Today is an important Friday for two reasons. It's Good Friday in the Orthodox Church and it's Anzac Day in Australia, New Zealand, and a few other South Pacific countries. I'll write about Holy Week tomorrow and Anzac Day at the end of the blog.
First some quick hits:
- I've linked to Archaeolog before, but another interesting post: The Other Acropolis Project by Yannis Hamilakis. It introduces his newest web project: The Other Acropolis, a photoblog which aims "to produce a range of alternative media interventions which will take the iconic site of the Athenian Acropolis as their centre, their point of departure, or their target (in all senses of the word)." It's run by The Other Acropolis Collective which includes, among others, Fotis Ifantidis who runs the super-hip (in a William Gibson way) Visualizing Neolithic blog.
- Over the Classics Journal Online Forum there is a noteworthy article: Daniel N. Erickson, “Practical Ways of Saving a Classics Program: A Report From the Front”, 103.3 (2008) 301–6. Dan Erickson is my erstwhile colleague in the Language Department at UND and has given his passion to developing the Classics program there. This short article sketches out the main outlines of the history of his work and gives us room for optimism!
- Brandon Olson, Pyla-Koutsopetria Archaeological Project veteran and UND History alumnus, gives a short summary of his recent paper at the CAMWS Annual Meeting on the inscribed sling pellets from Vigla.
- Amanda Flaata gave an interesting Tea Talk on Meter (the Mother of the Gods) in Phrygia and Greece. Among other things she mentioned how sanctuaries of Meter in Greece often included references to her sacred topography in Asia Minor. In particular the cult in Greece sometime employed the names of mountains near sacred sites elsewhere to create a kind of imaginary topography.
- A couple of interesting links to scholars bridging the gap between the academy and "the real world".
- Ohio State's Origins eHistory Project with an interesting article and podcast "(Fore)Closing on the American Dream" by Lawrence Bowdish
- The North Dakota Humanities Council's blog Prairie Polis features a cool essay "What Are Free Markets For? Or, what should we think about before we think about voting?" by UND Philosophy Professor, Jack Russell Weinstein.
Anzac Day commemorates the role of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps in the difficult and bloody Gallipoli Campaign of 1915. The Australian War Memorial site has a nice web site explaining the ceremonies and commemorative aspects of the observance. Cities and towns in Australia often hold ceremonies commemorating the exact moment of the Gallipoli landing (in Brisbane this was 04:28 (AEST); for photographs). Among the more interesting things is that the Gallipoli campaign forged a special relationship between Australia, New Zealand, and Turkey. As early as 1934, Ataturk reassured Australians and New Zealanders with words now inscribed on the several monuments both at Gallipoli and elsewhere:
"Those heroes who shed their blood and lost their lives, you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side in this country of ours. You, the mothers who sent their sons from far away countries wipe away your tears, your sons are now lying in our bosoms and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they become our sons as well."
Another important part of Anzac day are Anzac Biscuits. According to the story, Anzac Biscuits use Golden Syrup rather than eggs as a bonding agent so that the sweet treats would survive the long journey from Australia to Europe. My wife and mother-in-law sent me a tin and in a faint way, re-performed the actions of families during World War I who sent biscuits to their loved ones serving in Europe. A very tasty way to be made to feel part of an Australian family!
For members of the British School at Athens at Gallipoli see http://bsahistory.blogspot.com/2008/04/gallipoli-remembering-lives-lost.html
Posted by: David Gill | April 25, 2008 at 03:55 AM