As someone who grew up in South Shields, North-East England, in the shadow of Hadrian’s Wall (not literally – there’s a river in the way!), I’m accustomed to the presence of Hadrian. Our local school, for instance, is Hadrian Primary School. To get there we walk up Roman Road, past Julian Avenue and Vespasian Avenue and Trajan Avenue and along Fort Street (where, unsurprisingly, the Roman Fort is located). The school parents’ group is called Friends of Hadrian, which always makes me chuckle.
So the Romans – and Hadrian in particular – are everywhere, and they coexist quite happily with the folk of Shields. But even I was slightly taken aback when I ran into something called ‘Hadrian’s Tipi’ in the middle of Sunderland.
This prompted so many questions that I couldn’t concentrate on the socks in Primark. What did unexpected shopping-centre tents have to do with Hadrian? And why were they dated AD 122? (The larger question of why anyone would want to put up tipis in Sunderland city centre remains unanswered.) I went looking on the internet, which had this to say:
“In 122AD one of the five ‘good’ Roman Emperors, Hadrian, built a wall in the North East. Hadrian was a canny bloke who liked to travel sampling the best that countries could offer. When on the road he and his pals lived in Tipi-like tents and within these Tipi walls he enjoyed a bustling environment complete with great people, exotic teas and coffees, world foods, the finest local ales, beers and much more.”
Don’t you just love it when somebody manages to link beer tents to Classics?
This week’s links from around the internet
Halloween News
This week has been Halloween week, in case you haven’t noticed. ‘Halloween with small children in the family is so much fun!’ I hear you say. Not so. No, every single member of my family disapproves of Halloween and refuses to entertain the possibility of fun.
Well, I like Halloween. As a small act of rebellion I hang a holographic lantern outside my front door, which acts as a magnet to every trick-or-treater within a two-mile radius…
Naturally the Halloween spirit (or spirits?!) has pervaded this week’s classical coverage. Here are some of my favourites, for your post-Halloween enjoyment.
Trick or treat in Latin and Greek – Sententiae Antiquae
Curse tablets and Halloween – Classical Fix
On being an exorcist – CREWS Project
Werewolf origins – The Conversation
Laughing at Roman witches – The Conversation
Roman vampire burial – The Boston Globe
Julius Caesar and zombies – Forbes

This week’s non-spooky links
From Classical Studies Support
Visiting Rome – by Klara Hegedus
News
Let’s have a mythical giant in Wales – The Guardian
Theft of artefacts – AMN
Roman baths in Syria – Heritage Daily
Ancient precedent for the Brexit coin – The Guardian
The HS2 Dig – The Guardian
Finding a macellum – Hurriyet Daily News
A view of shipwrecks – The Guardian
A feminist Aphrodite – Hyperallergic
Sequel to Gladiator – The Guardian
Upcoming Classics events – The Classical Association
Classics events for ‘Being Human’ – Institute of Classical Studies
Comment and opinion
Goop and Classics – The Conversation
African soldiers in Roman Scotland – The Scotsman
On Mary Beard on TV History – The Guardian
The dark heart of Stoicism – LA Review of Books
Libation tubes for the dead – Atlas Obscura
Authenticity in fantasy coins – Coins at Warwick
Setting up a new Classics department – Heartlands High School
Ancient necromancy – Bible History Daily
Accuracy in Classics – Eidolon
Hippocrates, environmental determinism and racism – Society for Classical Studies
The animals of Julius Caesar’s forest – Cosmos
Menstruation in the ancient world – Clue
Beliefs in Britain – Current Archaeology
The adventures of Alcibiades – Ancient World Magazine
The fame of Hypatia – Classics For All
Natalie Haynes on the ‘Odysseus’ ship – The Guardian
The Yorkshire mouthpiece – Classical Fix
Not buying stolen antiquities – Salon
Golden tickets and the afterlife – The Iris
Getting Greek myths wrong – Greek Reporter
Hunting for St. Peter – Aleteia
On Ovid’s Hermaphroditus – Sententiae Antiquae
Talking polychromy – The Fourth Sophistic
Barbara Hamby on Penelope – New York Times
River gods – Eclectic Light
Modern coins in ancient Rome – Kiwi Hellenist
Teaching after-school Latin – Cambridge Museums
Drinking and exclusion – Classics at the Intersections
Translating The Hobbit into Latin – Transparent Language
Podcasts, video and other media
Osteoarchaeology – Archaeo Duck
Apollo, leader of the Muses – The History of Ancient Greece
Tombs of Pompeii – When in Rome
Bread and circuses – Anthrochef
Talking about dead bodies – Star Talk
Women in wartime – That’s Ancient History
Hades and Persephone – Myths, Baby!
Being Stoic – The Forum
Off our beat
Why is it that animated book covers make me happy? – Vimeo
Although I’m sure that Hadrian was indeed a ‘canny bloke’, Tipi style tents? Was that even a thing???????
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I’m sure tipi tents were where the Romans went to drink their coffee. That must be true, because the internet says so… 😉
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I know he got around a bit, but never took him for the backpacking type. Villa Adriana at Tivoli must’ve had a teepee or two which unfortunately didn’t survive the ravages of the archaeological record 🙂
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Maybe some day we’ll find the remnants of a tipi, and some sediment of Hadrianic coffee in the bottom of a kylix…
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πώς γαρ ου; coffee comes from Italy, right? Hehehe…
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