Why did Virgil write the Aeneid?  Why did he want it destroyed at his death?  What do scholars have to say about this? Was it propaganda?  How much influence did the experience of the Punic Wars have on the story?

This will be the last “mythological puzzle” that we’ll do in this series of blog posts. Next year, I’ll be offering some thoughts about how to strengthen the CANE community.

Classics: the study of ancient Greek and Roman literature and the languages they were originally written in, or more broadly, the study of the Ancient Greeks and Romans. In other words: old, dead, boring, and useless.

Is the list of numbers of kisses in poems 5 and 7 simply a trope, or do they tell us about Catullus’ family and upbringing? Is there magic or just an accountant’s keeping track of things?

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in CANE-land! I hope you’re all doing well.

For years the consensus has been that when the Romans left the economy of Britain took a big hit. New research published in Antiquity and summarized in Science (389:1077, 9/11/25) shows that, at least in Yorkshire, this was not so.

Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar: who was the better general?  J.F.C. Fuller discusses each of them; while he doesn’t make a judgement, it’s obvious to readers what he thinks.  Read on to find out more.

Greetings, members of CANE! As promised, I’m offering up another neat mythological puzzle for this week.

William (Bill) Scott, professor emeritus of classics at Dartmouth College, has died. Here is his obituary: Remembering William Scott, Distinguished Scholar of Ancient Greek Literature.

Greetings, members of CANE—I think we all need a bit of levity in our lives, so I’m hoping to write up a little “puzzle” every week or so to introduce you to some cool and usually weird bit of ancient trivia. We’ll start with a little catalog from Ovid’s Ibis.

The 120th annual meeting of the Classical Association of New England will take place March 20–21, 2025, at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Proposals for papers, panels, and workshops are now being accepted.

Like solving puzzles? Greek syntax is the real deal!

The Vergilian Society is seeking tour and workshop leaders for 2027 at the Villa Vergiliana. Proposals are due by early November.

The John C. Rouman Classical Lecture Series will present Political Violence in Ancient Greece by Professor Scott Arcenas, Professor of Classics, University of Montana on Thursday, October 16, 2025.  Lecture will begin at 7:00pm at the University of New Hampshire.

Phyllis Katz, longtime Latin teacher at Miss Porter's School and Dartmouth College, has died. Phyllis taught at the CANE Summer Institute for years and a CANE scholarship is named in her honor.

Raymond Koehler, high school Classics teacher and longtime CANE member and presenter, has died. Here is his obituary.

Would your students like to have their own personal motto? Written in Latin, it can adorn a backpack or a notebook or even a computer, and other students will be forced to ask them what it means.

From the Desk of the President, I will be holding weekly office hours for CANE members (and would-be members) each Wednesday from 5–6 pm, starting September 10. Drop in and introduce yourself and tell us how we can help you, or vice versa!

Vesuvius is on many people’s minds right now – not only Latin teachers, preparing for the new AP exam, but everyone interested in geology. The following are just to whet your appetite; there is a huge number of videos out there.

Michael Putnam, Brown University Classics Emeritus, has passed away. Here is an article in memoriam from the Brown Classics Department.

Last month, CANE member Skye Shirley released the Latin ReadHer app, available for free on the App Store. This app offers nearly two thousand years of women's literary history in Latin and translations into English.

Odyssey! Two Homers! Dartmouth College Classics Department!  And it’s all in a mystery!

You’re never too old to learn Latin! A review of Ann Patty's book, "Living with a Dead Language: My Romance with Latin."

Euripedes, Pompeii, and Scented Statues: Links for July 2025 "Unearthed papyrus contains lost scenes from Euripides’ plays" "With DNA, Pompeii Narratives Take a Twist" "Ancient Greek and Roman statues often smelled like roses, a new study says"

Have you been enjoying CANE's weekly blog posts? Do you have ideas of your own to share?

There is nothing more exhilarating than those ‘aha’ moments that can transform a learning experience for kids into something that exudes excitement.  The following ideas for upper-level students might be useful as apply your own skills and talents to bring Latin alive in your classroom.

Here are a bunch of books that are oldies (and mostly goodies). You probably know many of them, but I hope there are a few gems you haven’t read. If you know of others, please send them to me ([email protected]) so we can compile a new list for a future blog. caneweb.org/summer-readi...

Summer’s just around the corner! Now’s the time to shop for classical gifts that will appeal to travelers and teachers and sailors… and maybe even stamp collectors! caneweb.org/shop-summer-...

Need something for your advanced class after the AP or the weeks before graduation or final exams or as something fun to do on Fridays? Check out this activity putting pop music into Latin. caneweb.org/pop-music-in...

You want to give the students a small “going away” present, but you don’t want to spend much (if any) money. Here’s an idea: bookmarks with Latin quotes.

There is still time to register for CANE Summer Institute 2025! Late registration runs through June 25.

Who doesn’t like something to eat during class? Susan Zoller had students research and make edible projects.

Order in Understanding – straight?  diagonal? circular?

Spring is here, but summer’s not far behind! Now’s the time to shop for classical gifts for that precious leisure time. caneweb.org/shop-classic...

In today’s feature post, regular blog contributor Ruth Breindel shares resources for helping students understand active vs. passive voice.

Looking for those perfect gifts for gardeners or bird lovers?  Artists or classicists? We’ve got you covered! caneweb.org/creature-com...

Students love to have things to manipulate.  These cards, which are easy to print out, give them a sense of time.  They also don’t have to be soldiers; you could show the times/tenses by using buildings, or people in various costumes, etc.  Change these to your heart’s content!

Spring is here! And so is the TAURUS Collection at the Emporium Romanum! caneweb.org/check-out-th...

New issue of New England Classical Journal Vol. 52 No. 1 (2025) crossworks.holycross.edu/necj/vol52/i... #openaccess @caneweb.org @opietasanimi.com

We are excited to announce that issue 52.1 (Spring 2025) of the New England Classical Journal, CANE’s peer-reviewed, open access journal, has been published! The issue contains amazing articles that touch on a range of fascinating topics.

In today's feature post, regular blog contributor Ruth Breindel shares two resources for helping students understand tenses. Teaching tenses and their meaning is a difficult task.

In 2025, Conventiculum Lexingtoniense will offer two online immersion workshop-conferences devoted to spoken communication in Latin. Although these workshops will be conducted entirely online, they will exclusively consist of real-time interaction and communication.

Organized by high school student Lucy Domingo, Hodie et Cras offers a unique one-day experience designed for high school students studying Classics who are curious about pursuing the field at the college level. Sponsored by Yale University 03/29 9:30 AM.

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J.A.C.T. LATIN SUMMER SCHOOL ANNOUNCES TWO-WEEK RESIDENTIAL LATIN COURSES IN THE UK, Jul 20-Aug 2, 2025. Join 160 students from all over the world for a residential course in Latin, including daily lessons, grammar clinics, trips, and guest lectures.

Z. Philip Ambrose, beloved professor of Classics at the University of Vermont, has died.

Since students don’t know how to use the subjunctive in English, explaining the constructions in Latin is complicated. The presentations in today's blog post are a visual way to teach or review the sequence of tenses for clauses that use the subjunctive.

For the last few months, we at CANE have been promoting several of our resources. We have many books, activities, commentaries written by CANE members and available for CANE members to download free of charge.  You can see our current catalog here.

You can now register for the Annual Meeting, being held at Yale University March 21 and 22. A draft program and information about accommodations is available.