CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND
NEWSLETTER ISSUE 2, NOVEMBER 2019 Mauris imperdiet. Duis nec purus non dui
ISSUE 2, NOVEMBER 2013
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The biennial CAI Tour: Cyprus 2019
The annual CAI Summer School: Sligo 2019
Mauris imperdiet. Duis nec purus non dui FIEC/Classical Association annual conference 10 auctor consequat. Maecenas faucibus. Ut quis velit ac mi lacinia euismod.
News from the Classical Association in Northern Ireland 11 Spoken Latin at Lincoln Mauris imperdiet. Duis nec purus non dui auctor consequat. Maecenas faucibus. Ut CAI quis velit ac mi lacinia euismod.
Branch and
Obituaries: John Richmond; Rose D'Arcy; Sr Louis Dominic; Maureen Caulfield
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McGing (TCD) explain 'Why bother with ancient Greece and Rome in the 21st century?' Everyone Dear CAI Members, is warmly invited to UCD Belfield on Friday, 29 Welcome to a bumper issue of your Newsletter, November. Looking ahead to 2020, the CAI has bursting with news of the activities of our planned to revamp its digital offerings – our individual members, Branches and affiliated website, Newsletter, and Twitter account – to organisations, as well as those muchanticipated events that draw us from all corners ensure that you can easily keep in touch with what's going on and that you never miss an to enjoy together, namely the biennial CAI event of interest. Watch this space! archaeological tour and the Summer School – With best wishes for the festive season, and we look forward to another of these soon, the Presidential Address. This year we are Selga Medenieks honoured to have Emeritus Professor Brian
The CAI archaeological tour of Cyprus by Patrick Ryan Where else could you meet the Saints of Friday and Sunday, the 'silent guide', the 'Tree of Idleness', armoured cars for an Archbishop, the birthplace of Aphrodite, the burial place (the second, presumably) of Lazarus, and a Ghost Town left to revert to nature since 1974? Only on the spectacular, but sadly divided, island of Cyprus. All these, a vast range of historical and archaeological sites, along with our formidably knowledgeable guide Zoe ("and still they gazed and still the wonder grew…") and our reassuringly skilful charioteer, Leonidas ('Iniochos'), ensured the outstanding success of the CAI Tour of 3-13 May 2019. The excellent arrangements made by Joan Wright and Andrew Smith had us based for the first half at Paphos and the second half at Limassol. Since the island is compact in area (less than Counties Cork and Limerick combined), we could reach all our sites from these two bases in a comfortable drive. In an article of this size, it will be possible to give a flavour only of the tour, and a selection of the many sites visited. We began with the Archaeological Park of Kato Paphos, one of the most important archaeological sites of Cyprus and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Most of the site had reverted to farmland before excavations were conducted under the British administration, and since British withdrawal have been conducted by the Polish School of Archaeology (U. Warsaw). Nicocles, the last King of Palai (Old) Paphos moved the city from the previous location to this site near the harbour at the end of the 4th C. BC. Between the 2nd C. BC and 4th C. AD, Paphos was the effective capital city of Cyprus.
The Park includes sites and monuments from the 4th C. BC to the Middle Ages, but most remains date to the Roman era. The intricate mosaic floors of four Roman villas (the houses of Dionysos, Theseus, Aion, and Orpheus) drew our attention to such an extent that several hardy souls returned on foot for a second visit. The mosaics depict a wide range of scenes from mythology. Also within the complex is the Saranta Kolones (Forty Columns) Castle, a fortress of the Frankish Lusignans, destroyed by an earthquake in 1223. To the north, in Paliokastro, are the 'Tombs of the Kings' (not actually kings but local aristocrats of 3rd C. BC to 3rd C. AD), a unique and spectacular place. The rock-cut tombs are of impressive size and show striking parallels with contemporary Egyptian styles; the Ptolemaic dynasty absorbed Cyprus at the beginning of the tomb period.
