Happiness Higher Among Indigenous Communities, Study Finds

Indigenous communities' happiness level or higher than happiness of wealthy nations, study finds.
Indigenous communities’ happiness level is higher than happiness of wealthy nations, study finds. Credit: wwarby. CC BY 2.0/flickr

A new study has shed light on the connection between happiness and wealth with high life satisfaction being reported among small-scale societies, mostly Indigenous peoples, with low incomes. This dispels the myth that material wealth alone makes people happy and presents evidence for the possibility of a satisfying life without reliance on material requirements.

The finding highlights the likelihood that humanity can indeed learn to live within planetary boundaries and slow down climate change. Many surveys have shown that wealthier individuals tend to report being more content and satisfied with their lives. Such a pattern could be construed to mean that high material wealth, as measured in monetary terms, is a necessary factor for happiness.

The new study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), relays survey results from people living in small-scale societies outside the “globalized mainstream,” the majority of whom identify as Indigenous.

The study highlights that despite these (mostly) Indigenous communities having little monetary income, the respondents frequently reported being “very satisfied with their lives.” Some communities reported satisfaction and happiness scores in line with people living in the wealthiest countries. According to the study authors, “These results imply greater flexibility in the means to achieve happiness than are apparent from surveys that examine only industrialized societies.”

In conducting the study, the researchers collected data through a total of 2,966 in-person interviews, carried out among nineteen globally distributed sites across eighteen countries. All the surveys were part of the Local Indicators of Climate Change Impacts (LICCI) project, which aims to bring insights from Indigenous cultures and local knowledge systems to climate research. The surveys followed a standardized protocol for data collection.

The information reported, and subsequently published in the study, pertains to Indigenous peoples and local communities, defined in accordance with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. The communities exist in rural areas in close interaction with the environment and are supported largely through the use of nature.

Conclusions of the study on happiness in Indigenous communities and the industrialized world

One of the study’s authors commented, “The striking aspect of our findings, particularly compared to the widely cited Gallup World Poll, is that reported life satisfaction and happiness in very low-income, Indigenous communities can meet and even exceed that reported at the highest average levels of material wealth provided by industrial ways of life.”

The author added: “Our findings provide strong empirical support for the argument that achieving high reported life satisfaction does not require the elevated rates of material consumption generally associated with high monetary income.”

Instead, concluded the author, the findings add weight to the importance of identifying the underlying factors that cause people to report high satisfaction with their lives. It has long been known that nonmonetary factors are important to well-being. The insight here is that those factors can yield higher levels of satisfaction at the population level than typically expected.

“Further research into the factors supporting high levels of life satisfaction while maintaining low material requirements, as exemplified by the communities studied here, may provide unexplored strategies to improve the well-being of humans while navigating planetary boundaries,” the researcher concluded.

Workers in Greece Strike Demanding Answers for Tempe Rail Tragedy

Tempe rail disaster
Relatives of the 57 victims lay flowers at Tempe. File photo. Credit: AMNA

Strikes across Greece mark the first anniversary of the nation’s worst rail tragedy at Tempe as workers demand answers for the accident and punishment for those responsible.

A year after the railway disaster, that claimed the lives of 57 people on February 28, 2023, in Central Greece, many questions remain unanswered.

A definitive account of what happened and who may be at fault has not been delivered, with investigators in an official inquiry not due to finish questioning until March 8.

A memorial service for those lost was held on Sunday, and relatives plan to gather at the crash site on Wednesday.

“One year on, we are back on the streets to shout that we do not forget,” said civil servants’ union Adedy. “Those responsible for the tragedy have still not answered for their criminal acts.”

Greek civil servants are staging a 24-hour walkout with other unions, including taxi drivers, workers on ferries and public transport workers, who are also protesting at the high cost of living.

Railway workers demand those responsible for the accident to be brought to justice. “Railway workers are the only ones who are not to blame for all that happened as they have been calling for the improvement in safety for years because they saw what was coming,” a statement by the Railway Workers Union said.

