CHATTER: ClassCon at the National Library of Canada

In the midst of a pounding headache brought on by yet another allergy attack, I've been wandering aimlessly as a cloud through the web searching for something to distract me sufficiently. I may have found it in a page found at the National Library of Canada site -- seems that the library is adorned with a pair of murals known as the Comfort Murals, painted by one Charles Fraser Comfort. According to the official blurb, the murals -- one called Heritage and another Legacy -- form a "pair of tributes to Canadian literary traditions as they gaze down upon the struggling scholars below them." So ... this is part of Canada's intellectual heritage, as it were. Of greatest interest to folks of rogueclassicism ilk is the left bit of the Heritage mural. Here's a detail:

Those figures on the bottom are officially described as:

... four Classical Greek and Roman authors, namely, the young poet Virgil (70-19 B.C.) seated pensively at left; another poet, Horice (died 8 B.C.), who stands with an almost smug air of accomplishment, and the blind poet Homer (c. 8th century B.C.), reputed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, who seems to see and respond to the smug Horace as he beams from the wall. The last figure in this corner is Euripedes (c. 480-405 B.C.), who gazes stoically down at humble mural observers.

Yes, this is the government of Canada's National Library site. We can probably add the centre section of the mural as well:

... and an excerpt from the official description:

Below St. Matthew and St. Mark are winged cherubs, who display open books bearing the names of the Muses seated at the feet of each saint. St. Matthew's cherub describes Euterpe, the Muse of Pastoral Literature, while St. Mark's cherub describes Polyhymnia, the Muse of Sacred Literature.

Placed next to each seated Muse is a hatted figure. To the left of Euterpe is St. Jerome, wearing his Cardinal's hat and holding the Latin Vulgate Translation of the Bible which he completed c. 400 A.D. Beneath St. Jerome's text rests another lion -- this time representing St. Jerome's attribute rather than St. Mark's. To the right of Polyhymnia is the second hatted figure, St. Augustine of Hippo, who wears a bishop's mitre, and who displays a copy of De Civitate Deo, his famous work.

Okay ... I'm not so pedantic as to insist that Virgil be spelled Vergil, but is it really that much to ask that they spell Horace and Euripides correctly? I might wonder whether there is a double entendre -- intentional? -- in having 'Euripedes' gaze "stoically" (wouldn't you eventually become stoical if you had swollen feet?) and might quibble at Euterpe being associated solely with "Pastoral Literature", but surely if Augustine's work was so famous, you'd get the title right. All in all, I've often ranted about the deplorable state of knowledge of Classics in Canada by the general population ... all I can say is Q.E.D. (and no, that's not an offramp of the Q.E.W.).

9:07:14 PM    

THIS DAY IN ANCIENT HISTORY

ante diem v kalendas februarias

• 98 A.D. -- dies imperii of Trajan
• 198 A.D. -- festival in celebration of Severus' victory over
  the Parthians; possibly concurrent: dies imperii of Caracalla
• 304 A.D. -- martyrdom of Flavian in Civita Vecchia

5:37:31 AM    

CHATTER: Also Seen

Here's a nice bit of post hoc ergo propter hoc from the Palm Beach Post to rip out of context and subsequently exploit (the Franklin in question is Benjamin Franklin):

Self-educated, Franklin (1706-1790) began reading Plutarch at age 12.

"And he became the best writer, the best inventor, the best diplomat, the best scientist and the best businessman in Colonial America," said Isaacson, the former president of CNN and managing editor of Time magazine.

5:29:35 AM    

CHATTER: Also Seen

A description of Latin in the New Zealand Herald seems useful:

Neither I nor the students had been scholars of Latin, the language which helps to crack mysteries in basic English.

5:24:57 AM    

AUDIO: Father Foster

This week, Father Foster talks about Juno Moneta and assorted other financial type things ....

4:53:21 AM    

AWOTV: On TV Today

5.00 p.m. |DCIVC| Archaeology: Secrets of the Red City
dna

8.00 p.m. |DCIVC| Quest for the Lost Civilization: Ancient Mariners
dna

8.00 p.m. |DISCU| Peter: Jesus' Fisherman
In Galilee, experts examine the archeological evidence surrounding
the lives of early fishermen, like Peter. A leading psychologist
explains how such a man made the transition from entrepreneur to
martyred leader of the Christian Church leader.

9.00 p.m. |HINT| Lost Civilizations: Aegean: Legacy of Atlantis
This episode of the Emmy Award-winning series explores ancient
civilizations that spread through the Aegean Sea and searches for
historical roots of some of Western civilization's oldest legends,
including an examination of ruins on the Greek Island of Thera for
the basis of the Atlantis legend. On Crete, the Greek mainland, and
Turkey, we follow the trail of clues that leads from ancient myths to
evidence of the Trojan War, Trojan Horse, Minoan civilization, and
the Minotaur. Sam Waterston narrates.

9.00 p.m. |HISTC| The Roman Conquests of Britain
This series examines the great conquerors of the world and provides
new insights into their most compelling military achievements. Each
episode combines graphics with recreations to analyze every facet of
their famous battles and conquests. Some of the conquerors profiled
include Genghis Khan, Hannibal, Ramses, Alexander, Cortez, the
Spartans and the Romans.

HISTC = History Television (Canada)

DCIVC = Discovery Civilization (Canada)

DISCU = Discovery Channel (US)

HINT = History International

4:30:04 AM