Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #BadAncient
Most recents (3)
The myths around Thermopylai often rely on broader misconceptions about ancient Sparta.
Well, we can't have that can we?! Come along with @Roelkonijn and me, for another thread looking at 12 key myths about the Spartan culture, and their army 1/16
Well, we can't have that can we?! Come along with @Roelkonijn and me, for another thread looking at 12 key myths about the Spartan culture, and their army 1/16
Myth #1: Spartans were professional soldiers.
The big one! This comes from Xenophon's description of Lykurgus banning Spartiates from having a job.
He doesn't actually say anything about them soldiering which, you know, is a job! Seem more like 'professional citizens'
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The big one! This comes from Xenophon's description of Lykurgus banning Spartiates from having a job.
He doesn't actually say anything about them soldiering which, you know, is a job! Seem more like 'professional citizens'
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*CW: Infanticide*
Myth #2: Spartans killed imperfect babies by throwing them off a mountain.
This is very iffy: the literature is suspect and the archaeology does not support it. See this #badancient write up here: badancient.com/claims/spartan…
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Myth #2: Spartans killed imperfect babies by throwing them off a mountain.
This is very iffy: the literature is suspect and the archaeology does not support it. See this #badancient write up here: badancient.com/claims/spartan…
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More #badancient Spartans. A review of new book by Dr Andrew Bayliss of @theBRIHC The reviewer seems to ignore Bayliss's opening section all about the Spartan mirage: dailymail.co.uk/home/books/art… /1
No, 300 Spartans did not fight at Thermopylae. Bayliss explicitly mentions helots and other greeks being there. Also: badancient.com/claims/did-300… /2
And as for molon labe (it had to be mentioned didnt it!). Bayliss says outright this was a later embellishment - Herodotus loved a good story, he would have kept this in. We have covered this phrase here: badancient.com/claims/molon-l… /3
I was approached by the team behind @AncientWorldMag to turn my #badancient into a website project. So here it is! badancient.com
This is about examining modern public claims about the ancient world, and trying to untangle the history from them.
This is about examining modern public claims about the ancient world, and trying to untangle the history from them.
Bad Ancient began as a teaching exercise to encourage students to see the use of the ancient world in everyday arenas: politics, advertising, TV, video games. By picking out incorrect uses, or bad examples, we began to discuss their purpose:
Why do they use bad ancient history? What purpose does it serve? What intrinsic value do these mistakes hold in the modern world? I found posts began to attract queries for further information - how is it wrong? Why would they say it if it is wrong? What does the evidence say,etc
