and keep your balance on the philosophical tightrope. Socrates would be proud (probably).

5 - 6 correct: 🔥 Keeper of the Lamp
You carry the flame of knowledge through dark times, guiding others with reason and a dash of daring.

7 - 8 correct: 🌞 Philosopher Supreme
You’ve reached the heights, standing with Plato, Seneca, and Hypatia, basking in the bright clarity of truth. Truly a master of wisdom.

So, how did it go? Let us know in the comments below!

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

I don’t know what it’s like where you are…

But where I am, it’s the middle of a heatwave!

So, I’m going to keep it short and sweet today.

Yet maybe it’s a fitting that today we’re focusing on the ‘tears of the sun’, the gleaming substance which shaped the ancient world as much as the modern: gold.

Today’s article looks at the origins of human civilizations’ fascination with gold, and its importance to ancient cultures…

As well as the crucial role it played in the life and death of the Roman Empire.

Now I know I don’t need to tell you this but…

Stay cool!

All the best,

Sean Kelly

Managing Editor

Classical Wisdom

Tears of the Sun: Gold in the Ancient World

By Ben Potter

All that glitters may not be gold, but that hasn’t stopped the shiny yellow stuff from being relentlessly pursued throughout mankind’s civilized existence. Twinkling goodness aside, gold has the virtue of being malleable, ductile, resistant to tarnishing, abundant, easily extracted and, above all else, useless!

Well, perhaps not totally, but it is arguable that the greatest asset gold has above its metallic competitors is that it is, or I should say was, something almost completely nugatory.

Even though now it can be found in computers, mobile phones and is almost the metal of choice for the scientists at NASA, in the ancient world it had few practical applications. The notable exception being, as it is today, in dentistry.

Gold could not help you cook a meal, build fortifications, hunt, fight, or do anything to advance your society. Perhaps because, not despite of this, together with its aesthetic gleaming, gold became the metal of wealth, royalty, power and currency in civilisations the world over.

But where began our fascination with Au (from the Latin aurum, or ‘shining dawn’)?

Well, like with so much else in the annals of man, it appears the Egyptians were the first on the scene regarding the accrual and working of gold, having been in the business of jewellery-making since 5000 BC.

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These canny Nile-dwellers also worked out how to accurately grade gold, though that knowledge came several millennia later.

The Sumerians of Mesopotamia also were manipulating the precious metal early on, circa 3000 BC, long before the first ‘Greeks’. It wasn’t until the second millennium BC that the Minoans of Crete developed/perfected a range of refined techniques that saw them produce vast amounts of gold jewellery.

Not that Mediterraneans had a monopoly in this respect; the Chavin culture of Peru was expertly working gold from c.1200 BC.

While it’s hard to pinpoint when gold swam into the ken of the ‘true’ Greeks, it was certainly an important part their literary, mythological and material culture.

‘Priam’s Treasure’, the haul of gold from the site of the Trojan War (though, contrary to its excavator’s claims, definitely not from that legendary conflict), is a magnificent example of the how gold was worked and revered by the wider Greco world from the third millennium BC.

Within the pages of Homer gold is referred to as something desired by men as a token of wealth (which equated to importance) and as something which naturally reflected the splendour of the immortal gods.

But we need to go further back… Indeed, by the time Homer was penning his epics (c.8th century BC), the blondest and (possibly) most famous of all the Greek myths was already in circulation; Jason and the Golden Fleece.

The Golden Fleece story has become multi-faceted and much analysed with a variety of scholars (both ancient and modern) projecting different interpretations on the tale.

Some say the fleece came from a golden-haired, winged ram, while others prefer the idea that the hide was merely used as a sieve to ‘pan’ for gold.

This is how Strabo referred to the practice in the land of the famous myth, Colchis (modern Georgia):

“gold is carried down by the mountain torrents… the barbarians obtain it by means of perforated troughs and fleecy skins… this is the origin of the myth of the golden fleece”.

