Tea at Trianon: Ancient Greek Word From Burned Herculaneum Scrolls Decoded

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, January 4, 2024

Ancient Greek Word From Burned Herculaneum Scrolls Decoded

From The Greek Reporter:

AI read an ancient Greek word from a text damaged by Vesuvius in 79 AD, marking a major milestone in decoding the Herculaneum scrolls. The Greek word ‘πορφύραc,’ which translates to “(Tyrian) purple” in English, carries a rich cultural connotation of royalty and influence. The Herculaneum scrolls, numbering more than 1,800, are believed to contain important philosophical and literary works of the first and second centuries BC. However, their charred and fragile state became a serious obstacle for the scientific community. Nevertheless, recent advances in technology, especially the advent of artificial intelligence and advanced computing capabilities, have opened up opportunities for deciphering these relics. (Read more.)