Iö, Saturnalia!: Celebrating the Holidays, Roman-Style (Online)
Taught by Andrew Coletti
Andrew Coletti is a food writer and educator whose work has appeared in Popular Science and Atlas Obscura. He holds degrees in Classics and Museum Education, and has cooked recipes from around the world and throughout time for social media at @PassTheFlamingo (because the Romans ate flamingos).
Location: Online Class
This is a live, onine class via Zoom. It will be recorded and viewable for one week after the date.
One time of year that every Ancient Roman looked forward to was the December festival of Saturnalia. Aligned with the winter solstice, this period of feasting, gift-giving, and good cheer bears a striking resemblance to modern holiday celebrations; and that resemblance is far from coincidental. In this class, we'll explore the history of Saturnalia and its place in Roman civilization. We'll consider material and literary sources to learn about the characteristics of the Ancient Romans' favorite holiday feast and discuss Saturnalia's connection to the holidays of today. No prior knowledge of Ancient Rome required.