The Association of Victims of the Tempe Accident claims that, in the aftermath of the disaster, the affected area was covered up by the state to conceal vital evidence.

Relatives have appointed their own experts to the case, arguing that official investigators wasted time and overlooked vital evidence, including the intense fire that broke out after the collision with the freight train.

“It is certain the freight train was carrying illegal cargo. We’ve found substances used to adulterate fuel,” Maria Karystianou, who lost her 19-year-old daughter in the crash told AFP.

In a speech at the European Parliament this month, she said the government had “tried to tamper with and cover up incriminating evidence”.

Related: Unanswered Questions Remain Over Greece’s Railway Disaster

The collision at Tempe was Greece’s worst rail tragedy

On February 28, 2023, a head-on collision occurred between two trains south of the  Tempe Valley in Greece about halfway between the Greek towns of Tempi and Evangelismos in the Thessaly region.

The collision, involving the InterCity 62 (IC62) passenger train and an intermodal freight train, killed at least 57 people, with an official number of 342 passengers, 10 onboard railway staff on the passenger train, and 2 staff on the freight train totaling 354 passengers between the two trains.

Passengers described being trapped among smashed carriages and burning debris as the train keeled over. They broke windows to try to escape. The flames left many bodies charred beyond recognition and one missing woman was never found.

It is the deadliest railway disaster in Greek history. It was discovered that the IC62 passenger train had been allowed to proceed on the wrong track and pass signals of danger despite the presence of the freight train on the same track.

Vigils, angry protests, and clashes with the police occurred throughout Greece following the accident.

When Greeks Defied the Nazis to Attend Great Poet Palamas’ Funeral

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Palamas
Poet Kostis Palamas. Credit: Public domain

On a day like this on February 28, 1943, Athens was trembling by the sentiment of grief. One of the nation’s greatest poets, Kostis Palamas, had died the day before.

Palamas’ works became the artistic beacons of Greece, and he was considered a top Greek poet of modern literature and one of the most inspiring figures of Hellenism. His funeral was meant to become the first massive anti-Nazi and anti-occupation demonstration in Europe.

A national poet in the making

Born in Patras on January 13, 1859, Palamas lived long enough to see Greece occupied by the Germans, as he died on February 27, 1943.

Palamas’ enormous poetic work is imbued with history, Hellenism, and the formation of the “Great Idea” for his homeland. It is the idea that Greece could reach its former glory of the Byzantium and of the ancient world.

However, Palamas’ work wasn’t just that. It also dealt with the everyday, ordinary man and his feelings. This is why he was named Greece’s national poet. Because he knew what the Greek wanted and what it actually meant to be Greek.

The poet’s lyricism and word-making skills have been remarkable. However, aside from being an exemplary poet, Palamas was also a literary critic, writer, and philosopher.

The early life

Palamas lost both his parents at an early age. In 1864, his mother, Penelope, died during a premature birth, while less than a year later, his father Michael passed away as well.

His uncle, Dimitrios Palamas, attained custody of the six-year-old Kostis, and they lived in Mesolonghi, Greece’s renowned “Holy City.” The young boy stayed there from 1867 until  1875. He started writing poems and literature as early as high school.

As soon as he finished high school, in 1876, he moved to Athens, the newly-established capital of the modern Greek state. There, he enrolled in the Law School of the Athens University.

His studies, however, did not last long, as the heart of young Palamas belonged to poetry and literature. He started working as a journalist to make a living using different aliases, and he kept writing feverishly.

Palamas soon stood out from his colleagues. He became the founder of the “New Athenian School” in poetry, and in 1886, he published his first poetry collection, the Songs of My Fatherland.

Palamas’ Adult Life

In 1887, Palamas married Maria Valvi with whom he had three children, Nausica, Leandros, and Alkis. Tragically, his youngest son, Alkis, died at the age of five, and the poet grieved deeply.

In memory of little Alkis, he wrote the poem “Tomb,” a magnificent elegy.

In 1879, he was appointed secretary of the University of Athens and, until his resignation in 1928 as secretary-general, he won many honorary distinctions, the most important being that of the academic in 1926.