(Photos © Selga Medenieks) Further explorations took us to the Church of Agia Kyriaki (Latin Rite), also known as the 'Church with four names' (it's too long a story), while next at Geroskipou (hieros kupos: 'The Sacred Garden'), we visited Agia Paraskevi, a 9th C. Byzantine church with an 2
Lunchtime in Paphos (Photo © Joan Wright) unusual roof arrangement of five domes – and there's your Sunday and Friday! Moving out from Paphos, Zoe provided a most interesting talk on current issues in Cyprus, covering development, environmental matters, education, agriculture, and botany (her other speciality), while on the way to MarionArsinoe in the town of Polis Chrysochous. The local museum opened some twenty years ago with the financial backing of a leading Cypriot businessman, Nicos Shacolas, and exhibits finds from the ancient city of Marion (renamed Arsinoe in the 3rd C. BC), its cemeteries, and the surrounding area. The city of Marion was founded by the legendary King Marieas and later conquered by Ptolemy II Philadelphus, who renamed it after his sister and wife. Close to Paphos is the intriguing hermitage of Agios Neophytos ('The New Light'). This 10th C. monk took possession of a natural cave, in which he established his Enkleistra (or retreat). A community grew up and the interior of the cave was painted with icons which follow the uneven shapes of the walls. They survive in good condition, but require much conservation work because of their exposed location and the conditions within the cave. The tour continued to one of the country's best known and wealthiest monasteries at Kykkos, where President/Archbishop Makarios III, greatly regarded by Greek Cypriots as the Ethnarch or Father of the Nation, began his career. We
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND stopped on the way at his birthplace in the village of Panagia, and later passed near his burial place close to the monastery. Kykkos monastery was established in the late 11th C. by the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and, together with its dedicated museum, houses a vast exhibition of ecclesiastical treasures. In the high country of this district, where temperatures were ten degrees below those experienced elsewhere, we visited noted centres of wine production and a famed holiday region frequented by Daphne du Maurier, Indira Gandhi, and George Seferis. On the way to our second base at Limassol, we visited Kourion, an important city-kingdom first described by Herodotus, but with Mycenaean origins dating from the 14th to 12th centuries BC. Its extensive Roman and Early Byzantine remains have suffered severe earthquake damage, and following its re-discovery in the 1820s the site has been excavated by the British Museum, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Cyprus Department of Antiquities. Cyprus became part of the Roman province of Cilicia by the Lex Clodia in 58 BC; excavations reveal a magnificent theatre, now substantially reconstructed and used for the International Festival of Ancient Greek Drama, and the House of the Gladiators with two fine mosaics depicting named gladiators in combat.
(Photo © Selga Medenieks) We proceeded to the Crusader castle at Kolossi, on a site established by the Hospitaller order and used as the residence of their Grand Commander. The present castle, in fine preservation, dates from 1454 and was acquired by the Cornaro family, descendants of the Lusignan dynasty, who held it up to 1800. 3
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND At Amathous, in myth the place where Theseus abandoned Ariadne having escaped the Labyrinth, we explored a notable cult sanctuary of Aphrodite. The abolition of the Kingdom of Amathous, as well as of the other Kingdoms of Cyprus, at the end of the 4th C. BC was due to the annexation of the island by the Ptolemies. Amathous was a prosperous Roman site during the Antonine and Severan periods. Although the town survived the Arab raids of the mid-7th C. AD, it seems that it was definitely abandoned towards the end of the same century. Limassol Castle houses the Medieval Museum of Cyprus and is situated on Richard and Berengaria Street: traditionally it was here that the Lionheart married the princess of Navarre in 1191. Parts were in use as a prison up to 1950 and the museum dates from 1987. It has extensive collections from the Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman periods. On the way to Choirokoitia, Zoe spoke on the Neolithic settlement of Cyprus. The island has very early evidence of cerealgrowing activity, as far back as the 11th millennium BC, with a likely influx of people from the Levant or Fertile Crescent, the earliest Neolithic sites on earth. She drew attention to Neolithic excavations by the University of Athens, currently under way on our route. Choirokoitia is one of the most important Neolithic sites in Cyprus, dating from the 7th to 4th millennium BC, discovered in 1934 by Porfirios Dikaios, and now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Our next local museum, Idalion, presents one of the few sites that was left undisturbed for centuries and therefore is ideal for archaeological investigation. In 1868 R. Hamilton Lang, the British Consul, found an open-air sanctuary, which he called the 'Temple of Apollo', containing 142 limestone sculptures, now in the British Museum. A particularly significant find is the Idalion Tablet, now in Paris. It was unearthed by a farmer around 1850; in excellent condition, its inscription is in ancient Cypriot syllabic script, while the text is Greek. It therefore opened up wide-ranging new information on the ancient script. The place name is said to have arisen when a local ruler told his architect to build where the sun first appeared; the reply next morning was eida helion: "I saw the sun." 4
November 2019 We crossed into Northern Cyprus on three occasions. Since the country's admission to the EU in 2003, the crossing is considerably easier than before, but is still tightly regulated. Passports are required and checks are carried out every time. Organised tours encounter the phenomenon of the 'silent guide': an authorised person from the Turkish side joins the tour along with the Greek guide for the duration, and usually remains silent – however, he appeared to join with enthusiasm in the very fine lunch on offer! The first crossing took us to Soloi, near the city of Morphou, one of the areas worst affected by the invasion of 1974. The population here was predominantly Greek Cypriot, who were forced to flee and were replaced by Turkish Cypriots from the South. According to legend, Soloi was named for the Athenian lawgiver Solon (6th C. BC), who was supposed to have visited Cyprus. In Hellenic times the city had little political importance, though its copper mines were famous. Excavated monuments include a theatre, a temple of Aphrodite and Isis, and a 5th-century palace situated five miles west of the town at Vouni.
