Classical Antiquity

Portrait of a Roman citizen of African ancestry from Lombardy,^[1] c. 1 BCE – 1 CE^[2]

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Classical antiquity was a period of time from the beginning of ancient Greek civilization (8^th century BCE) to approximately the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5^th century CE), with some scholars considering it to overlap with early Middle Ages. It is also known as the Greco-Roman world, since the Greek and Roman civilizations were overlapping. Geographically, its maximum extent was the largest reach of the Roman Empire in 117 CE.

Instruction[edit]

Instruction in classical antiquity usually includes ancient Greek and Latin language lessons, and readings in history and philosophy (Socrates and Plato, especially). The instruction in language has long been in decline, when it was once common (in the Western world). Arguments about the impracticalness of such instruction was already taking place in the United States in 1828.^[4] Since the decline of Latin and Greek instruction, at least one far-right journalist, Joseph Sobran (1946–2010) who wrote for the National Review, associated such teaching with racist nostalgia.^[5][6]

There are certainly good reasons for studying classical antiquity (e.g., understanding history, government or philosophy), but readings of the past can either be a lens for understanding the present or a cudgel for controlling it. Why else would despots resort to book burnings?

Misrepresentation[edit]

Distorting history for one's own political purposes is nothing new. The alt-right's appropriation is just the latest incarnation. Following European intellectuals in the 19^th and earlier centuries.^[7][8] Nazi Germany, an antecedent for at least some of the alt-right, misrepresented antiquity in at least three ways:

1. Referring to itself as "The Third Reich", with the implication that the Holy Roman Empire and the German Empire were the first and second. 'Holy Roman Empire' itself referred back to the Roman Empire, though it was not a direct descendant.
2. The Hitler salute was itself an adaptation of the Roman salute. The Roman salute itself though has no clear origins, as it is never described in Roman literature or shown in Roman art.^[9]:2
3. The Nazis adored and promoted neoclassical architecture and classical forms in general.^[10] Classical sculptures inspired by forms from pagan times were seen as useful remedy for the lethargy of Christianity.^[11]:68 Hitler admired the Colosseum and hated Gothic architecture, seeing it as too old-fashioned for contemporary Germany,^[11]:60 while Albert Speer, a principal architect for Nazi Germany, found a kindred spirit in French neoclassical architect Étienne-Louis Boullée and his monumental and austere designs.^[11]:49-50

Whiteness[edit]

Septimius Severus and his second, Syrian wife, Julia Domna.

The concept of whiteness likely arose with the development of the transatlantic slave trade in the 17^th century, and was justified with the theory of racialism starting in the 18^th century.^[13] Since the 18^th century, it has often been presumed that the classical world was white, but Romans in fact frequently incorporated other ethnic groups as Roman citizens, including Africans and Judeans.^[12] The Roman emperor Septimius Severus was African born, in what is now Libya, and his paternal ancestors were Palestinians.

An archaeological analysis looked at the personal names associated with place of origin of the Roman port city of Ostia Antica population in what is now central Italy. It found that one of the largest ethnic groups included people from North Africa in the provinces of Numidia and Mauretania.^[14]:167

Throughout later history, the era has often been misrepresented. For example, the whiteness of ancient marble sculptures were fetishized since the 18^th century with the rise of racialism,^[15] but it is now known that the statues were originally painted in a variety of colors.^[16] The fetishization has continued to influence modern-day white supremacists.^[16] Some art critics have said that the colors likely to have been used on ancient Greek and Roman statues could be considered evidence of vulgar taste.^[17][18]

United States[edit]

The original Apollo Belvedere (c. 120-140 CE): whiter than thou

In the US, the retrojection of whiteness into the classical period can be traced to Thomas Jefferson's use of neoclassical architecture in his home town of Charlottesville.^[19] The idea of 'whiteness' was unknown in the classical era. Jefferson's slave owning, and the neoclassical architecture in Charlottesville were the primary reasons that Richard Spencer chose the city for the Unite the Right rally, not the threatened Robert E. Lee statue.^[19] Jefferson was not simply a benign admirer of classical architecture, but in his book Notes on the State of Virginia he used the slavery that existed in the classical era as a justification for his own slave owning.^[19][20]:149

