Please check this page regularly for news! If you would like to submit an item, please email the office:

 office@jact.org.

There are new job adverts for teaching or examining on the jobs page

Latest additions:

Excellent News from WJEC

WJEC is pleased to announce that the Department for Education (DfE) in England has confirmed that the WJEC Level 2 Certificates in Latin Language and Latin Language and Roman Civilisation will be recognised in the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) performance measure from 2014.

The impact of this is as follows:

·         WJEC Level 2 Certificate in Latin Language is recognised in the EBacc as a language

·         WJEC Level 2 Certificate in Latin Language and Roman Civilisation is recognised in the EBacc as a language

Decisions relating to performance measures from 2017 will be made by DfE in the light of the recent consultation on secondary accountability.

Full details of these qualifications are available on the WJEC website: www.wjec.co.uk/latin . 

Please contact the admin support officer, Matt Oatley (matthew.oatley@wjec.co.uk) should you have any questions.

Hugh Lester  Assistant Director, WJEC

JACT CONFERENCE (& AGM)

Manchester Grammar School

Saturday 18^th May 2013

This year’s JACT Conference (with AGM) will take place at Manchester Grammar School. This years conference explores a number of exciting ways in which Classics can adapt to the Twenty-First Century, along with session on teaching and writing and the inaugural address of JACT’s new president Caroline Lawrence. There will also be a number of exhibitors present (including the Hellenic Bookservice) and representatives from exam boards. The day will end with a fantastic chance for a visit to Manchester Museum for exclusive guided sessions and workshops.

Proposed Itinerary for the day:

Option 1

Kate Cooper "Daily Life in the Roman Provinces" OR Roberta Mazza "Life in Egypt under the Roman Empire'

Option 2

“Sources in the Classroom: A Writing Workshop”

In Latin OR Classical Civilisation

For application form please click here for Word document or pdf

University of Sunderland Hadrian's Wall Discovery Tour

18th-23rd August 2013

Further details on the Summer Schools page or go to

http://explorations.sunderland.ac.uk/hadrianswall.html

The Times Stephen Spender Prize 2013

Translate a poem from any language, classical or modern, into English

Three categories: Open, 18-and-under and 14-and-under

Closing date Friday 24 May 2013

New Latin courses at Gloucester Cathedral in April on conferences and courses page

The Pope's Latin speech (see below)

THE BRITISH SCHOOL AT ATHENS INTENSIVE COURSE FOR SCHOOL TEACHERS

Thursday 11^th – Sunday 14^th July 2013: conferences and courses page.

Drama page: aod 20th birthday celebrations

Conferences and courses page: courses at Herculaneum March 2013 also here.

Classics For All Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2udC0SZo98&feature=youtu.be

Imago, the Roman Society's Centenary Image Bank: http://www.romansociety.org/imago/home.html

INSET page: Birmingham January 26

Competitions page: St John's essay

The Pope's resignation speech

Fratres carissimi,

Non solum propter tres canonizationes ad hoc Consistorium vos convocavi, sed etiam ut vobis decisionem magni momenti pro Ecclesiae vitae communicem. Conscientia mea iterum atque iterum coram Deo explorata ad cognitionem certam perveni vires meas ingravescente aetate non iam aptas esse ad munus Petrinum aeque administrandum. Bene conscius sum hoc munus secundum suam essentiam spiritualem non solum agendo et loquendo exsequi debere, sed non minus patiendo et orando. Attamen in mundo nostri temporis rapidis mutationibus subiecto et quaestionibus magni ponderis pro vita fidei perturbato ad navem Sancti Petri gubernandam et ad annuntiandum Evangelium etiam vigor quidam corporis et animae necessarius est, qui ultimis mensibus in me modo tali minuitur, ut incapacitatem  meam ad ministerium mihi commissum bene  administrandum agnoscere debeam. Quapropter bene conscius ponderis huius actus plena libertate declaro me ministerio Episcopi Romae, Successoris Sancti Petri, mihi per manus Cardinalium die 19 aprilis MMV commissum renuntiare  ita ut a die 28 februarii MMXIII, hora 29, sedes Romae, sedes Sancti Petri vacet et Conclave  ad eligendum novum Summum Pontificem ab his quibus competit convocandum esse.

Fratres carissimi, ex toto corde gratias ago vobis pro omni amore et labore, quo mecum pondus ministerii mei portastis et veniam peto pro omnibus defectibus meis. Nunc autem Sanctam Dei Ecclesiam curae Summi eius Pastoris, Domini nostri Iesu Christi confidimus sanctamque eius Matrem Mariam imploramus, ut patribus Cardinalibus in eligendo novo Summo Pontifice materna sua bonitate assistat. Quod ad me attinet etiam in futuro vita orationi dedicata Sanctae Ecclesiae Dei toto ex corde servire velim.