Andrew at Tamassos (Photo © Isabella Bolger) The present day capital of Cyprus sits in the middle of the Mesaoria plain between the Kyrenia mountain range to the north and the Troodos to the south. The Byzantines, Lusignans, Venetians, and the British have all left their mark on the city. Here we encountered miles of wire fencing, the UN buffer zone and
November 2019 checkpoints, and roads that end in the middle of nowhere, at the Green Line, which is not in fact a single but a double line. An area known as NoMan's Land or the Dead Zone exists between the two parallel fences monitored by UN peacekeeping forces since 1963. The city has three accepted names: Nicosia, Lefkosia, Lefkosha — British, Greek, and Turkish. We found neoclassical, Byzantine and Latin Gothic churches, many of which have now become mosques, endless museums and bazaars, crumbling British Colonial houses, Turkish hammams, medieval caravanserais, and a Mevlevi Shrine, which hosts whirling dervishes. We passed by the Archbishop's Palace (though Orthodox, the Greek Church of Cyprus is described as autocephalous, the Archbishop being an independent prelate). Garaged in the yard are two armour-plated cars used by Makarios in the 1960s, bearing the number plate 'AK', reserved for the Archbishop alone. Next to the palace is Agios Ioannis (St John's) Cathedral, built in the 17th C. during Ottoman rule on the site of the 14th C. chapel of a Benedictine Abbey. One of the cathedral's main features is the gilded, wooden iconostasis. The icon of Agios Ioannis was painted in 1672 by Theodore Poulakis, while those of Christ, the Virgin, John the Baptist, and Saint Nicholas are by Ioannis Kornaros, a Cretan master. The altar space is decorated with frescoes describing events from the Old Testament. From Agios Ioannis we proceeded next door to the Byzantine Museum, which contains the richest and most representative collection of Byzantine art on the island. About 230 icons dating from the 9th to the 19th centuries, as well as other typical examples of the Byzantine art of Cyprus, such as sacred vessels, vestments and books, are on display. The collection includes many icons dating from the 12th C. when iconography was at its height. Here Zoe gave a detailed explanation of icon painting techniques and conventions, as well as an account of the massive looting of icons from Cyprus since the invasion: one of the most wanted criminals in this regard has recently been arrested in Munich. The main business of that afternoon was a visit to the Archaeological Museum of Cyprus, which presents the long history of civilisation on the island from prehistoric times to the early Christian period. Extensive excavations throughout the island have enriched the collections of the museum considerably and
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND brought Cypriot archaeology to the forefront of international archaeological research. The invasion and occupation caused severe damage to the island's heritage, but the position has recovered; we saw much evidence of ongoing work by foreign schools, as well as those conducted by the Cyprus Department of Antiquities. In the Museum, the cultural heritage of Cyprus, its pottery, jewellery, sculpture, and coins from the Neolithic period to the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, and the GrecoRoman period, is on display. Zoe spoke about the statue of Aphrodite of Soloi, a gold jewelry collection, and relics from the royal tombs of Salamis. A walking tour ensued, taking the group to the former Cathedral of Agia Sophia, completed in 1326 and the coronation church of the Lusignan Kings of Cyprus until it fell to Ottoman forces in 1570. Minarets, a mihrab, and mimber (pulpit) were added and the structure was converted to a mosque. It still operates as the city's principal mosque under the title of Selimiye, after Sultan Selim II, who ruled at the time of the Ottoman invasion. Because of the installation of the mihrab, marking the qibla, or direction toward Mecca, the interior is realigned from its original foci, producing a somewhat disorienting effect. Outside the Selimiye, we passed the Bugday Cami, another former Cathedral, now home to the whirling dervishes. The dervish culture, founded in Afghanistan, also came to Cyprus with the Ottoman conquest. Although it was past the usual time, the director agreed to a short sample of the ritual for our group.
(Photo © Joan Wright) 5
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND At Famagusta (Greek Ammochostos, 'covered by the sand') we experienced some of the most striking legacies of the invasion. Unlike other parts of the Turkish-controlled areas of Cyprus, the Varosha suburb of Famagusta was fenced off by the Turkish Army immediately after being captured and remains fenced off today. The Greek Cypriots who had fled from Varosha were not allowed to return. A drive by this 'ghost town' allowed us to see a city frozen in time, with houses, shops and hotels empty and looted. On our walking tour, we saw the Gothic former Cathedral of St Nicholas, now Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque, the twin churches of St George – one of the Latins, the other of the Greeks – and the façade of the former Venetian governor's residence, the Palazzo del Provvidetore.
