“Take the Pyramids. Great blocks of useless masonry, put up to minister to the egoism of a despotic bloated king. Think of the sweated masses who toiled to build them and died doing it. It makes me sick to think of the suffering and torture they represent." Mrs. Allerton said cheerfully: "You'd rather have no Pyramids, no Parthenon, no beautiful tombs or temples—just the solid satisfaction of knowing that people got three meals a day and died in their beds."
- Death on the Nile, Agatha Christie
Dear Classical Wisdom Reader,
According to the Suda, singing as if sailing into Delos was a popular ancient proverb. It was a saying that conveyed a lighthearted happiness, to describe someone who was enjoying themselves. While this was certainly an apt description for the enthusiastic party goers on our 30 min ferry on the weekend, I’m certain the authors of the 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia did not imagine inebriated German tourists elaborating on how “hammered” they got the previous night…
Nonetheless that was the reality on the 30 minute journey from neighboring Mykonos. While the larger island has been crowned in modern culture for its golden beaches and celebratory vibes, our destination of tiny Delos was considerably more important in the ancient world.
Despite its mere size (only 3.43 km2 or 1.32 sq mi in area) it was venerated before Homer put stylus to papyrus, forever immortalizing it in his epic as the birthplace of the gods, of the twins Apollo and Artemis. Delos was a long sought haven for their poor mother fleeing persecution from vengeful Hera.
Its sanctity was such that in the 6th century BC the tyrant Pisistratus actually ordered all graves to be dug and removed from the island to ensure its purity. Indeed, regularly the island was cleansed of inhabitants both living and deceased, but its centrality in the seas and in the minds of the ancients meant its importance never went away, only changed in shape and form.
Our next Classical Wisdom ebook takes us on a tour de force of blood, blasphemy, guts, gods, and raw human emotions, as we present for your consideration the magnum opus of the man considered by many to be the greatest of all ancient playwrights...Members, watch your inbox this week for an electric, macabre, and profound piece of drama…
Indeed, Delos was the natural meeting point of the Delian League, founded in 478 BC in response to the Persian threat and the offenses of Cyrus and Darius. A collaboration of ancient cities from Rhodes and Karpathos in the south to Byzantium and Samothrace in the east and north... across to powerful Athens in the west, this confederation pooled their resources and maintained a common treasury there on rocky Delos by the sacred temple of Apollo.
That is, until 454 BC, when famed Athenian statesman Pericles removed it (and all the funds within) to his own beloved Athens... and used the monies to build grand monuments, most notably the Parthenon.
While today we can enjoy the stunning temple which majestically crowns the Athenian acropolis, we can’t imagine that the allies in the Delian league were particularly impressed by Pericles’ not so subtle confiscation of the treasury. Indeed, the Peloponnesian war kicked off not long afterwards.
So how are we to view this great work, knowing fully its underhanded foundations? We know that immoral acts resulting in great beauty is not something new…not even in the ancient Greek world. After all, they had the splendors of Egypt as examples. (Listeners to last week's conversation with Kara Cooney would have heard us discuss the ‘live captives’ circling the bases of monumental statues in Luxor).
Which brings us to our weekly question:
At what cost are great works? Should we celebrate beautiful monuments that were constructed on pain and thievery?
Is it important to know the backstories... and does that knowledge take away from their grandeur? Should we unearth these skeletons...Or let the past rest in the past?
Write your thoughts in the comments below and let’s get this conversation started:
All the best,
Anya Leonard
Founder and Director
Classical Wisdom
Más info en https://ift.tt/5PfJyHG / Tfno. & WA 607725547 Centro MENADEL (Frasco Martín) Psicología Clínica y Tradicional en Mijas. #Menadel #Psicología #Clínica #Tradicional #MijasPueblo
*No suscribimos necesariamente las opiniones o artículos aquí compartidos. No todo es lo que parece.
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