The spotlights shine on EUNICE ORESTES,

story writer and patron of Hellas! A hearty "WELCOME BACK!" goes out to Eunice who was a member of Ancient Sites and has recently returned to join Ancient Worlds. Eunice loves to write stories in fairy tale style. You can find some of her writings on love by visiting her property in Athens, called The Perfumed Garden. Eunice has also written a very enjoyable story, in her lovely Hellas home site, about the life of a HETAIRA in Athens.

Take a tour through Attica's Polis (city) of ATHENS which is said to have laid the foundations for western civilization. Among this hoods' many articles to view, is an imaginative article by DIonysia Xanthippos that reconstructs the equestrian events at Athens' spring festival in honor of Zeus, titled THE ANCIENT OLYMPIEIA FESTIVAL AT ATHENS.

THE EVOLUTION AND LEGACY OF CLASSICAL GREECE is a group dedicated to the discussion and study of the Greeks from their early migrations through their rise in power, as a culture, economic, and military force, to their ultimate decline. (ca. 800 BC to 167 BC) There is a wealth of information provided by this group of 90 members on a wide area of Greek topics. This group explores the entire range of Greek thought, actions, the accomplishments and driving forces that shaped and molded their world, and ultimately ours.
Reporters:
Kallistos Alexandros

Editor, Hellenic World News:
Beauty Solon

*Got a news article or a person, hood, or group you would like to see spotlighted in our next issue? Post information to HELLAS NEWS.

WIN A NEW ROLE PLAY GROUP! The QUILL AND PARCHMENT is an academic group in Hellas focused on the improvement of writing skills for writers of all levels. This writer's workshop has recently opened an office in Athens where they will be presenting an open board contest for the best outline with a prize of a new role play group on AW. The contest is open to ALL ANCIENT WORLD MEMBERS! You do not have to be a member of the group to join in on the contest. The contests prize shall be your own role play group!!! For more information, visit the offices of Quill and Parchment by clicking the image below.

Plates were broken on the floor in joyous Hellenic Maenad Madness as The Macedonian Bar and Grill passed the one thousandth mark in member posts while celebrating the new wine with the holy Maenads. Guests arriving dressed as Maenad's were given free wine and everyone enjoyed dancing to the new juke box gifted to the Macedonian Bar by TaysatWesir Amenhotep.

Cursing was allowed during the festival as some discovered when they opened their free gift and found it contained an ancient curse! Others were more fortunate and received some very exquisite gifts created and wrapped by AW members! A special "Thank you" to Kallistos Alexandros for creating this fun Gift Grab Bag event!

Alerissa Nestor's Card Shop was busy with new and returning customers sending out many Holiday greetings to friends everywhere.

A very popular Brumalia event was the Maenad quiz created by Demetrios Xanthippos where everyone received new knowlege about Dionysius, the official god of Brumalia and the Maenads his main girls. {View BRUMALIA'S Event Calendar}

The Hellas ARTICLE LIBRARY has been updated and is a wonderful resource when looking for past Hellas articles. If you have an article that has not yet been added to the library; please consider sharing your work by adding it to the article index. You can view the entire list of existing articles by clicking on the "Browse the Index" button in the right box of the library. A special "Thank you" goes out to Alerissa Nestor for creating this excellent research tool! Well worth keeping alive!

CAN YOU DIG IT?
KU in Ancient Greece May 22-June 21, 2008. University of Kansas. Every year classicist John Younger takes a group to Greece, where they tour the museums and archaeological sites, for course credit and or just the plain fun of learning something new. No digging, just tours, travel, monuments and museums.

Iklaina (Greece) May 31-July 4, 2008 (2 sessions). Iklaina Archaeological Project, University of Missouri-St. Louis. Survey, GPS/GIS, geophysics; and excavation of a Bronze Age settlement and Tholos tombs at Koukounara, near Iklaina, one of the district capitals of the ancient kingdom of Pylos, in southwest Peloponnese.

Pylos Archaeological Project (Greece) May 31-July 4, 2008. University of Missouri - St. Louis and Athens Archaeological Society. The UM-St. Louis archaeological project in Pylos, Greece, seeks to examine the historicity of the Greek kings of the Trojan war, especially the legendary king Nestor.

Nemea (Greece) June 1-28, 2008. University of California, Berkeley. Through this field school students will participate in archaeological and museum study in Greece at the site of Nemea and the Classical Sanctuary of Zeus.

Amphaxitis (Macedonia) June 4-July 20, 2007. The Texas Foundation for Archaeological and Historical Research (TFAHR); University of Saints Cyril and Methodius, Skopje. Survey and excavation of two closely linked sites in the Vardar (Axios) River Valley, Vardarski Rid and Gloska Cuka.

Mitrou (Greece) June 15-June 28, 2008. University of Tennessee. The aim of the basic field school is to explore the archaeology of Greece focusing on the Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, at the site of Mitrou, a tidal islet on the North Euboean Gulf of central Greece.

Helike (Greece) July 1-August 9 2008. Helike Society and University of Patras. The Classical city of Helike, destroyed by an earthquake and tsunami in 373 B.C.; an Early Bronze Age town; an early Hellenistic town (ca. 300 B.C.); and a long section of the Roman road between Corinth and Patras.

Mycenae (Greece) July 3-31, 2008. University of California, Berkeley and the Archaeological Society of Athens. Students will participate in archaeological excavation and museum study in Greece at the Bronze Age site of Mycenae (Petsas House).

Phalasarna (Greece) July 13-August 3, 2008. Hellenic Education & Research Center (HERC). Students receive extensive instruction in Archaeological Drawing and Archaeological Conservation while participating in the on-going excavations at the ancient port city of Phalasarna.

*HAPPY NEW YEAR!*