(Photo © Isabella Bolger) Our final day took us North again. Zoe's talk on the journey to Kyrenia concentrated on the geology of Cyprus, taking us back some ten million years prior to anything now visible. The focus here was the 16th C. Kyrenia Castle, on a magnificent harbour (above), and also associated with Richard the Lionheart, who sold it to the Knights Templar. The present Venetian structure dates from 1489 and houses the famed Shipwreck Museum with its recovered Greek ship dating to 300 BC. Surprisingly well preserved, the wreck was discovered by divers in 1965 and lifted some years later, together with important parts of its cargo, consisting of wine amphorae, almonds, millstones, and even the crew's fishing gear. Our journey ended at Bellapais Abbey (Fr. Abbaye de la Paix, 'Abbey of Peace'), a short journey from Kyrenia. This very fine Gothic abbey was first established by the Augustinians; after the Ottoman conquest, it became the property of the Greek Orthodox 6
November 2019 Church. The refectory is in excellent condition, and is today used for concerts. During the British administration, the floor was cemented over for use as a hospital.
(Photo © Isabella Bolger) The author Lawrence Durrell lived at Bellapais in the 1950s and wrote Bitter Lemons while there; we walked to his house just up the road. A chapter of the book is devoted to the 'Tree of Idleness' that stands opposite the abbey. Durrell was warned never to sit under it because "its shadow incapacitates one for serious work", a belief that arose from the idle hours spent by many villagers under the tree. It is now the centrepiece of a rather good restaurant. Contrary to that sound advice, the final lunch of the Classical Association's Tour was had at … The Tree of Idleness. I rest my case.
(Photo © Joan Wright)
SUMMER SCHOOL 2019: Sligo Death and Hereafter (?) in the Greek and Roman World After almost a year of planning and preparations, Summer School 2019 was held – successfully! – at the Residences of St Angela's College, Clogherevagh, County Sligo (a constituent College of NUI Galway). The Branch, though small in number, put in considerable efforts and engaged the help of many local enterprises. Accommodation, lecture venue, transport (the College is a few miles out of town) and, most importantly, a team of top-quality speakers had to be arranged. A major convenience was the use of the College apartments on a self-catering basis. Professor Food and beverages were provided on a Andrew Smith (UCD) graciously accepted the bus trip to the village of Dromahaire on the role of keynote speaker. Lough Gill lakeshore. Friday, 16 August As always, Friday began with Registration. The booked-in numbers were very encouraging: one session saw 66 people in the Hall. Jeremiah Lynch, the residence manager, arranged apartment allocation with military efficiency.
Saturday, 17 August Rested and breakfasted, our guests had an intense and stimulating day. The Central Council began early, with a meeting before the first lecture.
View from the Residences (Photos on this page © Isabella Bolger)
Dr Curran and CAI Secretary Mr Patrick Ryan
The AGM of the CAI was the first event. The keynote opening address by Prof. Andrew Smith (above, right) followed. It was a masterful analysis of the Platonic view of life/afterlife, and introduced participants to the theme of the Summer School.
Dr John Curran (QUB) began the programme with 'Josephus and the Jewish view of death'. Complementing this wideranging talk was 'Saul of Tarsus' (St Paul and the early Christian input into our theme) given by the Bishop of Elphin, Dr Kevin Doran. 7
Dr Doran Lunch was taken in a marquee erected by the residence staff. Afterwards, Dr John O'Grady (UCD) gave an illustrated presentation on 'Art
Dr O'Brien Lynch on the lute and a rendition of 'an Poc ar Buile' by Liam Bairéad (below). Generous – indeed, unstinting – wines were a gift from manager Jeremiah Lynch, and much appreciated! He kindly invited Sligo Branch to
(Photos of the speakers © Isabella Bolger; Photos of Edward Lynch and Liam Bairéad © Joan Wright)
Dr O'Grady and Artifacts of Classical Death', drawing on Egyptian antecedents. Dr Maeve O'Brien (MU) rounded off the programme with 'Ovid – the Metamorphoses: poetic answers'. Prof. Andrew Smith summarised and synthesised the theme in typically erudite fashion. One hopes that the audience went to dinner filled with deep philosophical thoughts! Dinner was a huge success. Ample and appetising food was accompanied by Edward 8
reprise the School next year – perhaps a thought too far! Sligo hosted in 2008 and now 2019. A gap of a dozen years or so seems acceptable! The theme of the weekend and the contributions of our marvellous panel of lecturers gave rise to much discussion. Perhaps our guests began to think (only philosophically, of course!) of what the character Gabriel in Joyce's The Dead calls 'the descent of their last end, upon all the living and the dead'. mundus scaena , vita transitus, venisti vidisti abisti! – an apposite thought regarding the theme of the School.
