classics.cornell.eduDepartment of Classics | Department of Classics

’ );Jump to main navigation Jump to section navigation Jump to main content Cornell University Department Homepage Academics Undergraduate Program Ph.D. Program Bridge M.A. Fellowship Current Graduate Students Course Listings Research Faculty Books Podcasts Archaeology Projects Digital Projects Areas of Research Classical Philology Townsend Lectures FacultyDepartment Contacts Department Groups Statement on Diversity and Inclusion The College of Arts & Sciences Open search Open nav Search for: Accessing the past Department of Classics Classics is the original interdisciplinary academic field at the heart of both European/western civilization and today’s Liberal Arts education. We teach and research the languages (Greek, Latin), literature, history, philosophy, science, art, and material culture that survive from the worlds of ancient Greece, Rome, and Late Antiquity. Through archaeology and art history we investigate and analyze the material record and environment of these civilizations and their neighbors – accessing a past beyond the texts of the elite and their mostly male voices to explore fully this world from top to bottom. Classics Resources Undergraduate Program Bridge M.A. in Classics Ph.D. Program Classics Faculty Department of Classics Events Sep 12 Thursday 05:00 PM Reimagining the Foundation of Classical Judaism See all events News from Classics Exploring the remains of ancient daily life 4/30/2024 The collection Households in Context: Dwelling in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt” shifts the archaeological perspective from public and elite spaces such as temples, tombs and palaces to everyday dwellings and interactions of families. Read more ‘Adventurous’ classical scholar Pietro Pucci dies at 96 4/23/2024 Pietro (Piero) Pucci, an influential classical scholar who spent more than 50 years in the Department of Classics in the College of Arts and Sciences, died in Paris on April 7. He was 96. Read more Milstein faculty fellow’s course examines tech’s role in cultural preservation 4/29/2024 As the new Milstein Faculty Fellow in the Milstein Program in Technology & Humanity, Adam T. Smith co-developed a new course exploring how the latest technologies are reshaping cultural preservation. Read more Pietro (Piero) Pucci, faculty member Cornell Classics, 1962-2015, and Professor Emeritus 2015-2024, died Paris April 7, aged 96 4/19/2024 Pietro (Piero) Pucci, faculty member Cornell Classics, 1962-2015, and Professor Emeritus 2015-2024, died Paris April 7, aged 96. Read more Spring 2024 - Sarah Morris - Townsend Lectures 4/10/2024 Sarah Morris Townsend Lectures Read more Fall 2022 - Costanze Güthenke - Townsend Lectures 9/07/2022 Costanze Güthenke Townsend Lectures Read more Townsend lecturer explores Anatolian origins of European literature 4/01/2024 Morris’ research involves the interaction of Greece with its Eastern neighbors, in art, literature, religion and culture. Read more Summer Experience Grant applications now open 4/01/2024 The grants provide funding for students in unpaid or low-paying summer experiences to offset the cost of taking on those positions. Read more See more news from the Department of Classics What is Classics? Classics is about learning Latin and Greek Neither language is spoken today, but hundreds of world-historical masterpieces were written in those two languages. Ancient Greek is the key that unlocks Homer, philosophy, tragedy, comedy, history, particle physics, and half the Bible. Latin is the key that unlocks epic poetry, stage drama, fables, rhetoric, law, and the reawakening of the West in the Renaissance. The two languages together allow you to observe, like a firsthand witness, the downhill slide of Rome’s thousand-year civilization from an American-style democracy to an authoritarian empire. Studying them, and the voices of the women and men who spoke them, reveals more than just the mindset of a people that built the Coliseum and the catacombs. Those voices also reveal the foundations of the modern world order—from secular humanism to religious orthodoxy. They’re also a lot of fun! Classics beyond the classroom Classics doesn’t just involve learning your Latin principal parts (important though they are!). Our students and faculty engage with the Greco-Roman world in multiple ways, whether speaking living Latin” in Rome, taking part in archaeological digs or traveling seminars to Europe, curating exhibitions, or putting on performances of ancient plays. From experiments with ancient technology to the use of myth in contemporary art, we celebrate and explore the enduring relevance and reinvention of the Classical past within the 21st century. 120 Goldwin Smith Hall Ithaca, NY 14853 United States Email Department of Classics 607-255-3354 Cornell University The College of Arts & Sciences Website Accessibility Privacy Policy Equal Education & Employment Emergency Information Land Acknowledgment © 2023 College of Arts & Sciences...