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But What Was the Saturnalia?

  When struck by the itch of curiosity, many people have done an internet search to find out why Christians celebrate Christmas on December 25th. One of the main results will tell you it was because the Christians wanted to replace the Saturnalia, a pagan holiday, with a Christian one. Therefore, Christmas is celebrated on December 25th. While there are other theories about the reasoning behind Christmas being December 25th, the idea that it was placed there to replace the Saturnalia is one that can’t be ignored.  This is all well and good, but… What was the Saturnalia?? The first recorded mention of the Saturnalia is on the “Calendar of Numa” which is dated to sometime during the 6th century B.C. The Saturnalia itself was listed among the Roman civic festivals, which were celebrated by all Roman people. The civic festivals were all annual events and each was celebrated in specific ways. The Saturnalia lasted for 7 days. It began December 17 and ended December 23. It began with sacrifi
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Constellation Stories: Orion

  The story of Orion was best told by Hesiod in his lost work Astronomia . Fortunately, excerpts of this lost text can be found in Eratosthenes’ Catasterismi. Unfortunately, it is quite difficult to find a free translation of this text online. It is a bit less mainstream than other classical texts, and as such, is more difficult to come by.  The gist of it is that Orion, a son of Neptune, had the ability to walk on water. After many journeys and adventures traversing from island to island, he eventually joins Diana and her mother, Leto, on various hunting trips. He one day vows to hunt and kill every animal in the world. Gaia, upon hearing this vow, is very upset with him and in order to protect the Earth from his indiscriminate slaughter, sends a giant scorpion to kill Orion. The scorpion is successful. Diana and Leto are sad to lose Orion, so they ask Jupiter to place Orion in the heavens as a constellation. Jupiter complies, and the constellation Orion appears in the sky. However,
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Constellation Stories: Ursa Major/Ursa Minor

  The first entry in the Constellation Stories series is about what is perhaps the most popular pair of constellations, at least in the Northern Hemisphere. Ursa Major and Ursa Minor . My personal favorite version of the story of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor can be found in Ovid ’s Metamorphoses Book 2. This is the version I base the video off of. Follow this link for this story in the original Latin , and this link for an English translation .  As is common in the Metamorphoses, this is an extremely tragic story. Callisto’s encounter with Jupiter is a prime example of Roman deities taking advantage of mortals with minimal concern for the consequences. Every account of the story of Callisto follows the same main plot. Jupiter deceives Callisto, Callisto bears a son, and Callisto is then transformed into a bear. Afterwards, she is then transformed into the constellation Ursa Major, and her son Arcas becomes Ursa Minor.  In addition to the main Constellation Story video, there is also the
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Constellation Stories: A New Series Coming Soon!!

  Now that we’ve made our way through Virgil’s Aeneid, it’s time to start on a new series. This time, instead of going through a work of literature, the series will focus on the convergence of the classics and science: constellations. For centuries, mortals have gazed in wonder at the night sky. Different people and different cultures noticed that the stars create predictable patterns in the night sky, and began to connect the dots to create depictions of characters and objects that hold significance in their particular belief system. The Graeco-Roman system of constellations is still used today, and the stories are still widely known throughout the world. This series will focus on the stories behind the constellations. It will be accompanied by a video series delivering the stories of the constellations in under two minutes. There will be a regular version which will tell the story as it is in Roman mythology, but there will also be a version made specifically for kids. These age app
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A Brief History of Publius Ovidius Naso (AKA Ovid)

  Here is a snapshot of the great poet Ovid, who devoted his life to the art of poetry. Many of his works were preserved and are a rich addition to the corpus of surviving Roman literature. Publius Ovidius Naso, better known simply as Ovid, was born in Sulmo in 43 BC. Coincidentally, this was the year Octavian rose to singular power and was then known as Augustus. Since Ovid came from a wealthy family, he was educated in the traditional fashion. Even from a young age, his gift with words was very apparent. After concluding his education with a tour of Greek lands, he returned to Rome. He held some minor judicial offices, but soon left the world of politics to dedicate his life to the pursuit of poetry.  He wrote the Amores, some love poetry. He later wrote a second edition which was divided into three parts: Heroides, Ars Amatoria, and Remedia Amoris. This collection is thought to have been completed around AD 2. From AD 1 and onward, Ovid’s focus was mainly on the Metamorphoses , a
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Summarizing Virgil's Aeneid- Book 12

Book 12, the final book of Virgil’s Aeneid is a fitting ending to the ongoing battle between Aeneas and Turnus. Though the ending is heavy, it is also filled with hope. The book begins with Turnus speaking to King Latinus. Latinus is ready to cease fighting, but Turnus is angry that Latinus would even suggest surrender. He insists that the fighting continue. Turnus still believes he can defeat Aeneas. Then the queen gets involved. She loves Turnus and doesn’t want him to be harmed. She, too, begs him to cease fighting. This upsets Lavinia, which makes Turnus even more angry and eager for war with Aeneas. Turnus decides the best way to end the conflict quickly is to face Aeneas in one-on-one combat. He sends a messenger to Aeneas and prepares himself to fight. Aeneas also prepares to fight. At dawn, the two prepare to face each other in the fields outside the city. The Rutulians and Trojans position themselves to watch the fight. Meanwhile, Juno is watching all of this play out, a
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Summarizing Virgil's Aeneid- Book 11

  Book 11 takes us one step closer to the final battle between Turnus and Aeneas. Full of speeches and action sequences, it makes a great addition to the work as a whole. Book 11 begins with scenes of mourning. Many men were lost on both sides during the battle detailed in Book 10. Aeneas gives a moving speech over the body of Pallas and prepares him to be transported back to his father, Evander. Following this emotional send-off, envoys from Latium arrive. They are there to request a truce in order to properly bury their fallen men. Aeneas agrees to the truce, and tells them he would like the truce to last forever if only Turnus would allow it. Some of the groups from Latium agree and we get a glimpse into their dissatisfaction with Turnus, particularly from a man named Drances. After the truce is negotiated, the narrative cuts to Evander, who, upon receiving Pallas’ body, laments terribly and gives a great speech about his misery at outliving his own son. Following this very moving s
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