In 1924, the French Government honored Palamas with the “Legion of Honor” title, to honor his contribution to Europe’s literature. In 1929, he was appointed President of the Academy of Sciences in yet another milestone of his unbelievable achievements.

Early in 1933, the great Greek poet was also honored with the “Goethe” medal by the German ambassador to Athens. He received additional medals and honors in the following years from various European countries.

In 1936, Palamas celebrated his fifty-year contribution to Greek poetry and literature and received the title of Dean of the Royal Order for his contribution in the “Letters and Art” of the Ministry of Education of the country. In 1937, his statue was raised in Messolonghi, which was a rare honor for someone who was still alive.

The Historic Funeral

Palamas
The coffin of Kostis Palamas. Credit: Public domain

Unfortunately, on February 9, 1943, his life partner Maria passed away. A few days later, on February 27, 1943, Palamas died too.

For his funeral, an astonishing number of about one hundred thousand Greeks paid their respects to the “National Poet” before the shocked gazes of the German conquerors. The Nazi occupiers were very strict with their commands for “public order” in their conquered lands. However, this was not enough for the thousands of mourning Greeks to stop paying their respects to a real legend.

Renowned poet Aggelos Sikelianos wrote and recited the touching “Palamas” for the funeral service. Early in the morning, thousands of people began to gather at Athens‘ first cemetery.

Even the occupying forces of Germany and Italy sent their representatives to show that they respected the great Greek poet. However, the gathered crowd could not hide its anti-Nazi sentiment. The whole spirit of the day was brilliantly expressed in the words of Sikelianos: “The whole of Greece rests in this coffin,” he said.

After the coffin of Palamas was placed in the grave, a brave member of the crowd began singing the national anthem. The entire city was then flooded by the voices of the Athenians who sang the anthem of the country.

“Long live the liberty of spirit!” one man shouted. “Long live Liberty!” the crowd responded, fearless and determined to show to the Nazis that they were never welcome in Greece.

Kostis Palamas became a legend and remains so to this day.

Google Parent Company, Alphabet, Loses $90B Amid AI Controversy

Google's parent company Alphabet lost 90 billion dollars in the stock market after controversy surrounding its AI software Gemini reached Wall Street.
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, lost ninety billion dollars in the stock market after controversy surrounding its AI software Gemini reached Wall Street. Credit: Maurizio Pesce. CC BY 2.0/Maurizio Pesce

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, lost around ninety billion dollars in market value this week as the controversy surrounding the Silicon Valley company’s generative artificial intelligence (AI) product reached Wall Street.

Shares of Alphabet fell 4.5 percent to 138.75 dollars yesterday on Monday, February 26th, finishing the trading day at its lowest price since January 5th. This marked its second-steepest daily loss of the last year.

The selloff came after rising controversy surrounding Google’s Gemini AI service, with factors including the platform’s image-generating service which produces racially inaccurate depictions of historical figures. Its chatbot also failed to determine who has had the worst impact on the world—Elon Musk or Adolf Hitler?

What did Google’s AI Chabot, Gemini, get wrong?

According to the Daily Mail, the “politically correct” tech referred to pedophilia as “minor-attracted person status,” declaring “it’s important to understand that attractions are not actions.” The search giant’s AI software was being asked a series of questions by X personality Frank McCormick, a.k.a Chalkboard Heresy, when it came out with its responses.

The question “is multifaceted and requires a nuanced answer that goes beyond a simple yes or no,” Gemini explained.

In a follow-up question, McCormick asked if minor-attracted people are evil. The bot replied that they are not. It posits that not all individuals with pedophilia instincts have committed or will commit abuse.

These issues and more have resulted in the company admitting it “missed the mark” with Gemini’s early prototype rollout. The company took the AI image service offline for the next few weeks.

“This is a meaningful blunder in the PR battle surrounding [generative AI] and further suggests that Google is trailing and mis-executing in a fast-moving and high-stakes space,” Loop Capital analyst Rob Sanderson wrote in a note to clients Sunday, as reported by Forbes.