In February 2020, a draft Presidential Executive Order titled "Making Federal Buildings Beautiful Again" and written by the National Civic Art Society was leaked that promoted neoclassical designs for new government buildings.^[21][22] The draft was in part a backlash against modern art and architecture^[21] but primarily an attack on multiculturalism.^[19]

The Apollo Belvedere statue of the Greek god Apollo was rediscovered in the 15^th century during the Renaissance. Beginning in the 18^th century, the statue began to be championed as an aesthetic ideal by early racialists such as Pieter Camper.^[16][19] Camper used anthropometry to rationalize his aesthetic preferences for facial angle,^[19] basically the post hoc, ergo propter hoc fallacy. Apollo Belvedere was, like other classical statues, esteemed for its whiteness,^[19] but it is not known whether it was originally painted like other such statues.^[16] In 2016, before the Unite the Right rally that they cosponsored, Identity Evropa began a poster campaign co-opting Apollo Belvedere and other classical statues.^[19][23][24]

United Kingdom[edit]

In 2018, the BBC released an 8-part mini-series titled Troy: Fall of a City about the Trojan War. The series cast several British actors of African descent, including a key roles for David Gyasi as Achilles and Hakeem Kae-Kazim as Zeus.^[25] This casting created a substantial amount of criticism by racists.^[26][27] The racists in question used the cover of what they claimed was historical inaccuracy, but there are several problems with this claim:^[28][29]

• There was no concept of black and white races in ancient times. Additionally, ancient Greeks had a range of skin tones.
• Homer's Illiad did not describe Achilles as 'white', the actual term used was 'xanthē' or 'xanthos' (which could mean ‘brown’, ‘ruddy’, ‘yellow’ or ‘golden’), and Greek color terminology does not map well into modern English color terminology.^[30]
• Odysseus is described in one translation of Homer's Odyssey as ‘black-skinned and woolly-haired’, yet there were no known complaints about English actor Joseph Mawle playing Odysseus in the series.
• There is no contemporaneous description of the Trojan War, thus all accounts are mythological Homer's account was ana amalgamation of different versions.
• Sophocles portrayed Zeus as 'black' in his play Inachus, using the term aithos, which is believed to be the root of the word Ethiopia.^[31]
• It is likely the case that ancient Greeks did not exclude other ethnic groups, including North Africans, from being considered Greek.^[31]

Gender and sexuality[edit]

Portrait of Terentius Neo and his wife

The preservation of gender inequality often relies on appeals to the good old days, such as Kinder, Küche, Kirche. The MRA website A Voice for Men has specifically referenced ancient and medieval laws in its argumentation,^[33] yet the reality of such appeals is not as clear as they would like to represent. Plato was the first known person to put feminist arguments in writing in his Republic Book 5 (c. 375 BCE).^[34]

Scholars generally agree that Roman women had more agency and freedom than in Greece. A portrait of Terentius Neo and his wife (c. 50–79 CE) was excavated in the ruins of their house in Pompeii. Terentius Neo, a middle class baker, is portrayed as a Roman citizen who was involved in public life (indicated by the toga and rotulus in his hand). His wife holds a wax tablet and stylus, indicating her equal status, her role in the operation of the family's business, and that she is educated and literate.^[35]:261-263

According to historian Lewis Webb,^[32]

And according to historian Hannah Cornwell, noting that the Roman Empire had some female gladiators,^[32]

Cornwell has also noted that there has been a longstanding reliance on "elite, masculine" written sources about the Roman Empire, creating a selection bias for interpreting the Empire.^[32]

One notable similarity between the modern-day Manosphere and elite males in the Roman Empire of around the 1^st and 2^nd centuries CE is the great fear of the emancipation of women with regard to money, freedom of movement and sex.^[35]:163-164

Praetorian Guard[edit]

The Praetorian Guard were a Roman Army and intelligence gathering unit intended to protect Roman emperors. The discordantly-named 1st Amendment Praetorian is a militia group associated with the QAnon conspiracy theory and Michael Flynn.^[37] 1st Amendment Praetorian may also have been associated Trump's 2021 coup attempt.^[37][38] This militia calling themselves "Praetorian" makes some perverted sense insofar as QAnoners having the "God Emperor Trump" delusion.^[39] However, while Roman citizens did have rights,^[40] they did not overlap at all with the First Amendment (freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly, and petition).

