War Classics – Thucydides: History of the Peloponnesian War
Graham Goodlad recalls one of the great works of military history.
Athens
War Classics – Thermopylae: The Battle for the West
Fred Chiaventone recalls one of the great works of military history
The Cambridge Companion to Thucydides
Review by Diana Bentley Nearly two and a half millennia after it was written, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War not only remains vibrantly alive and regularly referred to in discussions of modern conflict and politics, but is a rich…
The Peloponnesian War
In the first part of our special, Paul Rahe examines the background to the struggle between Athens and Sparta for control of the ancient Greek world.
Dedicated followers of fashion: what did the Romans ever do for Athens?
Ancient Rome’s enthusiasm for all things Greek is well known, and archaeological echoes of these influences can be found across the Empire. Looking in the other direction, though, what traces did the Romans leave in Athens, the city at the heart of their idealised view? Carly Hilts reports.
Ancient Greeks: Science and Wisdom
For Ancient Greeks, the natural world was a source of wonder and inspiration. Philosophers pondered sundry subjects, seeking the secrets of the night sky or what makes for a satisfying tune. Such questing curiosity inspired technological advances that we are only fully appreciating today, as Jane Desborough and Matthew Howles told Matthew Symonds.
Archaeology and the Early Church in Southern Greece
This book provides a brief history of Christianity in the eastern Peloponnese (including ancient sites in Corinth, such as Kenchreai and Lechaion, as well as Isthmia, Nemea, Sikyon, and Epidauros) and in Athens, from its beginnings but with a focus…
The Romance of Ruins: curator Louise Stewart of Sir John Soane’s Museum discusses the art of the 1764 Ionian expedition
In a recent issue of Minerva magazine, Louise Stewart, Curator of Exhibitions at Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, discussed the young artist William Pars’ poetic images of the ruins he encountered on an expedition to Ionia (in modern-day Turkey)…
In search of ancient Ionia
William Pars’s poetic images of the ruins he encountered on an expedition to Ionia and Athens helped shape the taste for Greek styles in 18th-century Britain. Louise Stewart takes us on a journey to Ionia through the eyes of this young artist.
Parthenon, Athens, 1907
Boissonnas headed to Athens and worked to photograph the monuments of the Acropolis, a subject he returned to several times.
Unearthing a tyrant
And here is the weird thing. Polykrates is the greatest figure in Samian history. The Late Archaic age is the only time when the island could be considered a great power. And the archaeological imprint is truly awesome. Yet our local minibus driver didn’t even know the way to the ancient walls!
The Persian Wars
In his second article, Paul Rahe analyses Sparta’s response to the mortal challenge posed by the Persian invasions of the early 5th century BC.
All you need to know about… Themistocles
Themistocles was an ancient Athenian politician and general. He was one of a new breed of elected officials, and went on to become one of the city’s most successful military leaders.
A postcard from Athens
Athens conjures up ancient Greece and the civilisation symbolized by the fastidious re-building of the Parthenon. Yet Athens boasts possibly the most extensive remains of any Roman city in Greece. Why should this matter? Well, for the imperial Romans, Greece…