Ex Aedibus Vaticanis, die 10 mensis februarii MMXIII

For a Latin scoop, see the report at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21412604

23^rd January 2013  SANT at 200

On this day The Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne celebrated its 200^th birthday. The original 17 members gathered in the Turk’s Head in Newcastle could hardly have foreseen the expansion of their new society (now over 700 members), nor its enormous contribution to the study of the history and archaeology of the region. Its primary significance for classicists is the role it has played not only in the understanding of Hadrian’s Wall but also in its conservation. Its journal Archaeologia Aeliana has published many of the most important papers on the archaeology of the Wall and the current issue (2012) is no exception. It contains a revolutionary new assessment of the building of the wall (conditioned by security and topography) by Erik Graafstal, who also argues that it was conceived as early as AD119 and that the ‘fort decision’ was the result of Hadrian’s visit of 122.

From February 16^th – April 30^th there will be a special exhibition at the Great North Museum to present the work of the Society and its significant collections (much of the Roman material in the GNM belongs to the Society). A fully illustrated centenary book 200 Years: the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne 1813-2013 edited by David Breeze to celebrate the history and activities of the Society will be on sale at the exhibition.

For further information visit the Society’s website: http://www.newcastle-antiquaries.org.uk/ .

Golden Sponge-Stick Competition

last chance for entries: closing date Friday 21st December 2012

email entries to: j.pine610@btinternet.com

Primary School Language Consultation

As you will know, the government is proposing to allow Latin and Greek to fulfil the requirements for learning a foreign language in primary schools. But as Lord Aberdare, who led the Classics Debate in the Lords on November 6th has informed me, this proposal is only at the consultation stage.

The government is inviting responses, which must be in by December 15.

Please respond!

Peter Jones
Friends of Classics

From:

http://www.education.gov.uk/aboutdfe/departmentalinformation/consultations/a00216689/modern-foreign-languages

Consultation on

(1) the draft Order making modern foreign languages statutory for Key Stage 2;

(2) a proposal that requires schools teach one or more of seven languages at Key Stage 2

General article

Updated: 16 November 2012

Start date: Friday 16 November 2012
End date: Sunday 16 December 2012

Email address: Foreign.LANGUAGES@education.gsi.gov.uk

On 6 July 2012 the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Education, launched a public consultation on the Government’s proposal to make languages a compulsory subject at Key Stage 2 in maintained schools from September 2014. The consultation closed on 28 September 2012.

The vast majority of respondents agreed with the Government’s intention to introduce foreign languages at Key Stage 2. That consultation provided the Government with an opportunity to reflect on and reconsider its initial views in relation to specifying the choice of language at Key Stage 2.

Having carefully considered the responses to the consultation, as well as a range of relevant factors, the Government has confirmed its intention to make the study of a foreign language compulsory at Key Stage 2 and now seeks views on:

• The draft of the Order necessary to make foreign languages a statutory subject at Key Stage 2 from September 2014.
• A new proposal that requires primary schools teach one or more of French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Spanish or a classical language (Latin or Ancient Greek) to pupils at Key Stage 2. Schools would, of course, be free to teach other languages in addition if they wish to do so.

You can download the consultation response Word form from this page, and submit your completed response via the online form.

Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum

Although it doesn’t open until March next year, The British Museum has opened ticket sales for this forthcoming exhibition . It is the first major exhibition held by the BM on Ancient Rome since the highly successful ‘Hadrian’ in 2008. The exhibition will feature hundreds of artefacts from the ancient cities, many never seen outside of Italy before.

Early booking is recommended!

Saving Greek in Spain

Cristina and Milagros from the Association of Latin and Greek teachers of Murcia have asked us to help their campaign to prevent the teaching of Greek from being removed from the school curriculum.

 http://www.change.org/es/peticiones/al-gobierno-de-españa-que-se-cuente-con-la-lenguas-clásicas-en-la-lomce#share

Cristina and Milagros are the organisers of the CICERO competition in Spain.

Thank you!

from Anne Dicks anne@ciceroconcordia.com

CICERO international Classics competition  www.ciceroconcordia.com

Schola Latina Universalis

Latine loqui disce sine molestia! Learn to speak Latin with ease!

For further details about this one or two year course and the course materials click here.

