Aristides was sitting in court, listening to an accuser prosecuting his cousin.  It was a major trial.  His cousin, Callias, was one of the richest men in Athens.  But Aristides was famous for being poor. The prosecutor turned to Aristides, sitting in the audience, and said, “Can anyone doubt Callias is  a wicked man, when…

The Romans attributed many of their religious institutions to an early king of the city named Numa. Numa set up a cult of the goddess Vesta, the goddess of hearth and household.  Her temple was in a prominent place, and in it was an ever-burning flame.  The keepers of that flame were a group of…

Plutarch had many friends.  Many of the subjects of his biographies did too.  Eumenes of Kardia had friends in the enemy’s camp.  They advocated for Eumenes to be spared after Antigonus captured him.   Unsuccessfully, sure. But Eumenes, Alexander’s secretary, was a stranger and an outsider to Macedonian politics. He never would have made it…

Plutarch tells a story about Fabricius and Pyrrhus (one we did not cover in the podcast).  After Fabricius’ famous embassy to the king, he was made consul – one of the supreme commanders.  He received a visit to his camp from Pyrrhus’ chief physician. The doctor promised to murder the king through poisoning, if the…

Socrates was once involved in a conversation with some friends at the gymnasium, and they were joined by a visitor to Athens from out of town.  The man was creating quite a stir, claiming that he could discern someone’s character by a simple examination of telling features.  People in town were calling him a physiognomon…

Apelles knew the power of perfectionism, as well as its dangers. He was a painter.  Reputed to be the greatest of his day.  Alexander the Great commissioned him to paint a portrait of himself.  Apelles also painted Alexander’s general Antigonus the One-eyed.  (In the portrait, he turned Antigonus’ head so  you couldn’t see his eye…