Roman wreath[edit]

The laurel wreath was a symbol of military triumph used in ancient Rome.^[41] The Proud Boys initially adopted the Fred Perry polo shirt as their official uniform, likely in part because the wreath on the shirt resembled the Roman wreath.^[41] The Fred Perry clothing label logo had been based upon the Wimbleton Tennis Championships logo and not directly based upon the Roman wreath. After the Fred Perry company found out about the Proud Boys co-opatation of their logo, they withdrew the polo shirt from production.^[42] The Proud Boys continued to use the wreath on their own clothing brand(s).^[43]

• 

  Roman wreath with eagle and "SPQR"

• 

  Roman coin with Brutus and laurel wreath, 42 BCE

• 

  2019 proud Boys rally with Fred Perry shirt on the man on the left

• 

  Proud Boys logo including wreath

• 

  Fred Perry shirt (left, black) and Proud Boys sweatshirt (center, yellow)

Latin abuse[edit]

Lost Causers in front of the Confederate Memorial at Arlington: Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur.

The statement "Victrix causa deis placuit sed victa Catoni." appears on the base of the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. The statement originally appeared in Lucan's epic poem from 61 CE De Bello Civili ("On the Civil War") about the Roman civil war of 48 BCE between Julius Caesar and the forces of the Roman Senate. The statement translates literally as, "The victorious cause pleased the gods, but Cato was conquered." but has been translated as "The victorious cause pleased the gods, but the conquered one [pleased] Cato."^[44] 'Conquered' has also been translated as losing side or losing cause in direct reference to the Confederate Memorial.^[45] Cato here refers here to Cato the Younger, who opposed corruption and Julius Caesar's monarchialism. In contrast to Lucan's intent, referring to this Latin phrase in the context of the Confederate States of America erroneously implies that the primary cause of the American Civil War was for states' rights (republicanism in the American sense rather than the Roman sense) rather than preservation of slavery (the Lost Cause of the South).

Sic semper tyrannis, a Latin phrase meaning "always to tyrants", was a favorite of the Oklahoma City Federal building bomber Timothy McVeigh. He even was wearing the shirt for his mugshot that quoted John Wilkes Booth using it after assassinating Abraham Lincoln.^[46] Both men violently tried to subvert democracy, the opposite of the meaning of the phrase, that dictators should have bad outcomes.

Name co-optation[edit]

Several names from antiquity have been co-opted as pseudonyms within the alt-right:^[47][48][49]

Gallery[edit]

• 

  Apollo Belvedere, as used in Josiah C. Nott's 1854 racialist book Types of Mankind^[50]:458

• 

  Apollo Belvedere, co-opted by Identity Evropa and emphasizing the facial angle^[19]

• 

  Another portrait of an educated and literate woman in Pompeii

• 

  Horatio Greenough's statue of George Washington (1840), made in the classical style, managed to scandalize people with its bare areolae.^[51]

See also[edit]

• Alt-right glossary:
  • Molon labe — misappropriation of the Battle of Thermopylai (480 BCE)
  • Noticer — misappropriation of Roman senator Cicero
  • SPQR — originally referred to semi-democratic/republican Roman Empire. It has been widely used in Europe, but it was also appropriated by Mussolini and later fascists
• Biblical archaeology — attempts to prove that the Bible is factual using archaeological techniques
• Classical mythology
• Images of Jesus
• Middle Ages#Back to the future
• Neoreactionary movement — particularly with regard to Boethius

External links[edit]

• Gods in Color: Polychromy in Antiquity
• Pharos — "a website where classical scholars, students, and the public more broadly, can learn about appropriations of Greco-Roman antiquity by hate groups"

Notes[edit]

References[edit]