Alphabet’s losses occurred during a relatively standard day of trading, and the company was the highest percentage faller among S&P 500 constituents with a market capitalization over fifty billion dollars.

“The issue for the stock is not the debate [over Gemini] itself, [but] it is the perception of truth behind the brand,” Melius Research analysts Ben Reitzes and Nick Monroe wrote in a Monday note to clients.

“Regardless of your view, if Google is seen as an unreliable source for AI to a portion of the population, that isn’t good for business,” the analysts added, according to Forbes.

The Melius group has suggested that Alphabet’s movements into the “crosshairs” of the culture war debate could affect its leading position in the online search market. This is especially so considering AI’s increasingly central role in online search and the possibility of a “meaningful portion of users growing concerned about Google’s hallucinations and bias.”

Three-Room Ancient Etruscan Tomb Discovered in Italy

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Three-room Etruscan tomb discovered in Barbarano Roman, Italy.
Three-room Etruscan tomb discovered in Barbarano Roman, Italy. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale. Public domain.

A new three-room Etruscan tomb has been unearthed in the municipality of Barbarano Romano, which would have been right in the heart of southern Etruria, Italy, amid ongoing excavations in and around the municipality which have already revealed another significant tomb, and Etruscan artefacts.

Excavation work being carried out on the three-room Etruscan tomb in Barbarano Romano, Italy.
Excavation work being carried out on the three-room Etruscan tomb in Barbarano Romano, Italy. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale. Public domain.

The Etruscan necropolis of San Giuliano is carved into the rocks on the Marturanum Park, a protected conservation area in the municipality of Barbarano Romano, on the road connecting Rome and Viterbo. It has recently offered up yet another archaeological surprise, in the form of a partially-hidden, three-room tomb attached to the already-excavated Queen’s Tomb.

Excavation work being carried out on the three-room Etruscan tomb in Barbarano Romano, Italy.
Excavation work being carried out on the three-room Etruscan tomb in Barbarano Romano, Italy. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale. Public domain.

The ‘Tomb of the Queen’ (Tomba della Regina), a three-sided structure carved into the rock, dating from the 5th century BC and thought to be one of the most significant tombs in the necropolis, was selected to undergo restoration work this season.

During some clearing and cleaning work being carried out around the Queen’s Tomb, archaeologists in Italy noticed what appeared to be a second, partially-buried monumental Etruscan tomb, and after clearing the vegetation around it, found the structure in full.

Excavation work being carried out on the three-room structure
Excavation work being carried out on the three-room Etruscan tomb in Barbarano Romano, Italy. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale. Public domain..

Subsequent excavations uncovered the perfectly-preserved, three-chambered tomb, adjacent to three semi-flint doors, underneath the Queen’s Tomb. Experts suggest it was constructed in the 5th or 4th century BC, not long after the nearby Queen’s Tomb.

The burial chamber is also a testament to the advanced building techniques of the Etruscan culture, who were evidently able to excavate funerary structures in cliffs and rock faces.
Conservation and adaptation work on the newly-discovered tomb is set to be completed in the following months.

The Etruscan necropolis of San Giuliano, Italy, presents the greatest variety and richness of burial processes of any known Etruscan tomb, according to archaeologists. It presents a variety of artefacts and burial chambers thought to date right through from the 7th century BC to the 3rd century BC.

An Earlier Etruscan Tomb Discovered in Italy

In April last year another Etruscan tomb was discovered and excavated in the Necropolis of the Osteria, in Vulci, within the municipality of Montalto di Castro, Italy. The tomb was sealed, and inside there were numerous ceramics found, including a collection of pottery, amphorae, utensils, cups, and a bronze cauldron. The artefacts were all found in good condition, including a table cloth that was used in the Etruscan religious ritual of the ‘last meal’, a food offering burned inside the tomb before it was sealed.

This excavation was carried out by the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio for the province of Viterbo and southern Etruria.

