This February 27, 2021, the discovery of the first Ancient Roman ceremonial chariot found in Italy was announced. Even though ruins from the city of Pompeii were found way back in 1748 (after the volcanic eruption had buried it in 79 CE), archaeologists are still unearthing amazing treasures around the area. This chariot survived with […]
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In the Eastern Roman Empire of Byzantium, disputes over proper religious beliefs polarized the state for centuries, giving fodder to the fourth-century pagan chronicler Ammianus Marcellinus’ claim that “no wild beasts are as ferocious as Christians are to each other”.To us the disputes seem ridiculous: should holy images/icons be allowed? Does Jesus have one or
Byzantine Empire Battles Over Religious Beliefs Read More »
“Are you not entertained?” chides the gladiator Maximus to the crowds watching him in the 2000 film by Ridley Scott. The question teases all of us humans, because of our penchant for being attracted to drama — sports, scandal, and story.In Byzantine history this penchant for the dishy reached an acme with the author Procopius,
Author Procopius and the Chariot Sports Team Blues Read More »
Beauty standards across time vary enormously, as does the degree to which they emphasize qualities that never appear in nature. For instance, in recent decades in American culture, having perfectly straight and dazzling white teeth have signified health and high social status. In much of Japan’s history, it was the exact opposite.Here you see an
Beauty Standards in Ancient Japanese History Read More »
For Women’s History Month and my 800th post, I am featuring Violet Oakley (two of you readers voted for her yesterday). Oakley was a leading American artist of the early 20th-century: her 43 murals at the State Capitol Building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania are among her most famous works — they were the first public murals
Artist Violet Oakley and Pennsylvania’s Capitol Read More »
So it’s still Women’s History Month, and since I adore history and science, I wanted to do this entry about the American astrophysicist Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, whose contributions to our knowledge about the physical makeup of the universe were relatively unknown for much of the 20th century.Here you see Cecilia Payne’s portrait by artist Patricia Watwood,
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This painting by Caspar David Friedrich called _Two Men Contemplating the Moon( (1819-20) was an inspiration for playwrite Samuel Beckett’s _Waiting for Godot_, often cited as a top contender for the most important play from the 20th century. Although it was written in French in 1948/9, Beckett himself translated the play into English, where it
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You are looking at the most expensive Easter egg ever made: the famed “Winter” Fabergé egg created by Alma Pihl, the only woman designer of the iconic Russian jeweled eggs.Alma (slide two) was brought into the Fabergé workshop because her father had been its leading jeweler. Since 1885, the company of Peter Carl Fabergé had
Alma Pihl’s “Winter” Faberge Egg Design Read More »
The column pictured here is a Sati Stone from the 18th century, now housed in the British Museum. To us, it is a hideous and grim memorial, but it was envisioned to be a sacred monument and tribute commemorating a woman who had performed Sati (also Suttee) — self-immolation upon her deceased husband’s funeral pyre.The
18th Century Sati Stone Read More »
In the U.S. it is beginning to feel for many that we are on the last lap of the COVID-19 pandemic — and for those of us lucky enough to have had the vaccine, gratitude is a common emotion. In the 17th century, several European countries endured a horrific bout of plague, caused by that
Vienna, Austria’s “Pestaule Column” Read More »
Betcha never studied this Ancient Greek Goddess back in school. Might I introduce to you Baubo, the female deity of bawdy sex jokes?.Baubo’s mythology, as told by the horrified Church fathers Clemens of Alexandria and Arnobius from the third century CE, centers on the critical role that Baubo played in the story of Demeter. When
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This marble plaque from the Ancient Roman port city Ostia Antiqua shows a birthing scene, and you will no doubt notice that no men are present. Although the medical profession in Ancient Greece and Rome required extensive training and usually eliminated women from being doctors, enormous exceptions were made when it came to the treatment
Ancient Roman Women in Medicine Read More »
*SOME* folks think the Italian Renaissance was the *only* Renaissance. But we Medievalists realize that there were several times when the culture of the Ancient Greek and Roman civilizations was self-consciously re-created, to form phenomenal artistic movements.And if you’re not a Medieval historian who knew this already, no worries — I am here to fix
The Macedonian Renaissance’s “The Paris Psalter” Artwork Read More »
I don’t want to run any sort of lens filter through this image — it would mar the beauty of one of the most famous works by the surrealist artist Marc Chagall (1887-1985). This is “The Window of Peace and Happiness”, an enormous 15’x12′ stained glass window the artist did for the United Nations headquarters
Marc Chagall’s “The Window of Peace and Happiness” Read More »
I try to keep the “Byzantine” (overly complex relationships of very wealthy people) out of my Byzantine history class, but in the early 11th century there’s no getting around the way events parallel _The Game of Thrones_. Take the reign of Basil II, a.k.a. “the Bulgar Slayer,” for instance. It wasn’t just the way the
Byzantine’s Basil II – “The Bulgar Slayer” Read More »
This is one of the entrances to the famed palace complex of the Alhambra, one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen. Specifically, this area is known as the “Gate of Justice” or “Esplanade’s Gate”, built by the Sultan Yūsuf I of Granada in 1348. It is also one of the most famous
Palace Alhambra in Granada Read More »
This image looks very old, but it was taken in 1984 — it is a picture of a sacred pillar in the religious shrine, or “terreiro,” called the Ilê Axé Iyá Nassô Oká. It is the oldest shrine in Brazil of the syncretic religion Candomblé. And if you’ve never heard of Candomblé, that’s not very
Terreiro – The Oldest Religious Shrine in Brazil Read More »
“The Veiled Christ” is famed among art historians, and with good reason. Crafted in 1752 by the artist Giuseppe Sanmartino, the sculpture seems to defy the medium it was made of, with the fabric of the shroud covering Christ’s body appearing translucent and thin — you can see nail holes in his hands, the contours
“The Veiled Christ” Statue Read More »
These Chinese tiny stick drawings contain precious information — very few could understand it in the second century BCE when they were inscribed in silk and placed in the famous Mawangdui tomb, but modern astronomers have studied such markings to learn about the history of celestial objects of the distant past.These are renderings of different
Chinese Stick Drawings of Comets Read More »
I have a good story for this Mother’s Day in the U.S.. It comes from a Hindu myth found in a sacred text called _The Bhagavata Purana_ (8th-10th c), which tells the story of the maternal love of Yasoda for her foster son, the God Krishna.Yasoda had no idea that she was raising a divine
Yasoda and Her Foster Son God Krishna Read More »