November 2019 Sunday, 18 August Sunday at the Summer School is the opportunity for the host Branch to share surrounding beauties with guests. The morning began with a bus trip to Parke's Castle jetty, where we boarded the schooner Rose of Innisfree, captained by George Gilmore. George entertained the party hugely with recitations and reminiscences. Tea and scones were provided, of course! Amazingly, the Gods shone beams of sunshine throughout the voyage around Lough Gill. On return to the jetty, we enjoyed a conducted tour of the Castle, thanks to the OPW. Too soon, all were bussed back to St Angela's and to the station. Sligo Branch breathed a concerted sigh of relief! Damhlaic Mag Shamhrain
(Photos on pp. 9-10 courtesy of Joan Wright and Isabella Bolger)
15th Congress of the Fédération internationale des associations d'études classiques (FIEC)/ Classical Association ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2019 Institute of Education & Senate House, London: 4-8 July 2019 2019's FIEC/CA annual conference in London staged some 87 panels and hosted well over 300 delegates from Europe and beyond. Of mind-boggling scope, highlights included plenary lectures by Professors Alastair Blanshard (Queensland, Australia) on 'Travel, the Enlightenment, and the Formation of Classical Greece'; Corinne Bonnet (Université Toulouse, France) on 'Tackling the complexity of polytheisms: cult epithets as a language', Paula da Cunha Corrêa (Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil) on 'Cattle and other animals in the Catalogue of Women', Jonas Grethlein (Universität Heidelberg, Germany) on 'Metalepsis in Ancient Greek Literature and Criticism? The Limits of Narratology in Classics'; Alison Keith (University of Toronto, Canada) on 'Epicurean Postures in Martial's Epigrams'; and Ida Östenberg (Gothenburg) on 'Dulce et decorum. Dying for the fatherland (or not) in ancient Rome'. The panels featured an extraordinary and diverse range of subjects and showcased the dynamism of the discipline, covering everything from 'Metatexuality in Greece and China' to 'Posthumans, Robots, Cyborgs and Classics'. A performance of Tim Benjamin's The Fire of Olympus – the story of Prometheus and Pandora – by Radius Opera was performed at Logan Hall, and film screenings of Entering the Classical World through Silent Cinema and The Destruction of Memory were accompanied by outreach events like the Artefact to Art poster 10
exhibition curated by Dr Naoíse Mac Sweeney (University of Leicester). At every break, throngs of classicists descended on the publishers' tables to snap up texts at generously discounted prices – an academic's dream! The Saturday De Gruyter Lunch Lecture featured Professor Stephen Harrison (Corpus Christi, Oxford) on 'Reception Studies: The trendiest of the Trends in Classics' and in truth the whole conference was remarkably outward-facing in the sense that the participants acknowledged very broadly the need to be connected as a community of scholars with the broader world and other disciplines. Panels on '"Anatopistic" Classical Receptions in Modern Japan' and 'Teaching the undergraduates of 2019: A Global Perspective' set the tone for some new thinking on approaches to the subject(s) and personal highlights included Jörg Rüpke's panel on Urban Religion in Augustan Poetry. Even the burgeoning industry in Classics fiction (itself a promising sign of the continued public interest in the ancient world) was catered for with talks by Tony Keen and Amanda Potter. It is impossible to do proper justice to the enormous scope of the conference but it was immersive and a celebration of the study of antiquity, and much to be recommended as a coming highlight in 2020! John Curran (Queen's University Belfast)
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND CANI's programme for 2018-19 concluded at the end of May with a lecture by Lynn Gordon, Head of Classics at Royal Belfast Academical Institution. Lynn's paper was entitled 'Reception of Classics in Irish Literature' and she focused on a poem from Seamus Heaney's final collection of poetry entitled Human Chain (2010). 'Route 110' describes the bus route which Heaney regularly used to travel from Belfast to Cookstown. His journey is compared with Aeneas' voyage to the Underworld. Heaney appears as both Virgil and Aeneas, and his girlfriend as Dido. Belfast's Smithfield Market is set as the opening to the Underworld, while the bus is Charon's boat across the river Styx. Our annual film screening took place during the early May bank holiday weekend, when the chosen film was Disney's Hercules. An introduction to both the film and the myth of Hercules was presented by CANI board member and teacher-in-training, Amber Taylor. In July, the ancient languages summer school took place at Queen's University. Tutors from Queen's University, Maynooth University, and Newcastle University taught Latin and Greek to students from all over the world. This year students came from the USA, China, and Japan, as well as Europe, the UK, and Ireland. We have found that students return year after year, working their way from beginners to advanced levels. Summer school participants
later. Zula landscaped the Kilwarlin gardens, modelling them on the topography of Thermopylae as it was in 480 BC. We look forward to summer school 2020! The programme for the coming academic year is even more exciting than the last. Dr Emma Southon opened the programme of lectures on 16 October with her talk entitled 'The Life and Legacy of Agrippina'. On Wednesday, 27 November, Professor Patrick Finglass from Bristol University will speak about a papyrus of Sophocles. This is our last lecture before Christmas and will be accompanied by winter drinks. The annual public reading will take place on Thursday, 5 December. We will read episodes in Greek history, as recorded by Herodotus, Thucydides, and more. As usual, money will be raised for the Simon Community Northern Ireland. Everyone is welcome to attend, whether to read or to listen. Please contact helenmcveigh@gmail.com if you wish to reserve a ten-minute slot for reading. In the new year there will be more lectures, a Greek and Latin language refresher day, and events for schools. One particularly popular talk will no doubt be Natalie Haynes on her new novel, One Thousand Ships, on Thursday, 6 February 2020. Helen McVeigh