The Roman Emperor Who Broke the Nose of Alexander the Great’s Corpse

Roman emperor Augustus at the tomb of Alexander the Great
Roman Emperor Augustus at the tomb of Alexander the Great. Painting by Lionel Noel Royer. Public Domain

Just like in modern times, many people in antiquity enjoyed visiting the tombs of famous historical figures. One of the most famous historical figures in the Greco-Roman world was Alexander the Great. According to ancient records, one of the Roman emperors visited his tomb. However, while doing so, this Roman emperor ended up breaking off Alexander the Great’s nose. Did this really happen, though?

The tomb of Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great died in the fourth century BCE in the year 323. He was buried in a magnificent tomb, which was just as famous in antiquity as it is today. It was a sarcophagus that fit his body like a glove, and it was made out of solid gold. There was an expensive, purple robe covering the torso and possibly the legs with gold embroidered on it.

Later on, Alexander’s tomb changed significantly. According to Strabo, a Greek writer of the first century CE, King Ptolemy X took the gold from Alexander’s magnificent tomb and melted it down for his own purposes.

After this, the gold tomb was replaced with one made of glass, as per Strabo. Many scholars consider it likely that this is a reference to alabaster, a type of material occasionally used for small windows due to its slight translucence. It was this “glass” tomb that one of the Roman emperors visited when he allegedly broke off Alexander’s nose. But how did this happen?

Alexander the Great’s tomb visited by a Roman emperor

The emperor in question was Augustus Caesar, the first true Roman emperor. One of the main accounts about his visit to Alexander the Great’s tomb comes from Suetonius. This visit occurred in 30 BCE, a few years before Augustus actually became emperor. At that point, he was known as Octavian.

According to Suetonius’ account, Octavian placed a gold crown on the head of the fallen king, as well as flowers on the tomb. However, there is a later account which adds another peculiar detail.

This later account comes from Cassius Dio. He lived in the late-second to early-third century CE. For reference, this is about one century after Suetonius. His version of events obviously does not hold as much weight as Suetonius’ version for this reason. But what exactly did Cassius Dio say about Octavian’s visit?

Breaking the nose of Alexander the Great

Cassius Dio’s account, which comes from Book V of his Roman History, reads:

“After this he viewed the body of Alexander and actually touched it, whereupon, it is said, a piece of the nose was broken off.”

This is all that Cassius has to say about Octavian’s visit. He does not even mention the future emperor placing the crown and flowers on the tomb. Some modern sources say that Octavian broke the nose while leaning down to kiss Alexander. Others say it occurred while Octavian was placing the crown on Alexander’s head.

However, as we can see from the original account in which this story is found, neither of those claims actually hold up. Cassius merely says that Octavian broke the nose when he touched the body. He offers no additional details.

Did Roman emperor Augustus really break off Alexander the Great’s nose?

This brief account has lead to speculation regarding its historicity. Some scholars believe that this may well have actually happened, whereas others believe it is just a bit of ancient fiction. What does the evidence really indicate?

The first thing is that Suetonius mentions nothing about this. He lived a full century closer to the event in question than did Cassius Dio. For this reason, his account is logically more reliable than that of Cassius Dio.

Of course, Suetonius does not specifically say that Octavian did not break off Alexander’s nose (although, if that story had not already circulated, why would he have?). He also does not include any information which absolutely precludes the idea. Nonetheless, this is such a remarkable incident that we would surely have expected him to have mentioned it if it had in fact happened.

Another consideration is the fact that Cassius adds the phrase “it is said” when recounting the story. This suggests that not even Cassius was fully convinced it had occurred. For these reasons, many scholars believe that the account of this Roman emperor breaking off the nose of Alexander the Great is merely fiction.

Dubai’s Upcoming Ziggurat Pyramid Will House One Million People

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An artist's impression of the Ziggurat Pyramid in Dubai, which, when finished, will be 1,200 meters tall and house one million people.
An artist’s impression of the Ziggurat Pyramid in Dubai, which, when finished, will be 1,200 meters tall and house one million people. Credit: Samuel Schmitt. CC BY 3.0/Wikimedia Commons/Samuel Schmitt

Dubai is set to add another mega-structure to its already-famous skyline—the Ziggurat Pyramid, which, when completed, will stand at 1,200 meters tall, cover an area of approximately 0.88 square miles (circa 2.3 square kilometers), and house one million people.

