Some of the most fascinating things at this stellar exhibit off the palestra or main town square are the frescoes rescued from various villas, though some were left in situ….. Most of these involve scenes from Greek or Roman mythology. Most often one would find such frescoes in a place where guests would be entertained, namely in the triclinium where dining happened, but also in other ‘public’ rooms in a house. But one would also find, interesting decorative objects like... Read more
For the elite, education of children normally would happen in the home. Here is a lovely fresco of a young girl with her stylus and her practice pad— a diptych made of wood into which was inserted wax so one could practice one’s letters and words. The family would hire a tutor, preferably a Greek one so the child could learn Greek to go with the Latin spoken in the home. Here is an explanation. Occasionally one finds busts of... Read more
At Pompeii we arrived in time for this opening exhibit on women of that city before the disaster. Pompeii was the ancient equivalent of a resort city, the difference was the elites had slaves, lots of domestic slaves, and in some cases agricultural slaves that worked the vineyards and other crops. But the women who left remains such as jewelry or busts or statues, rather than just ashes are what this exhibit is of course mainly about. There are not... Read more
One of my favorite spots to visit in Rome is the church beneath the medieval church of San Clemente. The excavations beneath this church have not only produced evidence of churches from previous centuries, but also of a Mithraium, where the worship of the god Mithras transpired. What seems to have happened is that an elite Roman had a cult area for Mithras in his home, but at some point… there was a conversion to Christianity. the frescos are about... Read more
It is safe to say that previous attempts at a decent Fantastic Four movie failed, and failed miserably. Not this time. This may be the best, and most genuinely likable FF4 movie we are ever likely to get. It has several interesting features— namely a 60s vibe in terms of cars, clothes, TVs etc. It also does not lack humor. There is both some comedy and also some pathos as well. The dialogue is capable of making you smile... Read more
TRUTH SERUM Is truth like rubber, Infinitely flexible Without breaking? Or is truth like a diamond Multi-faceted Refracting pure light Into many colors? Or is truth like a brick wall Unyielding Something you run into At your own risk Realizing you’ve reached a boundary That should not be crossed? Or is truth something ineffable Something you discover by accident While in the process of loving someone? Or is truth unattainable Something that is clearly out... Read more
Picture me as a young boy on a super hot Wilmington N.C. day standing in front of a large plate glass window of a small bottle producing factory, with one bottle after another after another being filled with the elixir of a boy’s life— otherwise known as Sundrop. It was a citrus beverage before Sprite and Mello Yellow and Mountain Dew. Prohibition in the 1920s hit N.C. hard, and so we devoted ourselves to inventing soft drinks as opposed to... Read more
Lindsey Davis is a very gifted writer, now on the thirteenth iteration of her Flavia Albia female detective series, which followed a long running series featuring Falco, the step father of Flavia. The Flavia Albia series deals with a series of events late in the first century A.D., and in this case a good decade after the eruption and destruction brought on by Mt. Vesuvius. Here is the Amazon summary about this latest novel. “A decade after the destructive eruption,... Read more
My answer is yes, if the acting is good, and the story is interesting and clever. Without question, during the late life of Stan Lee, Marvel heroes got the best of DC characters in the movies, with rate exception. But more recently, DC has made something of a comeback on the silver screen, and this is especially the case with this new film, which is by turns a romance, an action film, a good vs. evil morality play, and... Read more
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