Spoken Latin for the first time at Lincoln
visited the Thermopylae Battlefield Garden at Kilwarlin Moravian Church near Hillsborough, Co. Down (above). Rev. Basil Zula, a native of Parga in western Greece, was minister at Kilwarlin from 1834 until his death 10 years
The University of Lincoln launched a successful pilot in Spoken Latin this year: four workshops were led by Dr Cosetta Cadau as part of the project Latin Alive and Well, supported by University College Dublin's Innovation Academy (https://www.innovators.ie/). The workshops were integrated with the Elementary Latin II module and taught to an eager group of first year undergraduate students who had already studied Latin for one term. The aim of this project was to integrate the grammar study with workshops designed to foster students' curiosity and motivation to speak Latin through interactive methodologies 11
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND that promote learners' engagement. Students were exposed to Spoken Latin resources designed for independent learning (Nuntii Latini, Latin crosswords) and for beginners who need support with learning the tedious bits while keeping motivation up and frustration at bay (Quia.com). Through these activities students discovered that Latin can be fun, and were encouraged to reflect on their own knowledge of English syntax and vocabulary. We read Latin out loud through Orberg's method (a book series in Latin), interacted with videos, quizzes, and online live games (Kahoot), which had been designed ad hoc. Speaking Latin was the biggest leap: we broke the ice by learning greetings, and before long we were enjoying songs in Latin (YouTube), making up stories and asking simple questions about family and hobbies. Student response and feedback surpassed every expectation, as they began to speak and think in Latin: they independently chose to complete an assessment for a separate module (The Roman World) through spoken
Latin, re-enacted the murder of Julius Caesar, and conducted a virtual interview of Caesar. Please read about it here: https://history.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/2019/09/ 12/learning-latin-at-lincoln/ Cosetta Cadau
CAI BRANCH & UNIVERSITY NEWS CAI CORK The Cork Branch Report is a pretty thin offering this term, I'm afraid! This is due to the fact that we have had only one lecture since the new season began: we run from October to December and then again from February to May. Our opening lecture on Monday, October 7, was entitled 'How to retire if you are a Roman Emperor' and was kindly sponsored by the Dept of Classics, UCC. Dr Rebecca Usherwood from Trinity College Dublin made her first foray into the south of the country and delivered a delightful lecture on the reasons why or why not a Roman Emperor might decide to retire. Thankfully, there was no State age to retire in those days, but alas, there was no pension either. However, if you were an emperor, I presume this did not affect you! Dr Usherwood took the contemporary examples of England's Prince 12
Philip, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, and, of course, Pope Benedict XVI to illustrate that abdication is seen as a modern concept. The question arose: what to do with an ex-emperor? Emperors needed to communicate that they were going to retire so a successor could be put in place. When Diocletian and Maximian both abdicated in 305AD, they put a successor in place. "Diocletian, even though he is a tyrant, he is much more revered; though he died a 'privatus', he was enrolled amongst the gods." Eutropius' Breviarium It seemed a lot more simple at the beginning of the Imperial Age: if you did not like an emperor, dispose of them. Julius Caesar was testimony to this – thirty-three times it seems! Reports on our autumn-winter lectures will be forthcoming in the next newsletter. J. O'Donoghue
CAI LIMERICK The Annual General Meeting took place in the Limerick Education Centre (LEC) on Wednesday, September 11. The outgoing Chairperson, Ms Paula Keane, spoke of the activities of the Branch over the past year and of her hopes of progress in the year ahead. She proposed ways of getting publicity in order to attract more members – something that was urgently needed. The cancellation of the course on Greek and Roman Civilisation that was to have been run by the Crescent Comprehensive College this Autumn was a cause of deep disappointment to all. The Secretary, Tom Seaver, described how the year had been exceptionally busy, with a total of ten lectures presented. The Treasurer, Ms Mary Walsh-Seaver, presented a financial statement showing a small surplus in Branch funds. She warned that there would have to be cutbacks on activities until Council provided a subsidy. Mr Patrick Ryan, who is National Secretary, said that funds at Council level were also at a low level, membership having almost halved in recent years. It was agreed that a box be left for voluntary contributions after Branch lectures. The following were elected as Branch officers for the year 2019-2020: Chairperson: Ms Paula Keane; Vice-chairperson: Mr Séamus Ó Flaithbhearta; Secretary: Mr Tom Seaver; Treasurer: Ms Mary Walsh-Seaver; P.R.O.: Mr Patrick Ryan.