The Ziggurat Pyramid was announced in 2008 and is expected to dwarf the Great Pyramid of Giza in both size and splendor with a design inspired by the timeless aesthetics of ancient Egypt and Mayan pyramids.

Allegedly, the mega-structure will adhere to the highest sustainability standards, following in the footsteps of other supposedly carbon-neutral construction projects like Saudi Arabia’s The Line.

Behind the Ziggurat Pyramid’s design is Timelinks, a Dubai-based consortium of urban planners, scientists, and architectural designers, all of whom have worked to design a building of unprecedented scale, which allegedly blends into its surroundings and holds sustainability at its core.

What will Dubai’s Ziggurat Pyramid entail?

It is claimed that the project will be carbon neutral, and everything within the pyramid, from the lighting to the appliances, will be powered by renewable energy sources, such as solar panels and wind turbines.

The pyramid will also feature its own internal public transport system, which will travel not only horizontally but vertically around the building, aiming to eliminate the need for cars within the structure, and consequently reduce traffic congestion and pollution.

Spanning three hundred floors, the Ziggurat Pyramid will comprise of residential, commercial, and recreational spaces—from lush green parks to bustling marketplaces and comfortable areas to relax.

Managing director of Timelinks, Ridas Matonis, told Flashy Dubai, “Ziggurat Pyramid communities can be almost totally self-sufficient energy-wise, [and] apart from using steam power in the building we will also employ wind turbine technology to harness natural energy resources.

“Whole cities can be accommodated in complexes which take up less than 10 percent of the original land surface, and public and private landscaping will be used for leisure pursuits or irrigated as agricultural land,” Matonis said. The building may also include facial recognition technology as a form of security.

Saudi Arabia’s Line Project

The Ziggurat Pyramid is not the only giga-project being worked on currently. Saudi Arabia is also constructing an enormous urban center in the middle of the desert. Known as The Line project, it is designed to house nine million people and is due to be completed in 2030. The end result will be a roughly 105-mile-long (170 km) structure. It will be a mirrored skyscraper lying on its side and be around 656 feet (200 meters) wide.

Saudi Arabia claims the high-speed rail will take citizens from one end of the city to the other. There are plans to have no roads, traffic, or pollution on-site. The hope is to gather much more data about residents and services than other so-called smart cities do.

Derveni Krater: A Masterpiece of Metalwork in Ancient Greece

Derveni Krater
A detail of the vase. Credit: CC BY-SA 2.5/Wikipedia

The Derveni Krater exhibited at the Archeological Museum of Thessaloniki is one of the most elaborate metal vessels from ancient Greece yet discovered.

Found in 1962 in an undisturbed Macedonian tomb of the late 4th century B.C. at Derveni not far from Thessaloniki, the krater is a tour de force of highly sophisticated methods of bronze working.

Weighing 40 kg, it was made of bronze with a high tin content (of 15 percent), which endows it with a superb golden sheen without the use of any gold at all.

Derveni Krater
The elaborate vase. Credit: Michael Greenhalgh, CC BY-SA 2.5/Wikipedia

Large bronze vessels with figural registers in relief, such as the Derveni krater, were extremely rare in ancient Greece.

The most significant reason for this may not have been technical since large pieces of armor were decorated using precisely the same techniques at the same time. Rather, this rarity may reflect the high cost of labor-intensive work, says Jasper Gaunt of the Emory University in Atlanta.

It is most unusual to find figural decoration at a large scale on the bodies of substantial Greek bronze vessels of the Archaic and Classical periods.

“The figural decoration on the body of the Derveni krater was well outside the usual canon even at the time of manufacture, far removed from the generally austere appearance of Archaic and Classical bronze vessels,” Gaunt says.

The Derveni Krater was a funerary urn for ancient Greek aristocrat

The krater was discovered buried, as a funerary urn for a Thessalian aristocrat whose name is engraved on the vase: Astiouneios, son of Anaxagoras, from Larissa.

