How the ancients played

It wasn’t all shot-putting on Mount Olympus. From waging war to gambling, writing poetry to making pottery, denizens of the ancient world amused themselves in particularly rich and varied ways, says Alex Pappas, a Ph.D. candidate in classics.

Ancient play in all its guises will be the subject of the second annual graduate students’ symposium in classics Feb. 22-23. The symposium, “Trivia Pursuits? Games and Game Playing in the Ancient World,” will examine various ancient amusements and what they meant to those players on their respective playgrounds, and what they might mean for us moderns.

“We chose the subject of play because we wanted a topic that would be interdisciplinary, and attract participants from a wide range of disciplines,” Pappas says. Indeed, the symposium will be truly international, with presenters from across the United States and Europe as well as UW–Madison.

Patricia A. Rosenmeyer, UW–Madison professor of classics, will deliver the keynote address Friday, Feb. 22, at 2:45 p.m. She will consider the meaning of play, particularly playful eroticism, in ancient Greece. Other subjects on the first day will include erotic play in Hellenistic and Roman poetry, and competition between ancient poets. All lectures and discussions will take place in the ninth-floor Special Collections Department of Memorial Library.

On Feb. 23, presenters will address play in battle, pottery-making, children’s games, word games, playful relationships between scholars and courtesans, and more. All events will be held in 150 Elvehjem Museum.

In conjunction with the symposium, the Memorial Library will present an exhibit of rare books, “Playing with the Ancients,” in the ninth-floor Special Collections Department.

“Trivial Pursuits? Games and Game Playing in the Ancient World” is supported by grants from Associated Students of Madison, the Kemper K. Knapp Bequest and the UW–Madison Department of Classics. For a complete schedule, or to arrange interviews with presenters, contact Pappas, (608) 262-2041, apappas@students.wisc.edu.