Greece

Morality of Money in Ancient Greece and Rome

constantinakatsari January 3, 2020

How many times have you used terms loaded with moral judgement when you mention money? How many of you think that money is ‘evil’ or that debt is ‘disgraceful’? How many of you watched Benefits Street in 2014 and argued with disdain that you would never end up in this position? For those of you who do not watch tv, Benefits Street was a documentary series broadcast in Channel 4. It showed benefits claimants committing crimes, thieving and cheating. It was so successful (despite the opposition) t... »

The American School of Archaeology in Corinth

constantinakatsari November 24, 2019

Recently a few photographs appeared in the Facebook page of the American School of Archaeology at Athens. They were photographs of the diaries of the first American archaeologists who excavated Ancient Greek Corinth. The excavations started at the end of the nineteenth century in 1896 and by now we have diaries that cover this year until 2007. Specifically, there are 1116 excavation diaries (digitalised) of around 200 pages each. This is a wealth of information for modern archaeologists of ancie... »

Memory and impression: A walk-through in the Peloponnese.

constantinakatsari November 8, 2019

Tegea, 12–13 December 2019 The event is set to function as a herald of the temporary exhibition Memory and impression: A walk-through in the Peloponnese using ancient coins as a guide (to open in May 2020 at the Archaeological Museum of Tegea). The contributions to the Colloquium include perspectives by historians, numismatists, archaeologists, art historians, and so on, broadening the spectrum of the approaches and the information to be offered. Organisers: KIKPE – Stassinopoulos-Viohalco Foun... »

Philhellenism at the Onset of the Greek Revolution

constantinakatsari October 24, 2019

In the first years of the Greek revolution the government of the major European governments had little sympathy for it. Those governments’ subjects however often took a very different view. Travellers had increasingly visited Greece when the Napoleonic wars had made the Italian Grand Tour impossible, and had written glowingly of their experiences. The study of Latin and Greek was the mainstay of higher education. Many saw the Greeks as representing Christianity embattled against Islam, and a... »

Theater re-opens after 1700 years in Greece

constantinakatsari May 22, 2013

I am not sure if the re-opening of the ancient theatre of Messene is connected to the economic crisis in Greece or not. Either way, it is a fact that cannot be ignored. As part of the Greek Festival the opening night will be the 3rd of August 2013. In the first instance 2500 people will be able to attend, although after its full restoration it will host more than 5000 people. The restorations will continue over the summer with the help of funds from Niarchos foundation and the European Union. Fa... »

New Rock Drawings in Epirus

constantinakatsari May 21, 2013

Today I was browsing for news on my native region in Greece, that is Epirus, when I found out about a new and exciting discovery! The archaeologist and archaeology professor at the University of Ioannina, Andreas Vlachopoulos, announced the existence of 5000 year old rock drawings in Vathi, Astypalaia. He mentioned that the drawings were of 70 cm length. They represent mostly boats with oars, while three of them seem to be carrying fish. According to Vlachopoulos the findings are similar to the ... »

Arrests in Crete

constantinakatsari November 5, 2012

The police in Crete seems to have had some success in retrieving stolen artefacts and arresting the culprits. Specifically, they arrested 8 men in Messara (Herakleion) last Thursday. They found among others a Roman vase, the upper part of a column, twenty coins from the fifth century BC to the Roman period, some weapons from the Second World War and copious quantities of modern drugs! The gang does not seem to very serious in its efforts of amassing ancient treasures. Nevertheless, I include a p... »

Rebranding modern Greek identity

constantinakatsari May 2, 2012

The following video went around the world the past few days. I have seen also several very clever responses that I cannot compete. Parts of the younger Greek generation seem to identify with its ideas, while other parts find it misleading and pretentious. As a historian I would like to state that, unlike Katerina, I do not believe that we have democracy in Greece. The traditional media is controlled by the elite and the government follows the dictates of the IMF and the European union. We have n... »

Stolen small objects from Olympia

constantinakatsari February 22, 2012

This is a list of the vases, figurines and other small objects that were stolen from the Old Museum at Olympia. Here I include a golden Mycenaean ring with the representation of tavrokathapsia. »

Wheels stolen from Olympia

constantinakatsari February 21, 2012

Here you will find photos of the bronze figurines (wheels) stolen from the Old Museum at Olympia. »