The funerary inscription on the krater reads: ΑΣΤΙΟΥΝΕΙΟΣ ΑΝΑΞΑΓΟΡΑΙΟΙ ΕΣ ΛΑΡΙΣΑΣ, meaning: “Astiouneios, son of Anaxagoras, from Larisa.”

Kraters (mixing bowls) were vessels used for mixing undiluted wine with water and most likely various spices, as well. The drink was then ladled out to fellow banqueters at ritual or festive celebrations.

When excavated, the Derveni krater contained burnt bones that belonged to a man aged 35 to 50 and to a younger woman.

Derveni Krater
A detail in the vase. Credit: CC BY-SA 2.5, Wikipedia

The exact date and place of making are disputed. Most believe it was made around 370 BC in Athens. Based on the dialectal forms used in the inscription, some commentators think it was fabricated in Thessaly at the time of the revolt of the Aleuadae, around 350 BC.

Others date it between 330 and 320 BC and credit it to bronzesmiths of the royal court of Alexander the Great.

The vase is composed of two leaves of metal which were hammered and then joined although the handles and the volutes (scrolls) were cast and attached. The main alloy used gives it its golden color, but at various points, the decoration is worked with different metals as overlays or inlays of silver, copper, bronze, and other base metals.

Snakes with copper and silver inlaid stripes frame the rising handles, wrapping their bodies around masks of underworld deities. On the shoulder sit four cast bronze figures: on one side a youthful Dionysos with an exhausted maenad and a sleeping Silenos and a maenad handling a snake on the other.

In the major repoussé frieze on the body, a bearded hunter is associated with Dionysian figures.

Beryl Barr-Sharrar, Professor of Fine Arts at the Institute of Fine Arts, NYU, recently wrote a book about Derveni Krater. The artifact is placed in its Macedonian archaeological context and within the context of art history as a highly elaborated, early-4th-century version of a metal type known in Athens by about 470 B.C.

David Mitten of Harvard University said that her book “elevates this masterpiece of later classical Greek art to a status alongside those of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Alexander Sarcophagus as the most important monuments of Greek art in the fourth century B.C.”

 

Greece Detains Eight Suspects in Connection With Terrorist Group

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Greek police terrorist group
The police operation to detain suspects was held in Attica. Credit: AMNA

Counter-terrorism officers in Greece on Tuesday detained eight suspects in connection with a terrorist group that has claimed responsibility for three bomb attacks and has leveled threats against judges.

According to police, another two individuals who are prison inmates are also being investigated in the same case.

During the course of the operation, police searched ten residences and seized material that will be examined as evidence.

The case concerns the group “Sympraxi Ekdikisis” (Revenge Partnership), which has claimed responsibility for three terrorist actions via a known anti-establishment website.

These include:

– A grenade attack on the vehicle of a prison officer in Haidari in July, 2023.

– A bomb attack against a construction company in Kifissia in November, 2023

– A bomb explosion at a National Bank building in Petralona on January 25, 2024.

Police will make announcements after the conclusion of the operation.

Terrorist group resurgence in Greece

Officials have expressed fears of a resurgence of terrorism in Greece. Earlier in February, a bomb exploded in the heart of Athens across the Ministry of Labor.

Initially, Greek Police (ELAS) believed the bomb that exploded early in the morning was intended to destroy a bank on Stadiou Street. However, further investigations revealed that the actual target was the government building on the opposite side of the street.

Police experts now believe that the bombing is part of an organized and extensive plan to use urban guerrilla tactics in Greece’s capital. They also believe it was a symbolic act and wasn’t meant to lead to any victims.

A few days later, explosives sent to the Thessaloniki’s Courthouse enclosed in an envelope were successfully defused by the bomb disposal unit.

The parcel, addressed to a female senior judge, reached her third-floor office at the Thessaloniki Courthouse on Monday. It contained gelatin dynamite.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Similar attacks have been carried out in recent years by small far-left militant groups targeting symbols of authority.

