Classicsness ❧ Classical Culture

And what had Odysseus been doing through all these long years, before he came under the enchantment of Calypso in her vine-draped cave? Well, first of all, he had nearly fallen a prey to the magic of the lotus eaters. They were the laziest people in all the world, and they lived on an island where lotus trees grew everywhere, bearing fruits most lovely to look at and delicious to eat. But whoever...

For many years, as you know, Odysseus fought with the other kings and captains in front of the walls of Troy. But when the city fell and the conquering armies set off in their ships for their own lands, they were all broken up and divided by quarrels among themselves, and also by violent storms at sea. Some of the kings after a time reached their homes in safety; but sweet Penelope, Odysseus’s wif...

You have heard how Troy fell, and no doubt felt you wanted to know what all the fighting was about. Well, it is a story that began with another golden apple. There was a wedding, one day, of a sea nymph to a mortal king, and a very grand feast was going on in the caves of the sea — a feast to which all the immortals had come down from Olympus. Suddenly, at the banqueting table, appeared a being wh...

Athena was the wisest among the immortals, just as Aphrodite was the most beautiful. The vigorous and lovely maiden who had sprung out of the king’s head was always ready to teach and help mortals who wanted to do brave and good things. The Romans called her Minerva, but the Greeks called her Athene or Pallas Athena; and, one day when she saw some people building a fine and beautiful city in Greec...

Sailors of today who come back from far countries will often tell stories of the marvels they have seen, but these marvels are nothing compared with the wonders met with by the seamen of old Greece. Of course, they might, any day, come across Poseidon, with his green sea ladies, his blue and white horses, and his dolphins wagging their curly tails; not to speak of Aphrodite, floating along on her...

This is a story, not only about the golden apples that Heracles brought to his cousin, the king, but of other apples made of the same fairy metal. First of all, however, you shall hear about Heracles and the hidden far-off garden where the apples grew. When the king told him he must find this garden, and gather some of the glittering fruit from the tree, poor Heracles was in despair, for he knew v...

Bacchus, of whom you heard in another story, was very powerful and clever and could give to human beings almost any gift for which they asked. No wonder the helmsman was pleased to be under his protection! However, Bacchus had a good deal of mischief in his nature, and here is a tale of a prank he once played upon a rich and greedy king. The king’s name was Midas. He was very wealthy indeed, but h...

In that far country to which Jason and his band of heroes set off in their great ship with its fifty oars lived a mighty king and his beautiful daughter, Medea. This princess was dark-haired and dark-browed, and her wonderful eyes were as full of mystery as the peat pools which lie black and still on mountain moors. She knew many, many secrets that the earth hid from other people; and she would go...

You have heard that some of the Shining People could be very jealous. Even Zeus himself used to get quite angry if he thought that anyone, whether mortal or Immortal, was receiving too much admiration and praise. So, knowing that a certain man called Prometheus was very great and wise, the king of Olympus kept a careful eye on him and was always ready to interfere if Prometheus in any way usurped...

Among the pupils of Chiron was a prince called Jason, who had been put in the care of the wise old centaur when he was not much more than a baby. He had a very wicked uncle, who had stolen the kingdom from Jason’s father and set himself upon the throne. But little Jason was hidden in the forest caves of those strange creatures, the centaurs, who were half horses, half men. There, Chiron played on...

One bright morning, a little baby woke very early, wondering what in the world had climbed into his cradle. Opening his eyes, he saw two enormous serpents that were just going to eat him up, while his nurse sat by, stiff with horror. But this extraordinary baby only gave a shout of amusement, caught the snakes, one in each hand, as if they had been paper toys, and strangled them to death. Then he...

In one of the countries which Perseus had passed as he flew to the land of the Gorgons lived a king and queen who had a most beautiful daughter, called Andromeda. They loved her better than anything in the world, and the queen was so proud of her that she said she was fairer than all the fairies of the mountains and the nymphs of the sea put together. This boast was overheard by the sea nymphs, an...

One of the handsomest, cleverest, and bravest princes of those wonderful days was called Theseus. His father, who was a great king, was obliged to leave his little son to be brought up entirely by the queen, while he himself went away to rule over his kingdom of Athens. But, before he started, he lifted a big rock and placed his sword and sandals beneath it. Then he told the queen that, as soon as...

Beautiful Aphrodite, the queen of love, traveled over the sea and through the sky every day of her life, looking for princes and princesses, or shepherds and shepherdesses, who wanted her help. When she went across the sea, she sailed in the great silver shell which had first carried her to land, while blue and green water nymphs sometimes played about her and sometimes rode on their dolphins, lau...

Among the Immortals were several people of whom you have not yet heard, but about whom many songs were sung and numberless tales told, not only by the shepherds of the mountain pastures, but by the huntsmen who rode with their hounds through the leafy woods, in pursuit of the wild deer. First of all were the Centaurs, marvelous creatures who were half horses, half men. Very wild they were, very st...

In a previous story, you heard how poor Psyche, when she was the servant of Aphrodite, was made to do all kinds of difficult things and was finally sent down under the earth for a pot of Persephone’s ointment. You shall now hear exactly what these hard tasks were; and, also, the full tale of the sorrowful princess’s visit to the kingdom of Hades and his six months queen. You must know that, after...

One fine morning, in those days of long and long ago, a beautiful baby, the son of a still more beautiful princess, was born in a little room at the top of a high tower built of brass. That was a strange birthplace for a prince, you will think, but the fact is that the whole matter was a close secret. The poor princess had been shut up in the tower for months, just because her father, the king, di...

A certain king and queen, who lived in a wonderful land more years ago than anyone can count, had three daughters, all of whom were beautiful, while the youngest, called Psyche, was the loveliest maiden that the people of the country had ever seen. So fair was she that her father’s subjects declared she was fairer than Aphrodite herself. This made the queen of love —who, like others among the Shin...

One beautiful day, a maiden, pretty as spring itself, was playing with her companions in a meadow full of flowers. Sometimes they gathered great bunches of violets and lilies and made wreaths for their necks and heads; sometimes they danced; and sometimes they played at ball. The pretty maiden was called Persephone, and the meadow where she played was quite close to an enchanted pool, where fairy...

In the green glades of old Greece, where anemone and crocus grew, lived the wood nymphs, who danced in the sunlight and the moonlight upon the soft moss. They did not take much notice of human beings, but were content to laugh and play with all the strange fairy creatures that lived among the flowers. One morning, however, as they chased each other through the trees, they came upon a beautiful you...

Long, long ago, on the top of a high mountain in Greece called Olympus, a wonderful palace stood, with its windows in the clouds and its doors in the snow. It was quite invisible to the human beings who lived in the valleys beneath, but they knew it was there, and that shining and beautiful people dwelt in it, some of them crowned like kings and queens, and some with wings on their shoulders, like...

A podcast that invites you to embark on a fascinating exploration of Latin, Greek, classical culture, and Greek mythology. Immerse yourself in the vibrant tapestry of classical culture, where art, architecture, and literature flourished. We'll explore the epic tales of Greek mythology, from the mighty Olympian gods to the exploits of heroes like Hercules and Odysseus. Classicsness is not for class...