New CfA Promotional Video

This outstanding promotional video is available to watch on Youtube. Commentary is delivered by Bettany Hughes

This is an excellent video for selling our subject as well as creating interest in Classics for All.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2udC0SZo98&feature=youtu.be

Michael Gove at the Mansion House

This is the message that Michael Gove delivered to Classics for All on Wednesday July 18 at the Mansion House in London:

It’s fantastic news that more and more state schools are offering pupils the chance to study Latin. The classics offer students a chance to commune with some of the finest minds of all time, they offer intellectual training of the most rigorous kind and endless pleasure throughout life. It must also be noted that employers value the logical thinking, clear writing and enquiring nature shown by students who choose to study the classics. Which is why I wish Classics for All every success.    

See http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/charlottehigginsblog for comment on Boris and Pindar.

Press release:

Mayor to read out Oxford Classicist’s Olympic Ode

An Olympic Ode in ancient Greek composed by an Oxford University academic for the London 2012 Olympics will be declaimed by London Mayor Boris Johnson at the Opening Gala for the International Olympic Committee on Monday 23 July.

The full text of the Ode, written by Dr Armand D'Angour of Oxford University's Classics Faculty and due to be engraved in Greek and English on a bronze plaque in the Olympic Park, can now be revealed for the first time.

This Ode was written at the instigation of Mayor Boris Johnson, who took his degree in Classics at Balliol College Oxford.

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: 'I am delighted to have the opportunity to declaim Dr D’Angour’s glorious Olympic Ode at the Opening Gala, a work that breathes new life into the ancient custom of celebrating the greatness of the Games through poetry.

'I have no doubt that the members of the International Olympic Committee are fully versed in ancient Greek, but to ensure the elaborate puns can be fully appreciated I shall have the pleasure of vocalising the Ode twice, once in Greek and then again in English. I shall try to resist the temptation to regale the attendees a further time in Latin, though I cannot make any promises.'

Dr D'Angour, who wrote the Ode in the style of the poet Pindar, said: 'I hope that these Odes will help to raise the profile of the Classics, which is an endlessly fascinating and inspiring subject. It will certainly be fun to hear the Ode read by the Mayor in his inimitable style, and I hope people will enjoy seeing the plaque when visiting the area in years to come.

'Writing an Ode for the Games revives a musical and poetic tradition from ancient Greece, where Odes were commissioned to celebrate athletic winners at the Games. Pindar was the greatest poet of his time, and sponsors paid a great deal of money for athletic victors to be honoured with an Ode by him'.

He added: ' I have aimed to be faithful to ancient style and form, and used alcaic metre. Of course the puns may make people groan, but Pindar's audiences may have done so too!'

Dr D'Angour has written the Ode in ancient Greek with modern lyrics. The six English stanzas are written in rhyming couplets and include references to Usain Bolt ('the lightning bolt around the track'),  to London's Mayor (Boris's name is punned on by barus in Greek, which means 'weighty'), and the chairman of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games Lord Coe ('Join London's Mayor and co. within').

There are also allusions to British athletes, including volleyball captain Ben Pipes and diver Tom Daley. Cryptically embedded in the Greek text are the names of over a dozen athletes, including Britain's Tessa Sanderson, Paula Radcliffe, Mo Farah, and Jessica Ennis.

The Ode will be read out by the Mayor in both Greek and English, as the introductory item of the IOC's Opening Gala in the Royal Opera House on 23 July. The permanent plaque in the Olympic Park, funded privately by supporters and friends of the Classics, will be unveiled at a later date by Mayor Johnson and the Lord Mayor of London, David Wootton.

Dr D'Angour was trained as a cellist at the Royal College of Music before reading Classics at Oxford. Now a Classics don at Jesus College Oxford, he previously composed the ancient Greek Ode for the Athens Olympics in 2004 on commission from Dame Mary Glen-Haig, a senior member of the IOC.

This new Olympic flame behold,                

that once burned bright in Greece of old; 

with happy hearts receive once more       

these Games revived on London’s shore. 

Praise rival teams, in sport allied,              

as athletes stream from far and wide;                   

the poet too must take the road                 

conveying praise to victory owed.             

Millions of watchers will embrace             

the passion of each close-run race,                       

the efforts of the rowing teams                  

and gymnasts balancing on beams.                       

They will observe with rapt delight                       

the archer draw his bowstring tight,         

the skillful rider guide her horse,              

and lightning bolt around the course.       

The pipes will play, the drum resound,     

as medallists are daily crowned;                

the crowd’s hurrah will reach the skies    

when victors hoist the golden prize.          

Now welcome to this sea-girt land,            

with London’s Mayor and co. at hand.      