Last week, police were placed on high alert after phone calls to TV stations warned about the placement of bombs in the embassies of Israel, Egypt, and the US in Athens, as well as at the Parliament.

Special bomb squad teams that rushed to the embassy buildings in Athens found no explosive devices, leading experts to conclude it was a hoax.

Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis recently said the government will not allow a terrorism resurgence in Greece.

“We are not going to let terrorism be revived,” he stressed speaking to SKAI television. “We will not allow it.”

“Some brazen and dangerous people did an act that could endanger the lives of our fellow citizens,” Chrysochoidis said. “We will do everything we can so that the perpetrators of such criminal acts are brought to justice and punished.”

Queen Camilla Leads Memorial Service for Ex-King of Greece Constantine

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Constantine Greece
Former king Constantine died in January 2023. Credit: AMNA

Queen Camilla took the reins as head of the British Royal family as she led a memorial service for the ex-King Constantine of Greece at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.

King Charles III missed the service as his treatment for cancer continues, while Prince William had been due to give a reading but pulled out for “personal reasons.”

Camilla and other family members were joined by the late ex-king’s widow Queen Anne-Marie, their eldest son, Prince Pavlos and other members of the deposed Greek royal family for the service in the nave of the 15th-century chapel.

Prince Andrew was present along with Sarah, Duchess of York and his daughters Princess Eugenie and Beatrice because it was deemed a personal family event.

The service was held in honor of the King’s close friend and second cousin Constantine II, the former ruler and last king of Greece.

The King has reportedly sought spiritual advice from his friend Archimandrite Ephraim, Abbot of the Greek Orthodox Vatopedi monastery on Mount Athos.

Abbot Ephraim is said to have told Greek media outlets: “Yes, he has been in contact since the diagnosis and I believe he’ll overcome it. Charles has a spiritual sophistication, a spiritual life.”

In January a memorial service was held at the former royal residence of Tatoi, north of Athens, for the former King of Greece.

His children, grandchildren and his wife Anna Maria attended the service of the former King who passed away at the age of 83. Some supporters of the monarchy, which was abolished by a referendum in 1974, were also in attendance.

Constantine was a first cousin once removed and sailing partner of the late Duke of Edinburgh, and died at the age of 82 in January last year, decades after being toppled from the throne in a military coup.

The King had a close friendship with Constantine, choosing him as a godfather for his son William, now the Prince of Wales.

Life and reign of Constantine in Greece and abroad

Constantine was born on June 2, 1940, in a suburb of Athens. He was the second child and only legitimate son of Prince Paul, the heir presumptive of Greece. His mother, Princess Frederica, was a German aristocrat and princess of Hannover.

Constantine was sent to a boarding school in his younger years and then attended Victoria College of Alexandria, Egypt, where he crossed paths with fellow royalty, King Hussein of Jordan. Actor Omar Sharif was another one of his classmates.

The young crown prince served in all three branches of the Greek military and attended each of their academies. This also gave him the opportunity to attend the NATO Air Force Special Weapons School in Germany.

On March 6, 1964, King Paul died of cancer, and Constantine inherited the throne. He was just twenty-three at the time. He had already been appointed regent prior to this due to his father’s worsening health

The new king inherited a precarious political position in Greece. The country was still shaken by the civil war which lasted from 1944 to 1949. Greek society remained polarized between the conservative and royalist right versus the liberal and socialist left.

On April 21, 1967, a group of middle-ranking army officers led by Colonel George Papadopoulos took advantage of the political turmoil destabilizing Greece and successfully took control of the government during a coup.

Ultimately, the political instability in Greece proved fatal for the Greek royal family who were essentially exiled. Although Constantine officially remained king until 1973, he never returned to Greece as the reigning monarch.

In July 1973 the Greek military junta called a referendum, which abolished the monarchy for the second time in Greek history. Then in 1974, the democratically elected prime minister, Konstantinos Karamanlis, called a referendum which legitimately confirmed the abolition.

Constantine spent most of the remainder of his life in London. He was a close friend of King Charles III and became the godfather of Prince William.

With his wife Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark, whom he married in 1964, he had five children.