Boys' simple q. at the start of lesson: "Why is it κόρη and not κόρα?" Next 40 minutes, impromptu research on Aeol. and Dor. κόρα, (who sir?) proto-Hellenic *kórwā κόρϝα (Myc. Gr. ko-wa). (what letter, sir?) Ended up at @crewsproject blog on diagamma #unplannedlesson #rabbithole

The single biggest methodological problem affecting all academic fields is excessive generalisation

Happy for the successful athletes but precious metals symbolise humanity's fall into a world of toil and avarice. Far better in my view to reward winners with laurel wreaths, as in the pastoral golden age

"Those who voice concerns about Classics as a privileged, elite discipline may well be caught in exactly the same colonial frame of mind which they perceive with outrage as a beam in another's eye and which they try to purge with such remarkable zeal." antigonejournal.com/2022/06/…

Our Classics department, in partnership with the Classical Association, will host the Coutts Lecture in Classics on Tuesday 3 March, 5-6pm. Please retweet to get the word out! "Pompeii: In Conversation with Dr Sophie Hay & Professor Tom Harrison" In discussion with Professor Tom Harrison of the British Museum, Dr Sophie Hay draws on her extensive work at Pompeii to explore how archaeologists reconstruct ancient lives from fragmentary evidence. Moving beyond the familiar story of volcanic catastrophe, the conversation examines houses and streets, voices scratched into walls, and the interpretative choices that shape what we think we know about the Roman world. Accessible, wide-ranging, and rooted in current scholarship, this lecture is aimed at a general audience, students, and teachers with an interest in Classics, archaeology, and Ancient History. Free registration and webinar: events.teams.microsoft.com/e… There are tickets available for school teachers and students to attend live at Harrow School. @Classical_Assoc @sisamnes1 @pompei79

It is an undeniable fact that the general public uses the phrase "begs the question" incorrectly, for the simple reason that their usage of the term is wrong.

The philosophy professor at A&M has decided to replace the readings from Plato…with the New York Times article about how he had to replace the readings from Plato. My gosh, I hope one day I can be that level of curmudgeon

Marble statue of a pair of greyhounds playing together. Roman, 1stC-2ndCentury (British Museum)

Une page de l’Iliade annotée de la main de Jean Racine

There's an Icelandic tradition called Jólabókaflóð, where books are exchanged as Christmas Eve presents, and the rest of the night is spent reading them and drinking hot chocolate.

100 years since the birth of the great Richard Burton. One of the finest Christmas interviews ever filmed. If you’ve never seen it you’re in for a treat. If you have seen it, it’s now a perfect festive tradition. Nadolig Llawen.

Cette carte d’Alma et Alfred Hitchcock souhaitant à François Truffaut un très heureux « no L »

Some peak English physiognomy on display here: The Master of the Hospital of St Cross & Almshouse of Noble Poverty, a Brother of the Old Poor, and a Brother of the New Poor. As the photographer Julian Calder put it: “I could have taken this picture 400 years ago!”

the mistake so many people make is seeing university professors as intellectuals when they’re actually employees at a combination hedge fund and healthcare conglomerate that operates a small luxury resort/sports franchise where student-customers occasionally take classes

I like in a nonfiction book when all the sudden there's a big break for a pictures section. The author's like "oh by the way these are the guys I was telling you about."

A new post from me that looks at the (often overlooked) history of the names of our alphabet's letters, and which is definitely not an excuse for me to share a picture of my favourite ceramic object from antiquity. open.substack.com/pub/dannyl…

Philology – a love of words – is at the heart of the Antigone project. And today, we're delighted to announce a major annual prize for Classical Philology. The winner takes home the *full* Loeb library, and £5,000. Please share this news, and do go visit: antigonejournal.com/2025/11/…

Celebratory Greek verses on the 450th anniversary of Winchester College (1843) by Charles Wordsworth (William's nephew). The metre is catalectic trochaic tetrameter, because it is party time.

It’s a simple catchy rhythm. “Sing a song for Dionysus, hear the chorus answer back: Here a trochee, there a trochee, every line a tetra-pak!”

My latest newsletter rounding up everything interesting I read last week in books and online: the decline of deviance, we are living in the age of stupid, why meerkats are evil, defining philistinism and why we are never going to outer space api.omarshehata.me/substack-…