Good luck to all who strive to win:            

applaud, and let the Games begin!

ἴδεσθε καινὸν πῦρ τόδ᾽ Ὀλυμπικόν,

ὅ γ᾽ ἐξέλαμψε πρόσθε καθ᾽ ῾Ελλάδα.

ἀλλ᾽ ἡδέως δέχεσθε τἆθλα

Λονδινίου ποταμοῦ παρ᾽ ὄχθας.      

ὑμνεῖτε δ᾽ αἴγλην ἀντιπάλων σοφῶν,

στρατὸς γὰρ ἦλθεν ἐκ περάτων χθονός·

καὶ χρὴ μεγίσταις ὧδ᾽ ἀοιδόν

ἀμφ᾽ ἀρεταῖσι καθ᾽ ἅρμ᾽ ἐλαύνειν.   

πλῆθος θεατῶν μυρίον ὄψεται

ὁρμὴν τρεχόντων καὶ λιπαρὰν χάριν,

σπουδήν τ᾽ ἐρεσσόντων ἑταίρων

ἀκροβατῶν τε δοκοὺς πατούντων.   

θεάσεται δὲ χάρματι τοξότην                      

τείνοντα νευράν, καὶ ποδὶ σωφρόνως

τὸν ἱππότην στρέφοντα πῶλον

ἀστεροπῆς τε σέλας θεούσης.                     

πρέψουσι δ᾽ αὐλοὶ καὶ τύπανον βρόμῳ

τιμῆς φλεγούσης πολλὰ καθ᾽ ἡμέραν·

ὄχλος δ᾽ ἀΰσει καλλίνικε

χρύσε’ ἄεθλ᾽ ἐσιδὼν φέροντας.                   

δεῦτ᾽ αὖτε γῆν ἐς τήνδε περίρρυτον·

ἄρχων γὰρ ἄγχι καὶ πρύτανις βαρύς.

νίκη δ᾽ἀρίστοις αἰὲν ἔστω·

Colin Leach's anti-Olympic ode

πάντες ᾿Ολυμπιακοῖσι διηνεκὲς ἄνδρες ἀγῶσι

          τέρπονται, δαπάνης δ’ οὔ τις ἔχει μελέτην.

τοῖσι δ’ ἀγαλλομένοισι τανῦν μένει ὕστερον Ἄτη -

          τὸ χρέος, ἡ πενία, χἢ πόλις οὐλομένη.

OFQUAL CHANGES TO A LEVELS

URGENT NEED FOR RESPONSES FROM MEMBERS OF JACT via THE CLASSICS LIBRARY

The full Ofqual consultation document: 

http://www.ofqual.gov.uk/files/2012-06-18-a-level-reform-consultation.pdf.

A summary of the main points and a discussion group can be found on The Classics Library site:

http://www.theclassicslibrary.com/2012/07/03/ofqual-a-level-changes-and-consultation-the-classics-library-members-discussion/

To contribute to the discussion group (you need to log in as a member of The Classics Library which is easy for teachers to join):

 http://www.theclassicslibrary.com/news/groups/ofqual-a-level-reform-consultation-deadline-11912/

JACT INSET DAY - BOOKING OPEN!

Booking is now open for the 2012 JACT INSET Day, which is being arranged by the JACT Ancient History Committee. Please find the proposed schedule and application form in word here or pdf here. The date of the event is Saturday 29th September, and the fee is just £25 (£15 for PGCE students).

JACT LEAFLETS

The new Why Study Ancient History? Why Study Latin? and Why Study Greek? leaflets have now arrived at the JACT office. If you would like to order a batch, please email office@jact.org. We shall charge only the price of the postage (happy to invoice your school finance dept).

ON THE ROAD TO OLYMPIA

JACT President, Professor Paul Cartledge, discusses (and in some way participates in...) the ancient Olympics for the BBC:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01kn5gp/On_The_Road_With..._The_Ancient_Olympians/

BRITISH MUSEUM STUDY DAYS

First Modern Olympics Exhibition

 3rd July to 10^th August.

The Hellenic Centre, 16-18 Paddington Street, Marylebone

The First Modern Olympic Games, Athens 1896 An exhibition of rare photographs from the archives of the Benaki and National Historical Museums of Athens depicting the very first Modern Olympic Games, held in Athens in 1896. These rarely seen images depict the Games, from the Stadium's restoration right through to the Winners' Parade during the Award - Giving Ceremony and the Closing of the Games.

