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Whilst I realise (only too well) that Sydney is at the wrong end of a near twenty-four hour flight from most anywhere in Europe (and a minimum fourteen from the US), the following might well be of interest to any on the forum contemplating summer "downunder". The Australian Society for Classical Studies is holding ASCS 34: Alexander the Great and his Successors: King and Court over January 17th-20th at Sydney Grammar School. The conference will be held in conjunction with an exhibition from the State Hermitage in St Petersburg housed at the Australian Museum (adjacent).

I, of course(!), will be attending. For those interested the websites will take through the detail. I'm not certain if membership is required to be able to attend (I am a member of the ASCS and so simply ticked the box) but there are email addresses for correspondence if anything is not readily apparent.

Be nice to see one or two members should any be able to wrangle the trip.

Paralus wrote:Whilst I realise (only too well) that Sydney is at the wrong end of a near twenty-four hour flight from most anywhere in Europe (and a minimum fourteen from the US), the following might well be of interest to any on the forum contemplating summer "downunder". The Australian Society for Classical Studies is holding ASCS 34: Alexander the Great and his Successors: King and Court over January 17th-20th at Sydney Grammar School. The conference will be held in conjunction with an exhibition from the State Hermitage in St Petersburg housed at the Australian Museum (adjacent).

I, of course(!), will be attending. For those interested the websites will take through the detail. I'm not certain if membership is required to be able to attend (I am a member of the ASCS and so simply ticked the box) but there are email addresses for correspondence if anything is not readily apparent.

Be nice to see one or two members should any be able to wrangle the trip.

When I so often get people saying "You lucking so-and-so" because I live in the UK, it's rather nice (?) to be able to turn round and say "you lucky so-and-so" to you, Paralus!

What a shame that it's during term time, so there's no way I could get there. I have a friend who moved to Sydney a few years ago, and I'd love an excuse to go and visit him ... but I'll be sitting in a cold and grey classroom by January 17th!

I hope that you will give us a report, once it's over?

All the best

The exhibition appears to be using the same 18th century gilded figure of Alexander (incorporating a clock) that they used for the Louvre exhibition in Paris earlier this year. There is still a website for the exhibition here http://alexandre-le-grand.louvre.fr/en/ ... tique.html. Presumably many of the exhibits will be the same. System1988 kindly sent me a catalogue of the exhibition in Paris, and many of these exhibits from the museums at Thessalonika, Vergina and Pella were also in the exhibition at Oxford.

Here are a few scans from the Louvre calatogue:

A couple more:

So the hype begins.

Paralus, maybe you saw this, from the Sydney Morning Herald?

Link from RogueClassicism.

It worries me that people are still saying that Alexander spread "civilisation", as if there was none in the Persian empire beforehand. It also worries me that academics still blather on about the Tarnian "Unity of Mankind" business. Hey ho!

'Dionysus was the "guiding star" for Alexander, who in turn brought civilization, founded cities and spread Greek language and art from Mediterranean to Central Asia and India'(Sydney Morning Herald).
I am sure that with "brought civilization" the author implied "Greek" civilization. No one now, I think, would deny that there were other civilizations before the Hellenistic one!
As for "unity of mankind", it is by no means an original 'Tarnian' idea: its core is contained in Plutarch, Moralia, 329 B- D.
Best wishes
Hiphys

hiphys wrote:'Dionysus was the "guiding star" for Alexander, who in turn brought civilization, founded cities and spread Greek language and art from Mediterranean to Central Asia and India'(Sydney Morning Herald).
I am sure that with "brought civilization" the author implied "Greek" civilization. No one now, I think, would deny that there were other civilizations before the Hellenistic one!

I agree to some extent, but the way it is written suggests a distinct lack of civilisation prior to Alexander; and suggests that Greek civilisation was 'better' than any civilisation beforehand. So I'm not sure that the author does 'imply' Greek civilisation.

hiphys wrote:As for "unity of mankind", it is by no means an original 'Tarnian' idea: its core is contained in Plutarch, Moralia, 329 B- D.

True, but to be saying it like that, without any acknowledgement of the interpretations which have since argued against the notion, fixes a modern statement of the fact as a firmly Tarnian approach.

Best wishes

Alexander was the "first political leader who thought on the scale of the planet" [...] Dr Trofimova is certain of Alexander’s legacy. "The dream of Alexander, and I believe in it, was unity of mankind between east and western people. His belief in civilisation, this is a great lesson for us; especially important in our days when west and east are very, very sensitive".

The hype indeed Marcus. Dr Trofimova seems an unbridled romanticist in the vein of Tarn. If the conqueror were around today he'd have a decent belly laugh.