John William Waterhouse, Echo and Narcissus, 1903.
Wikimedia Commons
The myth of Narcissus – the beautiful youth who fell in love with his own reflection – has inspired poets, artists and psychoanalysts.
An artist’s depiction of the temple at La Chapelle-des-Fougeretz as it would have looked in the first century AD.
Marie Millet, INRAP
There may have been a main god or goddess at many temple sites, but there was a clear tendency to worship a range of deities.
Statuette of a female vulve called Baubo, terracotta, from Priene, Asia Minor, 4th century BC.
Reddit
An ad alluding to the vulva is sparking controversy, but there are few objections to phallic symbols. What explains this difference in treatment?
Roman mosaic from the Villa del Cicerone in Pompeii.
How Romans overcame their fear of witches by finding them funny.
IgorZh/Shutterstock
Without the scientific knowledge we have today, ancient cultures turned to myths and legends to understand celestial objects.
Detail from the Roman-era Sousse Mosaic Calendar, El Jem, Tunisia.
Ad Meskens / Wikimedia Commons
If you’ve ever wondered why our 12-month year ends with names that mean the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth months, you can blame the Romans.
Detail from The Temple of Janus by Peter Paul Rubens. Wikimedia Commons.
Wikimedia Commons
On January 1, we consider the origins of Janus, after whom this month is named.
South Africa’s governing party, the ANC, faces a crucial, decisive but potentially divisive leadership choice.
EPA/Nic Bothma
For the first time since its unbanning the ANC needs to find a new direction. Its supporters and South African voters are no longer content with resolutions that promise to end to corruption.
Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman.
Clay Enos/TM & © DC Comics
Wonder Woman comes from a long line of strong mythical feminists.
Jesus wasn’t the only son of a god in ancient times. And, as you’d expect, divine offspring tended to be high achievers.
We have brutal sexual threats, made anonymously, against those who have “transgressed” a particular boundary. Sound familiar?
Carole Raddato
Brutal sexual threats against perceived trespassers, made anonymously, with the expectation they will be seen as “humorous”. Sound familiar? Modern-day trolls belong to a long, and troubling, lineage.