Opening Hours: Monday to Friday, 4pm-6pm. Morning school visits welcome; by appointment only. For late evening and weekend openings call 020 7487 5060. Organised by the Hellenic Centre in celebration of the 2012 Olympics. Sponsored by the Hellenic Foundation.

Open Book Publishers have recently launched a free interactive edition of 'Cicero against Verres' to be found here:

http://openbookpublishers.theclassicslibrary.com/home/

It allows readers to read it for free, to leave their comments by paragraph and browse through others' comments. For more information click here.

For the Guardian obituary for Professor Brian Shefton: http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/feb/22/brian-shefton-obituary

Classics for All

Classics for All is a charity whose aim is to raise funds to give every state-educated pupil in the country the opportunity to study Classics by awarding grants to projects across the UK.

Last year, students and teachers from Bristol University’s Classics department raised £880 for Classics for All by running in the annual Bristol Half Marathon in September.  They were initially sponsored by its Institute of Greece, Rome and the Classical Tradition, led by Professor Robert Fowler, but subsequently drew sponsorship from a wider audience. 2010 was the 2,500-year anniversary of the legendary first marathon in 490BC, which particularly inspired the team to run.

In 2011, funds raised by Classics for All were used to provide support to a range of classical projects in locations across the country; one of these projects was the introduction of Latin to seven village primary schools and their local secondary school in North Walsham, Norfolk. Our grant paid for staffing costs for two years, and will mean that seventy primary school pupils and twenty GCSE students will be able to learn Latin for the first time.

If you have the chance to participate in – or even organise – a sponsored event this year, why not do the same as the Bristol team and make Classics for All your chosen charity?  This will allow you to show your support for classical subjects in state schools, and the money you raise will help Classics for All continue to provide much-needed grants. If you are planning a sponsored event, or have a particular activity in mind that could raise funds for Classics for All and the work the charity does, you can easily register it online at www.justgiving.com/classicsforall.

In addition, please do not hesitate to contact Maxwell Singh, Classics for All’s new Development Director on 07740 482765, or email him at maxwell@classicsforall.org.uk if you would like further information about sponsorship or fundraising for Classics for All.

You are also invited to visit the Classics for All website at www.classicsforall.org.uk for details of how to apply for grants and how to donate money directly.

The Liverpool Classical Association Invites you to: 

The third annual John Percival Postgate Lecture

Professor Henk Versnel (University of Leiden)

Coping with the Gods. Implications and complications of Ancient Greek Theology.

Tuesday April 17th, 5.45 pm in Sherrington Lecture Theatre 1  

The Sherrington Lecture Theatre is Building 311 on the Campus map (http://www.liv.ac.uk/files/docs/maps/liverpool-university-campus-map.pdf)

The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception. 

If you would like to attend the event, please RSVP to tehh@liv.ac.uk

Do the Classics Have a Future? by Mary Beard

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/jan/12/do-classics-have-future/

New publication for AS Latin available online

New publication of In Verrem 2.1.53-86

Cicero, Against Verres, 2.1.53–86: Latin Text with Introduction, Study Questions, Commentary and English Translation is written by Ingo Gildenhard, Professor of Classics and the Classical Tradition at Durham University, and published by Open Book Publishers (www.openbookpublishers.com). This textbook provides a portion of the 2nd book of Cicero’s speeches against Gaius Verres, who was a former Roman magistrate on trial for corruption. Cicero presents the lurid details of Verres’ alleged crimes in exquisite and sophisticated prose. As a literary artefact, the speech gives us insight into how the supreme master of Latin eloquence developed what we would now call rhetorical "spin". As an historical document, it affords insights into the dark underbelly of Rome’s imperial expansion and exploitation of the Near East.

Prof Ingo Gildenhard's illuminating commentary will be of particular interest to students of Latin at both high school and undergraduate level. It will also be of help to Latin teachers and to anyone interested in Cicero, language and rhetoric, and the legal culture of Ancient Rome.

To be published by Open Book Publishers on 18 Nov 2011:

Paperback £14.95
Hardback £24.95
All digital editions (pdf, epub, mobi) £4.95 from our site.

The complete version of Cicero against Verres is now available for free reading on Google Books. It can be found at

http://www.openbookpublishers.com/product.php/96/1/cicero--against-verres--2-1-53-86--latin-text-with-introduction--study-questions--commentary-and-english-translation/7dd0fddc07dd38e3e0698952b1f54b45

Lactor

The new Lactor, a brilliant resource book for students and teachers of Classics and Ancient History, is now available. Please see flyer attached for more details and information about how to obtain a copy. NB the 13 Digit ISBN number printed on the flyer should end in 0 not 2 - 9780903625 34 0.

