Peter Gainsford

@kiwihellenist

Kiwi Hellenist, Homerist, classicist, NZ. He/his/him/ia.

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Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· 12d

The money shot, so to speak, is this compilation of how some scholars have envisaged the set-up of the axes. The set-up used in the 2026 film is based on a 1982 anime series, Ulysses 31. Walter Burkert thought -- and I agree -- that the text has Odysseus' arrow _piercing_ twelve axe-heads.

Diagrams showing the set-up of the axes as imagined by (1) Page 1973: 112, Fig. 6; (2) Page 1973: 101, Fig. 3; (3) Delebecque 1975: 59, Fig. 3; (4) Pocock 1961: 349, Fig. 1.

Still from Ulysses 31, episode 24 (1982), showing a further set-up of the axes.

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· 14d

Speaking of modern composers setting classical texts to music ... is it at all well-known that Mendelssohn's setting of Antigone works just as well with the Greek text as with the German?

Score of Mendelssohn's Antigone, first page - piano reduction including both Greek and German lyrics

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· 15d

I can't help wondering if elision played a part in choosing between homophony and free rhythm. There are no elisions in the first six lines of Eclogue 1. Part 2 of the motet goes back to homophony, but at line 7, Lassus switches to polyphony as soon as Tityrus says 'namque erit'.

Score of Lassus' 'Tityre, tu patulae', part 2, measures 15-21

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· 23d

[SPOILERS FOR 'THE ODYSSEY' (2026) AND 'ULYSSES' (1954)] It just occurred to me that the recognition between Odysseus and Telemachos happens exactly the same way in The Odyssey (2026) as in Ulisse (1954): Telemachos deduces his father's identity from the recognition scene with the dog Argos.

Still from the film 'Ulisse' (1954). Ulisse (Kirk Douglas) embraces Telemaco (Franco Interlenghi)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· 27d

I'm afraid so. It isn't exactly a case of saying the movie title, but it certainly has that kind of drivellous energy.

Still from the film Star Trek: First Contact (1996). Dr Zefram Cochrane says to Will Riker, 'And you people, you're all astronauts on some kind of star trek.'

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jul 13

This news makes me sad. I normally don't pay much attention to celebrities but Sam felt a bit more like a neighbour. Requiescat in pace.

Still from the film Dean Spanley (2008): Sam Neill as Dean Spanley

Still from the film 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople' (2016): Sam Neill as Uncle Hec

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jul 12

(Bear in mind several of these are parodies - fairly distant parodies in some cases.) The only Greek actor I can find for the main three characters is Irene Papas, who played Penelope in L'Odissea, a 1968 Italian TV adaptation.

Still from the TV series L'Odissea (Italy, 1968): Irene Papas as Penelope, Bekim Fehmiu as Ulisse

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jul 12

- 5 French actors (Georges Méliès, Paul Mounet, Georges Machal, Michel Piccoli, Alexis Loret) - 4 Italian actors (Giuseppe De Liguoro, Luciano Albertini, Giuliano Gemma, Luigi Mezzanotte) - 2 English actors David Thewlis, Ralph Fiennes) - 1 German actor (Bruno Decarli)

Still from the film 'Naked' (1993): David Thewlis as Johnny Fletcher

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jul 12

There have been 17 film adaptations of the Odyssey, or parts of it. No Greek actor has ever played Odysseus, Penelope, or Telemachos in any of them. Odysseus has been played by: - 5 American actors (Kirk Douglas, Harvey Keitel, George Clooney, Jason Patric, Matt Damon) ...

Still from the film 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?' (2000): Holly Hunter as Penny Wharvey-McGill and George Clooney as Ulysses Everett McGill

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jul 5

No, that's reversed. Witnesses up to the 5th cent. _unanimously_ read an eclipse: Tertullian Apol. 21.19; Africanus F93 Wallraff; P75; א; B; C; Origen adv Celsum 2.33; Eusebius Chron. 173-175 Helm ≈ 213 Karst. For reference here's Nestle-Aland ad loc. (they omit Tertull., Africanus, and Euseb.).

Text and critical apparatus for Luke 23.44 in Nestle-Aland 28

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Mar 21

I haven't got a Zipf graph for the Iliad at my fingertips, but here's one for the Odyssey! :-) (Bottom axis = rank by frequency of a given word, vertical axis = number of occurrences; the line at the bottom right is all the hapaxes in the epic)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Mar 15

Well that's nice - episodes 1 and 3 of The Daleks' Master Plan (1965-66) have been recovered. 5 of the 12 episodes are now intact (episodes 1, 2, 3, 5, and 10). (I have a vested interest since one of the Doctor's companions in these episodes was an ancient Trojan)

Still of a clip shown on BBC, 13 March 2026

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Feb 16

In case it's of any use to anyone: a couple of metrical diagrams, showing (a) the main bridges (and caesuras) in Homeric hexameter, and (b) an explanation of two ways of envisaging Hermann's Bridge/Wernicke's Law.

