Timestamp: Alexandria in the 5th century. Sinister goings-on in the ruins of...
Peter the Iberian is a name that was unfamiliar to me. He was a Georgian prince who lived in the 5th century A.D. and ended his days as a monk. His Life was written by his close friend, John Rufus,...
View ArticleList of volumes of the “Description de l’Égypte, ou Recueil des observations...
Today I found that I needed to consult a plate in the Napoleonic Description de l’Egypte. I had some difficulty in finding online volumes, and so I compiled the following list. Please feel free to...
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The stadium, hippodrome or “Lageion” of Ancient Alexandria
Just to the south of the Serapeum, which stood on a hill, was a Greek stadium or hippdrome. The temple overlooked it, and there was seating. The following map by Judith McKenzie indicates the...
View ArticleLatin translations of Chrysostom’s homilies on John – website
Chris Nighman writes to me: I’ve just launched a new online resource for several Latin translations of Chrysostom’s Homilies on the Gospel of John. I will be seeking funding for this project in...
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1603 Zuccaro drawing in red chalk of Old St Peter’s, Rome
Here’s another image of Old St Peter’s, part-way through the transformation into New St Peter’s. The main entrance, steps and square are all still present. From the Getty website: Federico Zuccaro...
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The temple that Cleopatra built for Caesarion at Armant
While I was looking at the Description de l’Egypte for information about the Serapeum as it was in Napoleon’s time, a whim came over me to look for the now-vanished temple at Armant (ancient...
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The Meta Sudans and the Djemila fountain in Algeria
I’ve posted a number of images of the Meta Sudans, the ancient Roman fountain that stood next to the Colosseum and was demolished by Mussolini, in posts such as this one. Today on Twitter I saw a...
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Is there a distinctive iconography for Sol Invictus?
It’s that time of the year, when the malevolent delight in posting wild claims that Christmas is “really” – in some undefined sense of “real” – the festival of Sol Invictus, recorded only in the...
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Translation of Porphyry’s “Ad Gaurum” on ensoulment
The technical works of antiquity tend to be neglected. I have written before about the astrological works which, although on a subject of limited interest today, really should exist in English. And...
View ArticleEuthymius Zigabenus, Commentary on the Psalms – draft translation online!
John Raffan has written a comment on another post, which deserves to be much more widely known: On the topic of translations of Greek patristic texts, I would like to announce that I have made a new...
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