In Greek and Roman legend, Aeneas was a prince of Troy who survived the fall of the city. After the Trojan War, he was said to have traveled to Italy carrying his father on his back. He then married, and his descendants went on to found the city of Rome. What do we know about his […]

Orthodox Christian art has almost nothing in common with its Catholic and Protestant counterparts despite the shared foundation found in the Holy Scripture. It was initially based on the Byzantine tradition of painting and mosaic-making. Highly stylized, dark, and strict toward its viewer, it was designed to provoke deep repentance and unwavering devotion. Read […]

Athena, a goddess of wisdom and warfare and the patron goddess of Athens, was one of the most popular deities in the Greek pantheon. The Olympian goddess was frequently represented and associated with symbols drawn from her complex mythology. From the wise little owl to the terrifying Gorgoneion head of Medusa, Athena’s symbols reveal […]

Camus wrote the short stories included in the collection “Exile and the Kingdom” at a time of extreme turmoil in his life. Recently shunned by the Parisian literary community, Camus suffered a crisis of confidence in both himself as a writer and as a man. What came of this period was a powerful collection […]