A message from the Iris Project:

We're very pleased to announce that our new website Iris online is now live! Iris online is the new website for Iris magazine, our termly magazine which has been sent free to state schools across the UK for some years. Over the next few weeks we will be putting up the archives of the past five years of Iris magazine, as well as adding new content to the site every day. You will also find videos and other extra material which will be regularly updated.

You can find Iris online at http://irisonline.org.uk/ - we hope you enjoy the site, and welcome any comments or ideas about it - you can reach us via this email or at editor@irismagazine.org

Request from JACT

One of our members is seeking past papers from the Oxford and Cambridge School Examinations Classical Civilisation O Level (1974-1987). If anyone has any copies of these papers or notes about the syllabus/recommended materials for teaching this syllabus they would be willing to share with a fellow JACT member, please get in touch.

Mary Beard at the Cheltenham Literary festival on the value of Classics

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQv7ji1Y1lc

Friends of Classics Survey

A new and potentially helpful Friends of Classics survey has just been published. I append the (full version of the) piece I wrote about it, in association with the Classics for All grants, in this week's Spectator:
The market researcher's full report on the survey can be found via the button on the home page at <www.friends-classics.demon.co.uk>, where there is another button leading to a government petition relating to Classical Studies in schools.

Peter Jones

September 24 2011

Some fifteen years ago, at the behest of the then editor Charles Moore, I wrote a jovial twenty-week QED: Learn Latin column for the Daily Telegraph. It attracted a huge following, and I still have four large box-files full of letters from users. The majority of them expressed one of three sentiments: ‘I learned Latin at school x years ago, loved it and am delighted to renew my acquaintance’; ‘I learned Latin at school, hated it, but now realise what I have missed’; and ‘I never learned Latin at school and have always regretted it’.

These responses, quite a few from people well advanced in years, have stayed with me ever since, but they prompt a question: anecdotal evidence about the value people place on Latin is all very well, but would it be possible to produce something a little more objective? Can we demonstrate unconditionally that, as Gilbert Murray once argued, our pearls are real?

This week the fund-raising charity Classics for All announced its first round of grants to projects that over the next the years will, if we can raise the funds, open up the classical world to many of the three thousand state schools (75% of our pupils) that currently come into no contact with it whatsoever. What such schools have against the people who gave us the magnificent and deeply influential Latin and Greek languages, democracy, philosophy, atomism, our alphabet, tragedy, the form and concept of the republic, the idea of universal citizenship, building in concrete with arches, cupolas and barrel vaults, history, the book, the West’s first literature (Homer), Antigone, and eventually underpinned the rise of Christianity (continue for many pages), is beyond me. We are (rightly) concerned about our physical environment. How can our educational establishments be so heedless of our cultural environment - what men have said, felt, thought and created over thousands of years? Such shameful cultural, intellectual and social deprivation is not visited on the 7% of pupils attending private schools. Perhaps they know something many state schools do not. Of course our pearls are real.

But then, whose pearls aren’t? It boils down to a question of credibility. So at the start of this year, Jeannie Cohen and I, as co-founders of the charity Friends of Classics (instrumental in setting up Classics for All), took a deep breath and decided to test the proposition. For the first time ever, we would find out what influence a school subject had actually had on people, many years after they had sat it. We invited the highly experienced market researcher Colin McDonald (of McDonald Research) to see what could be done. He found that YouGov, uniquely, held the educational details of an 80,000+ survey panel that could provide us with the answer to our question. Going for the largest survey available, Colin asked them to sample the 10,000 who had done something classical in the course of their education – Latin, Greek, classical civilisation or ancient history - and discover what value, if any, they placed upon it. Out of 2,700 sampled, 2,182 replies were received, an astonishing 81% response. There was no going back. This was going to be definitive.

When the results came in, Jeannie and I could hardly believe our eyes. Let me quote just one from a vast range of statistics. It concerns those who had studied classics to School Cert/O level /GCSE and no further, i.e. those most likely to have had a minimal commitment to it (c. 45% of the total). On the usual five-point scale – useless, fairly useless, OK, quite beneficial, very beneficial - those who said classics had benefited or greatly benefited their subsequent quality of life came out at 77%. The results in relation to their influence on work-life and skills were equally impressive. Given that two-thirds of the respondents were over fifty, many of them must have sat those subjects for the last time at least 35 years earlier.

The reasons they gave for their replies were equally revealing: overwhelmingly, they cited firm linguistic grip on English and other languages, verbal sensitivity, the capacity to communicate clearly and concisely and a broad perspective on the intellectual, political and cultural foundations of our world. Not a bad return, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty or more years on, from subjects studied up to age 16 - and no further.