MAYNOOTH UNIVERSITY A book launch on Saturday, 5 October, in the Crolly Room, St Patrick's College Maynooth, honoured a former member of the Ancient Classics Department, the late Professor Thomas Finan. The guest speaker was the eminent Professor Lewis Ayres (Durham), a very distinguished scholar of early Christian theology and literature, and we were delighted to see him in Maynooth and to hear his lecture. The Maynooth Patristic Symposium was happy to host this event, which also launched not one but three volumes of the collected essays of the Jennifer O'Reilly, Venerable Bede scholar. The Department of Ancient Classics was also pleased to host the following speakers this semester in the Maynooth Classics Seminar series. We were most happy to present a Special Lecture on Wednesday, 23 October 2019 by Professor Emeritus George Huxley (Maynooth/Trinity College Dublin) entitled 'Achaeans, Hittites, and the tale of Troy'.
At the time of writing, we look forward to lectures by Mr Patrick Ryan on 'Match of the Century! Certamen Homeri et Hesiodi!' (23 October); Dr Matthew Potter, Curator, Limerick Museum, on 'From Augustus to Nero: the JulioClaudian Emperors, 27 BC to 68 AD' (20 November); and Ms Paula Keane on 'Magic, Myth, and Medicine' (4 December). It is proposed to hold a play-reading of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in Henry Denison's LATIN translation. This will be presented by the Orchard Yard Players, at Mr Patrick Ryan's residence in Co. Tipperary, sometime in 2020. Tom Seaver (Branch Hon. Sec.)
Prof. Huxley (Photo © Steve McCarthy) 13
CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND Later this semester, on 15 November, Dr Rebecca Usherwood (Trinity College Dublin) will regale us with 'Names for now and for posterity: consular dates and integration at the dawn of Late Antiquity'. 'A fitting end? Invective in the epilogue to Xenophon's Education of Cyrus' by Dr Christopher Farrell (UCD) on 29 November will not mark the end of our semester delights because our very own Dr Kerry Phelan will get serious with 'What's blood got to do with it? Athenian Citizenship Law and Demosthenes 57' on 13 December, bringing our seminar series to a close for Semester 1. The venue and time for all of the talks is John Hume Lecture Theatre 7 at 4pm. The Ancient Classics Department is excited to announce our 2020 study trip to Italy! Join us on a five-day, four-night tour to Rome and the Bay of Naples (27-31 January 2020), designed to augment our students' studies of the
Roman world. The programme aims to complement our primarily text-based study of the Roman world by introducing you to some of the most significant and impressive archaeological remains at the heart of the Roman Empire. The tour will be ably led by our colleague, Dr Jonathon Davies. Please contact jonathon.davies@mu.ie, or find more details on the MU website. Dr Maeve O'Brien routes in the classical languages, classical civilisation, and ancient history and archaeology. Other memorable events included the Roman Grammarians Forum, convened by Elena Spangenberg-Yanes, and the international conference 'Writing Literary History in the Greek and Roman World', convened by Giacomo Fedeli and Henry Spelman, while the 2019 International Byzantine Greek Summer School welcomed a record number of students from as far afield as Australia, China and Nigeria.
Trinity in August welcomed the new Regius Chair of Greek and A.G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture (a mouthful indeed), Ahuvia Kahane. Ahuvia joins the department from Royal Holloway, University of London, having previously held positions at Oxford, Harvard and Northwestern University. He has wideranging interests in Greek and Latin literature and culture and the classical tradition, and has published on topics as diverse as the diction of Homer and early Greek epic, contemporary Martine Cuypers French political theory, and online fan-fiction. Michaelmas term also saw the launch of a After two weeks of hard work, the Level 2-3 students new Single Honours degree course in Classics, of the International Byzantine Greek Summer Ancient History and Archaeology, with exit School are ready for a party!
