Julius, Claudius, And Lucky Shirley

THE IDES OF MARCH

“Beware the Ides of March

Said the Sage from on top of the Arch

But Caesar ignored him

                             And went to the Forum

                                                                                       And got stabbed right in the Gazarch”

 

OK, so I kinda cheated on that last line there. I was in a hurry and I didn’t think that more than 5% of the population would know what I was talking about anyway.

I looked up the definition of the word “Ides” and I learned that it refers back to the ancient Roman calendar. Apparently, the middle of the month was an important day to the Romans. Maybe it was Payday.

The online dictionary also said that the word was of Etruscan origin, not Roman.

Etruscan? Back to the dictionary for more information!

“E-trus-can”  —  “A native of Ancient Etruria.” Uh – oh, I sensed the need for another level of research.

“Etruria”  —  A city in Italy halfway between Tarquinia and the Lake of Bulsina.”

Well, that certainly helped a lot didn’t it?

I did dig up a few Etrurian graphics.

 

The Queen

About the only thing I’ve been able to unearth about the Ancient Etruscans, other than their Queen was never the winner of the “Miss Etruria Beauty Pageant”, was that they made a lot of pottery. I found a fine example of Etruscan Pottery for sale on EBay. The current bid was 25 British Pounds and it was being sold by someone named “Lucky Shirley.” I didn’t make an offer. What would I do with a piece of Etruscan Pottery?

Hmmm…our wedding anniversary is coming up soon.

…Nah

I did another search on the “Etruscan Language” and the query came back with this.

“The Etruscan Language was the spoken and written language of the Etruscan Civilization.”

Claudius

Well, than certainly was enlightening, wasn’t it?

The big thing about the language is that nobody speaks it any more. The Roman Emperor Claudius did. He was a bit of an Etruscophile. Claudius even wrote a 20 volume history of the Etruscans. 20 volumes! That was a commitment. Unfortunately, Emperor Claudius was a bit careless. All 20 volumes went missing and nobody knows whatever happened to them. I suggest that someone check with “Lucky Shirley” who seems to have a source for Etruscan artifacts.

I tell you, this has been a frustrating research safari. All I wanted to do was clarify the meaning behind my poem. The next thing I know I’m dealing with a dead language, suspicious pottery, and EBay.

I’m just glad that I didn’t try to research “Gazarch.”

Single Post Navigation

← Older Entry

Newer Entry →