A conversation with Tony Spawforth:

How did you first become interested in the stories of ancient Greece and Rome?
 
When I was a boy I devoured stories about the famous figures of ancient myth and history. Then as a graduate student I studied Greek inscriptions in museums and started telling my own stories about the figures they recorded . . . I was hooked.
 
What do you think is the greatest achievement of classical antiquity?
 
Forget legendary heroes and gods, the Athenian dramatist Sophocles understood civilization as a human creation. In fact, the Greeks’ understanding of the cultural ascent of man as an achievement wrought through human capacity was revolutionary—it paved the way for an investigation into humankind’s early steps towards cultural complexity. An investigation which continues today.
 
Why should we care about the worlds of the ancient Greeks and Romans today?
 
These two great civilizations have bequeathed a great deal of beauty and humanity to us. Yes, they were founded on human weaknesses as well as strengths, but the aesthetic fineness which allowed Greek and Roman artists to capture images and effects—the bright plumage of a mosaic bird, or the cool curve of a marble limb—which arrest us still; the human understanding of the ancient writers, their clear-eyed reckoning of what constitutes our short human lives: these are things which suspend despair about the shortcomings of human nature. They bring joy and hope, and their achievements are a source of wonder and still inspire people across a whole range of activities, not just so-called highbrow stuff like poetry but also truly popular culture, from war-gaming to the Olympics. That’s the wonderful thing about the Greeks and Romans—there’s something there for everyone!