by fljustice | Mar 20, 2011 | Books, Fiction, Free stuff, Interviews
Author Interview: Melanie McDonald
It’s been way too long since I posted an author interview on this blog, but finally found a great candidate. Melanie McDonald just published an acclaimed new literary historical novel Eronemos about Emperor Hadrian’s doomed young lover Antinous. From the back:
“Eros and Thanatos converge in this story of a glorious youth, an untimely death, and an imperial love affair that gives rise to the last pagan god of antiquity, Antinous.
In this coming-of-age novel set in second century Rome, the Greek youth Antinous of Bithynia recounts his seven-year affair with Hadrian, the fourteenth Roman emperor. In a partnership more intimate than Hadrian’s political marriage, Antinous captivates the most powerful ruler on the earth.
This version of the story of the emperor and his beloved ephebe envisions the life of the youth who after death achieved apotheosis as a pagan god whose cult of worship lasted for hundreds of years, and gives voice to Antinous, whose image still appears in museums around the world.”
Ms. McDonald not only agreed to an interview, but provided a signed copy as a giveaway (details at the end of the post.)
Faith L. Justice: I’m sure two of the first questions readers have for you is, “How do you pronounce the title?” and “What does it mean?” (more…)
by fljustice | Dec 1, 2010 | History in the News
History in the News:
Italy’s Woes, Roman Recycling and Forensic Genetics
The Gates of Nineveh
The recession is hitting our historical heritage hard. Governments all over the world are cutting back on staff, delaying maintenance on existing sites, allowing sites to “disappear” in the name of progress or jobs. National Geographic has a slide show of twelve ancient landmarks on the verge of vanishing. Many of the stories in this round-up are touched by the money factor. We’ll start with Italy’s woes. (more…)
by Faith Justice | Aug 18, 2010 | History, History in the News
History in the News:
Pyroclastic Clouds, Dead Dogs, and Ads on the Coliseum
As I’ve said on my About page, I’m a history junkie and science geek. I love the intersection of these two disciplines: DNA markers that trace humankind’s exodus from Africa, isotope analysis of teeth and bones that tell us where and when ancient people grew up and what they ate, UV light to fluoresce bones and fingerprints on artifacts, and much more. Over half of my “history in the news” stories this round up have a major science component–from what really killed people in Pompeii to discovering a “lost” Roman city from aerial photographs to where the Dead Sea Scrolls were manufactured. You can click on the links to see the original stories. We’ll start with Pompeii.
Most historians and archaeologists believed the people at Pompeii, who where not killed by spewing rocks, died of suffocation from ash and poisonous gas. Pliny the Younger described the process in letters written 25 years later. Giuseppe Mastrolorenzo, a vulcanologist from the Naples Observatory claims “Everything that has been written in the guides, and the texts, and that has been re-told to tourists [about how people died at Pompeii] is false.” He spent years analyzing skeletal casts, testing bone tissue and simulating Vesuvius eruptions. He published his findings in the science journal PLoS One. Mastrolorenzo concludes that the people of Pompeii were instantly killed by a pyroclastic cloud, a surge of super-heated air. He also proved these high temperatures can be carried up to 12 miles away from the volcano. The Italian Civil Protection requires only those people living five miles from Vesuvius to evacuate, which puts 3 million people in and around Naples in harm’s way, in case of another eruption.
(more…)
“Eros and Thanatos converge in this story of a glorious youth, an untimely death, and an imperial love affair that gives rise to the last pagan god of antiquity, Antinous.