Vale Professor John Richmond (1925-2019)
John Richmond was Professor of Greek in the Department of Classics, University College Dublin, from 1981-1990, and President of the Classical Association of Ireland in 1997 when he lectured on 'Classics and Intelligence: the contribution of A. D. Knox' at the Association's Presidential Address. He had begun his career in the offices of Dublin Corporation before attaining a degree in Classics and subsequently a doctorate in the University of London. His first post was in the Department of Classics, University College Cork, before moving to UCD in 1966. Equally at home in Greek and in Latin, it was in Latin literature that John distinguished himself in research. He is noted primarily for his contributions to the study of the poems of the Appendix Vergiliana on which he published numerous articles, an assessment of recent research in the monumental Aufstieg und Niedergang des römischen Reiches, and was a major contributor to the 1966 OUP edition of the Appendix. He was also an expert on Ovid, publishing an edition of 'The Halieutica ascribed to Ovid' (1962) and, together with Sheila Astbury, Introducing Ovid (1974), a selection of Ovid's poems for school use with a most useful
introduction and commentary. Members of the Association will recall his article 'The Latter Days of a Love Poet: Ovid in Exile' in Classics Ireland (1995 Vol. 2, pp. 97-120). John could sometimes present an austere impression, but on closer acquaintance revealed a most sympathetic and understanding character. While strict with students, he was always deeply aware of the difficulties in which they often found themselves. His courses were deemed to be challenging. I recall the general lamentation when his third-year special subject was made compulsory for all students; but that year produced a large number of Firsts and expressions of appreciation from the students who otherwise would not have chosen his course. Though deeply learned, he wore his scholarship lightly and shared it generously. One cherishes the memory of the many occasions when he helped solve a problem, the diligent searching together through texts and reference works regardless of time and interruption: this is how one learns the discipline of scholarship. We are grateful for a dedicated teacher and supportive colleague. Andrew Smith
Rose D'Arcy Ms Rose D'Arcy, née Atkinson, who has passed away at a great age, was a prominent member of the Limerick Branch and served for several years as Honorary Branch Treasurer. With her husband, Cecil, who served as Branch Chairman, she was a mainstay of Branch activities for over twenty years. Her talents were foremost in organising the annual Branch dinner, which was always a very enjoyable occasion and where she always balanced the books down to the last cent. As Rose was a very 'private' person, her fellow Branch-members knew little about her early life. What we could glean from enquiries was that she was born in Limerick city and spent her working life in Condell's Printing and Stationery Company. (Does anybody remember Mayor Frances Condell famously meeting JFK 15
Sr Louis Dominic (1924-2019)
in Limerick, in '63?) In the meantime, she was a hockey inter-pro and was, it is said, even considered for the international team. She was also interested in music and was a member of the Limerick Choral and Operatic Society. Her name appears in a programme as a member of the chorus in Tosca when that opera was staged in Limerick in the 1960s. During the last four years of her life, Rose was looked after with loving care by the staff of St Camillus' Hospital in the city and was often visited by Branch members during that time. She passed away peacefully on 11 October, and a eulogy was delivered by a Branch member at her funeral Mass. She will be sadly missed by all of us in the Limerick Branch, who appreciated all the work she did, and who loved her as one of our own.
A very old friend of Classics in Ireland, and a former Honorary Secretary of the old 'Association of Classical Teachers' (ACT), Sister Louis Dominic Nolan O.P. has died, aged 95, on 27 May. Born in Foynes, Co. Limerick in 1924, she entered the Dominican Order and was professed in 1947. She taught Latin and mathematics for most of her career in the Dominican Convent, Muckross Park, Donnybrook, Dublin. As Hon. Sec. of the ACT Sr Louis facilitated that association with meetings, conferences and multifarious activities for over thirty years. May she rest in peace.
Maureen Caulfield (1944-2019) It is with great shock and sadness that we acknowledge the sudden, unexpected passing of Maureen Caulfield after a short illness. It is a great loss to her family, friends, and retired colleagues. She was a longstanding member of the Dublin Branch of the CAI. Many of us had the pleasure of her company and supportive friendship at lectures, outings, and our recent tours in Libya, the Peloponnese, and Bulgaria. During her career in the Voluntary Health Insurance Company and in retirement Maureen enjoyed many interests. Her interest
Maureen (far right) with friends Mary Conneely and Pat Waldron on the 2014 CAI tour of Greece. (Photo © Joan Wright) 16
in art, history and Classics brought her to all corners of the world. Recent trips brought her to Japan, Myanmar and – just two months before she passed away – to South America. Little did she or any of us know this was to be her last trip. During her life time Maureen was involved in many voluntary and statutory organisations in Ireland and abroad. In all her activities, her caring, warm, fun loving personality shone through. She will be sadly missed by her family and by her friends in the Classical Association. May she rest in peace. Pat Waldron
Classical Association of Ireland Newsletter November 2019
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