Diagram of the main bridges in the Homeric hexameter, using modern musical notation

Diagram illustrating Hermann's Bridge, using metrical notation

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Feb 4

Odyssey habits. Left, a cut from Trojan War scenes to Odysseus' house from Andrei Konchalovsky's Odyssey (1997); right, from a trailer for Christopher Nolan's Odyssey (2026). Both with the slow zoom-in on the hilltop. The idea of the house being on a hilltop is directorial - it isn't in Homer.

Still from the Odyssey, dir. Andrei Konchalovsky (1997)

Still from the Odyssey, dir. Christopher Nolan (2016)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Feb 4

'Mr Worf, ffff-'

Acting Captain W. T. Riker of the Enterprise, facing Locutus of Borg, in the midst of commanding Tactical to ffff-

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Jan 22

OK this is good. (from reddit.com/r/explainitpeter)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #15 Chicago, 1939: Robert L. May writes the story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer New York, 1949: Johnny Marks publishes the song 'Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer', and Gene Autry's recording becomes a Christmas No. 1

Cover of 1950 edition of R. May, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer; source: abebooks.com

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #14 New York, 1860s-1880s: Thomas Nast's famous sketches of 'Santa Claus' for Harper's Weekly: living at North Pole, and Santa holding a bundle of toys and a pipe

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #13 Pennsylvania, 1840s: fusion of 'Kriss Kringle' and St Nicholas

P. Restad, Christmas in America (1995), pp. 50-51 (see Restad for sources)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #12 New York, 1823: St Nicholas now rides a sleigh drawn by eight named reindeer; sleigh can hop up from ground level to rooftop; motifs of Santa as miniature, smoking a pipe, gesture with finger by nose, laugh, wobbly belly

Anon., 'A visit from St Nicholas', The Troy Sentinel, 23 Dec. 1823 (authorship later claimed by Clement Clarke Moore)

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #11 North Carolina, 1821: the 'Christkindel' or 'Christkinkle' visits in masquerade on Christmas Eve and delivers gifts of nuts and cakes, or a rod, amid prayers in German (reported as 'Dutch')

P. Restad, Christmas in America (1995), p. 50; see Restad for sources

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #10 New York, 1821: 'Santeclaus' now rides in a sleigh drawn by one reindeer, on rooftops by the chimneys, wearing a fur coat (red on page 1, green on page 2), and now visits at Christmas

Anon., The children’s friend. Number III (1821), p. 1 'Old Santeclaus with much delight'

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #9 Indonesia, 1815: eruption of Mt Tambora has global effects; several years of harsh winters New York, 1817-1820: Hudson River closed by ice for nearly a third of each year 1800-1820: children learn in school about people in Sápmi ('Lapland') using sleighs drawn by reindeer

Anon., The New York Almanac and Weather Book for the Year 1857, p. 128; J. Willetts, An Easy Grammar of Geography for the Use of Schools, 1815 edition, p. 51

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #8 New York, 1809-1812: in Washington Irving's satirical history of New Amsterdam in the 1600s, St Nicholas rides in a horse-drawn wagon that can go across treetops; smokes a pipe; has a characteristic gesture of placing a finger to the side of his nose

W. Irving, A history of New York: 1809 edition vol. 1 p. 79; vol. 2 p. 252; 1812 edition vol. 2 pp. 106-107

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #7 New York, 1810: publication of engraving by Alexander Anderson, and poem by John Pintard about 'Sancte Claus, goed heylig Man' (in Dutch and English), reconstructed from Dutch (or American-Dutch) folk memories

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #6 New York, 1770s: 'St. a Claus' makes his visit later than 6 December - possibly on the following Monday, possibly later still

P. Restad, Christmas in America (1995), p. 45; see Restad for sources

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #5 Netherlands, 1720s: St Nicholas rides a horse, and can go down chimneys on it because they're both miniature

C. Tinman, De oorsprong en uitlegging van dagelyks gebruikte Nederduitsche spreekwoorden (1720), vol. 1 p. 162

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #4 Netherlands, 1660s: on 6 December, St Nicholas comes down chimney to deliver gifts or birches in shoes that children leave out

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #3 Europe, 1500s: introduction of Christkind in Germany; outlawing of veneration of saints in some countries, including St Nicholas' Day (6 December)

Christkind illustration in H. Hoffmann, Struwwelpeter (1845); source: www.atlasobscura.com

Peter Gainsford@kiwihellenist· Dec 20

History of Santa #2 Netherlands, ca. 1000s onwards: St Nicholas as patron saint of Amsterdam (NB: this basilica is more recent, dating to the 19th century)