Professor Edith Hall

You know, in the ancient world, lots of people lost their parents young. People died younger for all kinds of reasons. And he actually really landed on his feet.

It certainly is not. The Greek world is basically all around the Black Sea, all down the west coast of Turkey, half of Lebanon, the Levantine coast, North Africa, Egypt, all the way over to Libya and Tunis, and then all the way around to Spain. The Greeks never liked going far inland until Alexander. They liked to live within 25 miles of the sea, wherever they were, and go everywhere by ship.

It certainly is not. The Greek world is basically all around the Black Sea, all down the west coast of Turkey, half of Lebanon, the Levantine coast, North Africa, Egypt, all the way over to Libya and Tunis, and then all the way around to Spain. The Greeks never liked going far inland until Alexander. They liked to live within 25 miles of the sea, wherever they were, and go everywhere by ship.

He's on a cusp between what we call classical Athenian democratic Athens. So that's the Parthenon, it's Pericles, it's the Peloponnesian War and the Persian Wars. And then because he teaches Alexander... the new, what we call the Hellenistic world, which is after the Macedonian takeover of the Persian Empire. So the Greeks are then running everything all the way to the Hindu Kush.

He's on a cusp between what we call classical Athenian democratic Athens. So that's the Parthenon, it's Pericles, it's the Peloponnesian War and the Persian Wars. And then because he teaches Alexander... the new, what we call the Hellenistic world, which is after the Macedonian takeover of the Persian Empire. So the Greeks are then running everything all the way to the Hindu Kush.

You went to the gymnasium. You went to the gymnasium and you did all the things that you do in track and field at the Olympics. I was going to say, because if his name's a great goal, then... You run around, you throw spears, javelins, discuses. He seems to know an awful lot about horses. I think he knew a lot about horses, so I suspect that he was quite a good chariot driver.

You went to the gymnasium. You went to the gymnasium and you did all the things that you do in track and field at the Olympics. I was going to say, because if his name's a great goal, then... You run around, you throw spears, javelins, discuses. He seems to know an awful lot about horses. I think he knew a lot about horses, so I suspect that he was quite a good chariot driver.

There's usually an empirical explanation for why he came up with this theory, at least.

There's usually an empirical explanation for why he came up with this theory, at least.

Yeah, that particular piece of evidence is a really, really dodgy source. As we're always having with these ancient guys, there was huge biographical tradition and people who didn't like his particular school of philosophy, so like the Stoics or, you know, a rival school of philosophy would create malicious rumours. There is a rumour that he tried...

Yeah, that particular piece of evidence is a really, really dodgy source. As we're always having with these ancient guys, there was huge biographical tradition and people who didn't like his particular school of philosophy, so like the Stoics or, you know, a rival school of philosophy would create malicious rumours. There is a rumour that he tried...

national military service and didn't really like it. And so he decided that he was the nerdy intellectual one that had to be packed off to university to study stuff. But actually, he's got huge respect for athletics and health and training in all of his works. I suspect that it was just he was very good at athletics, but even better.

national military service and didn't really like it. And so he decided that he was the nerdy intellectual one that had to be packed off to university to study stuff. But actually, he's got huge respect for athletics and health and training in all of his works. I suspect that it was just he was very good at athletics, but even better.

Otherwise, he would undoubtedly have become the general practitioner in Stegra because these things were hereditary. Right. And in fact, his father came from generations and generations of doctors to the extent that he's supposed to be descended from Macaon, who is a mythical doctor in the Iliad, who was, you know, the son of Asclepius, the actual god of medicine. Oh, really? Yes.

Otherwise, he would undoubtedly have become the general practitioner in Stegra because these things were hereditary. Right. And in fact, his father came from generations and generations of doctors to the extent that he's supposed to be descended from Macaon, who is a mythical doctor in the Iliad, who was, you know, the son of Asclepius, the actual god of medicine. Oh, really? Yes.

So if you were a practicing doctor, you would hang out on your window, you know, great-grandson of Asclepius. I mean... Obviously, if you're a blacksmith, you put great-grandson of Hephaestus, you know, direct descent. This was part of the marketing spiel. Wow.

So if you were a practicing doctor, you would hang out on your window, you know, great-grandson of Asclepius. I mean... Obviously, if you're a blacksmith, you put great-grandson of Hephaestus, you know, direct descent. This was part of the marketing spiel. Wow.

Either his sister or his brother-in-law just got so fed up with this boy going on and on about, you know, saying, do I know I'm really here? Do we exist at supper?

Either his sister or his brother-in-law just got so fed up with this boy going on and on about, you know, saying, do I know I'm really here? Do we exist at supper?

So they say, OK, we got money. What's the best university in the world? Oh, we know. It's Plato's Academy in Athens. Send him off at 17.