Are our pearls real? You bet they are. Can it be done? Of course it can. In the past ten years, 600 state secondary schools have started Latin. Boris’s ‘Latin in London’ push has attracted swaths of volunteer helpers (including over 50 Oxford undergraduates). The Minimus primary school Latin course is flourishing (130,000 copies sold). The fenestra opportunitatis (as no Roman ever said) is wide open. With your help, Classics for All can lavish on our schools an inheritance to last a lifetime.

Classics for All (www.classicsforall.org) is sponsored by Cambridge University Press, Penguin and Westminster Classic Tours. For Colin McDonald’s full survey report, go to www.friends-classics.demon.co.uk. If you can help us, please contact me at pvjones@friends-classics.demon.co.uk

Discounts at Roman Sites for JACT members

Some of our members have recently brought it to our attention that JACT membership may entitle one to discounted entry rates to certain attractions in Rome.  JACT membership recently entitled one of our members half price entry to the Ostia site, and 7.50 Euro entry (full price is normally 12 Euros) to the Flavian Amphitheatre (Colosseum)/Palatine/Forum area.  We suspect that it should also enable cheaper entry to other municipal museums and sites in Rome - and we would encourage you to try it! 

If you are planning a trip to Rome, please e-mail and we'll send you proof of your JACT membership in the form of your name and membership number on JACT headed paper.  This should be sufficient to entitle you to reduced entry rates.  Do let us know how you get on!

Coming soon: CLASSICS and FOOTBALL on RADIO

Every Friday at 9pm from 2 September forward tune in to Resonance 104.4FM to hear lively discussion about football today and its roots in the Classical world.  JACT has recently translated into Latin a number of passages to prompt stimulating discussion on the radio show – ranging from mottos and referrees to homosexuality and weather in sport! These will be available online before each show with English translation (LOEB style). Unconventional, but fun, they should become innovative resources suitable for further use in the classroom.  See this link for more info:

http://cafecalcio.posterous.com/tacticus-press-conference

The passages themselves will be available on the show’s website – link coming soon!

If you miss the show on the Friday evenings, it’s repeated each Saturday at 11am. 

LATIN IN LONDON

In the run-up to the 2012 Games and thereafter, the Mayor wants to give London pupils a chance to meet the Greeks and Romans in school. He is therefore looking for volunteers to:
1. Teach Latin in primary schools, one hour a week for thirty weeks. The Iris Project is administering  this side of things; but you may use Minimus if you prefer (the Iris primary course teaches from handouts, not a book).
2. Give one-hour talk(s) to primary and/or secondary schools on a topic: those proposed are the Olympic Games, Latin in English, Famous Greeks and Romans, Athenian Democracy and Gladiators.
If you are interested, please e-mail me with name, e-mail, telephone and relevant experience and I'll pass the information on to Boris's team.
Best wishes,
Peter Jones
pvjones@friends-classics.demon.co.uk

From Science News. The story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by Science Daily staff) from materials provided by Universität Mainz.

Olympia Hypothesis: Tsunamis Buried the Cult Site On the Peloponnese

ScienceDaily (July 10, 2011) — Olympia, site of the famous Temple of Zeus and original venue of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece, was presumably destroyed by repeated tsunamis that travelled considerable distances inland, and not by earthquake and river floods as has been assumed to date. Evidence in support of this new theory on the virtual disappearance of the ancient cult site on the Peloponnesian peninsula comes from Professor Dr Andreas Vött of the Institute of Geography of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany.

Vött investigated the site as part of a project in which he and his team are studying the paleotsunamis that occurred along the coastlines of the eastern Mediterranean over the last 11,000 years. According to his account, the geomorphological and sedimentological findings in the area document that Olympia and its environs were destroyed by tsunami impact. The site of Olympia, rediscovered only some 250 years ago, was buried under a massive layer of sand and other deposits that is up to 8 meters deep.

"Both the composition and thickness of the sediments we find in Olympia do not go with the hydraulic potential of the Kladeos River and the geomorphological inventory of the valley. It is highly unlikely that this could have been the work of this creek," states Vött. To date, it has been assumed that the cult site was finally destroyed by an earthquake in 551 AD and later covered by flood deposits of the Kladeos River. In this scenario, however, it remains mysterious how the tiny Kladeos that passes by could first have buried Olympia under several meters of sediment, only to subsequently get incised by 10 to 12 meters down to the flow level used in ancient times. Working in collaboration with the local Ephorate for Classical Antiquities, the German Archaeological Institute, and colleagues from the universities of Aachen, Darmstadt, Freiburg, Hamburg, and Cologne, Vött and his team examined the location using geomorphological and geoarcheological methods and techniques.