At the time of going to press, there are about twenty working theories as to the allegorical significance of the golden fleece story. However, one thing remains clear and constant: gold, even if only metaphorically, has a property of sanctity and deserves our reverence.

It may seem incompatible that gold could be, at the same time, useless, divine, precious and regal… but yet another incongruous spanner was thrown into the paradoxical works when the Lydians of Asia Minor developed gold coinage circa 700 BC.

Though these early coins were of electrum (a naturally occurring gold/silver alloy), it only took 140 years or so for the Lydians to perfect refining techniques that allowed them to produce (and stamp) purely gold currency.

It was a craze that never went away. For the Greeks and Romans alike, gold became something that was not only used to make great and holy artistic works, like the chryselephantine statue of Zeus at Olympia or the statue of Victory in the Roman Curia, but could also be carried around in the pocket of the average soldier or tradesman.

As gold became more than merely something for the rich to wear and the poor to goggle at, the acquisition of it became of primary importance.

Thus by the end of the Classical Age (323 BC) Greek gold mining spanned from the Pillars of Hercules (representing the almost touching tips of Spain and Morocco), across Egypt, and all the way to Asia Minor.

The Romans not only went further afield in their search for these incandescent ingots, but, with their renowned cunning, developed new and improved methods of extracting it (e.g. hushing and sluicing).

Indeed, the Second Punic War (best remembered for Hannibal and his elephants) meant that the abundant gold reserves of the Iberian Peninsula were now under direct Roman rule.

Julius Caesar’s campaigns in Gaul and Britain yielded extra sources of gold. Significantly, Claudius’ attempt to finish what Caesar started in Albion as well as Trajan’s incursions into Dacia were both premeditated on the accretion of the imperial gold reserves.

The imperialistic attitude of the Greeks and Romans towards gold may reflect the fact that relatively little of that commodity naturally occurs in either country.

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Despite such an abundance of aurum flooding into Rome, it was still of vital importance that the supply could keep up with the demands of a seemingly exponentially increasing empire.

A result of this was that being buried with large amounts of gold was illegal from 450 BC.

Also, we may be surprised that a proclaimed chrysophilist and narcissist like Nero, though he found plenty of gold leaf for his Domus Aurea (Golden House), had the 103-foot high colossus representing him as the sun-god Sol made of bronze.

Thus, despite his megalomania and profligacy, there were limits even to the emperor’s access to gold.

There were several indirect benefits to our forefathers’ universal benediction of bullion.

Obviously gold gave us pleasant objects to gawp at, but also having a standardized unit of wealth opened up Chinese and Indian trade to the West in a sustainable and organised way.

What is more, the desire to create rather than simply acquire gold was of such importance that the struggle to achieve that impossible feat is from where we derive the term magnum opus.

Though ancient alchemy’s desire of unlocking the secrets of the philosopher’s stone (that would transform base metals into gold and, perhaps, offer eternal life) proved fruitless, it did lay the foundations upon which all subsequent chemistry was built.

Without this motivating force, it is conceivable modern science could have been held back by centuries.

And, of course, though it had to wait a couple of thousand years, gold has now become a prominent metal in computing, aerospace, healthcare and even glassmaking; all happy offshoots of the metal being so ubiquitous in every society.

Though, for classics enthusiasts, it must be acknowledged that gold, or specifically the lack of it, was at the heart of the demise of the Roman Empire.

Emperor after emperor found that swelling the coffers with what the Incas described as ‘the tears of the sun’ in an increasingly chaotic, bloated and unruly empire was beyond the scope of practical politics.

And if an emperor could have been pardoned for grumbling at the thought that reserves of gold were at the heart of merely maintaining the status quo in his faltering realm, he could have been forgiven for failing to enjoy the irony… Rome’s material opulence was a key motivating source behind the sackings of that city in 410 AD and 455 AD (by the Visigoths and Vandals respectively) which brought about her final, whimpering demise in the west and plunged Europe into what later became known as the Dark Ages.