Summer of Classics 2013: Mid August


As August has gone on, I’ve been pretty busy, both at home and away, despite the variable weather!  I went down to Cambridge for a few days, and it was great to catch up with old friends in the city where I grew up, and also visit some of my favourite places.  One of my favourite places to visit as a child was the Fitzwilliam Museum (http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/) .  This time, I looked at collections ranging from Cyprus and Rome to Sudan and Korea.  Needless to say, I picked up plenty of inspiration for more blog posts while I was there!  I also paid a visit to Heffers and picked up a couple of books in line with my current reading/research interests, as well as adding several to a long list of things to purchase later, so I’ll have plenty of reading material to keep me out of mischief until term starts again.  Following my trip to Cambridge I had a friend’s rather Bacchic birthday party, which brought to mind (for a brief moment) details of my Symposium module last term, as well as memories of the drinking cups I had seen in museums during my trip to Berlin earlier in the Summer. 
I’m still volunteering at World Museum Liverpool (http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/wml/) , with yesterday spent at the museum stores photographing Greek terracotta objects (including some very sweet animal figurines) and Classical lamps of all shapes and sizes.  I really enjoy volunteering, not only because I get to handle and look at all kinds of ancient artifacts, which helps broaden my perspective of the Ancient World, but also because it allows me to meet other students, who have really interesting and varied research interests and can share their university tales and experiences with me.  Hopefully the last bit of the summer will be just as exciting and rewarding!

Greek and Roman Gallery. (Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge)

Classics and Ancient History PhD student at the University of Liverpool, working on Lucan, Necromancy, and Civil War. Generously funded by the AHRC NWCDTP. Also enjoys music, polo, and gin. For more information, head here: www.nwcdtp.ac.uk/current-students/student-profiles/elaine-sanderson/

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