The results indicate that Olympia was repeatedly hit by catastrophic floods during its history resulting in the site being buried under huge masses of sediment. The presence of mollusc and gastropod shells and the remains of abundant micro-organisms such as foraminifera are clear evidence of a marine origin of the sediment. The sediments were obviously transported inland at high velocity and high energy, reaching Olympia although the site lies some 33 meters above sea level. The most probable explanation is that tsunami waters overflowed the narrow range of hills between Olympia and the sea through low-lying saddles.

"In earlier times, Olympia was not 22 kilometers away from the sea as it is today. Back then, the coastline was located eight or perhaps even more kilometers further inland," explains Vött. In his scenario, tsunamis came in from the sea and rushed into the narrow Alpheios River valley, into which the Kladeos River flows, forcing their way over the saddles behind which Olympia is located. The cult site was thus flooded. Vött assumes that the flooding decreased only slowly because the outflow of the Kladeos through the Alpheios valley was blocked by incoming tsunami waters and corresponding deposits. The analysis of the various layers of sediments in the Olympia area suggests that this scenario came true on several occasions during the last 7,000 years. It was during one of the more recent of these events in the 6th century AD that Olympia was finally destroyed and buried.

The Olympia tsunami hypothesis is further supported by the fact that high-energy sediments of undoubtedly tsunamigenic origin were found on the seaward side of the hill range and these deposits are identical to those in Olympia itself. Vött points out that "the sediments around Olmypia have the same signature as the tsunamite in the lower Alpheios valley." Vött says that the cause of Olympia's destruction could not have been an earthquake because in this case the fallen fragments of the columns of the Temple of Zeus would directly lie on top of each other, but in fact they are "floating" in sediment. All the sedimentological, geochemical, geomorphological, and geoarcheological findings obtained by the study support the new and sensational hypothesis that Olympia was destroyed by tsunamis. Detailed analyses of associations, origin, and age of microfauna as well as geochronological studies are currently in progress. Results are expected soon.

Tsunamis are well known from the eastern Mediterranean and are mainly the result of extensive seismic activities along the Hellenic Arc. Here, the African plate is being subducted by the Eurasian plate, repeatedly triggering major earthquakes that are followed by tsunamis. The most recent mega-tsunami in the Mediterranean occurred in 1908 related to an earthquake in the Straits of Messina in southern Italy, devastating the neighboring coastal region, more than 100,000 people were killed. A 30 meter-high tsunami wave was recorded in the southern Aegean in 1956. "The evaluation of historical accounts has shown that in western Greece there is one tsunami every eight to eleven years on average," specifies Vött.

Professor Dr Andreas Vött is specialized in paleotsunami and geoarcheological research in the Mediterranean. In September 2011, he will be presenting the Olympia tsunami hypothesis at an international academic conference in Corinth in Greece. Before coming to Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in October 2010, Vött was professor of Physical Geography with a focus on Quaternary Research and Geoarcheology at the Institute for Geography at the University of Cologne. As professor of Physical Geography/Geomorphology at Mainz University, Vött also heads the Natural Hazard Research and Geoarcheology teaching and research section. His research also comprises aspects of coastal geomorphology such as sea level fluctuations during the Holocene, but also the spatial effects of human-environment interactions over the past millennia. Vött's work is coordinated with that of the JGU research center "Geocycles" and the Cluster of Excellence "Earth and the Anthropocene" (ERA), which has been invited to submit a full proposal for funding in the second phase of the German Excellence Initiative.

enlarge

View to the west of the central Kladeos River valley and the range of hills which separate Olympia from the wider coastal area. In the background the narrow Apheios River valley (left) and the coast of the Gulf of Kyparissia can be seen. The site of ancient Olympia was hit by tsunami impact and buried under a massive layer of sand and other deposits in the 6th century AD. (Credit: Photo by Andreas Vött)

JACT Members' E-Newsletter

The JACT Members' E-Newsletter is now up and running (since April 2008). Be more in touch between mailings: to sign up to receive these mailings please email the office, listing 'E-Newsletter' in the subject line to office@jact.org. You must be a JACT member to sign up to this service. To join, see above.

Iota

JACT would also like to inform you of a new Classics magazine, Iota, produced by educational charity The Iris Project, and intended for younger children.  Please click here.

Dream School Latin

For information about the new charity click here.

News from Bristol University