Akroterion

Editorial

Editorial — 2026-04-07

Akroterion has now reached its seventieth year. When the journal first saw the light of day back in 1956, it was under the unassuming title Nuusbrief, a newsletter published by the University of Stellenbosch’s Department of Latin and edited by the esteemed Professor Frans Smuts. Already the first issue acknowledged the need for a more catching name, which would also reflect the setting from which the Classics were being viewed: the Cape (of Good Hope or of Storms, depending on the mood).

HECATE: GODDESS OF LIMINALITY AND MAGIC

Siobhan Banwari — 2026-04-07

Hecate is a complex and enigmatic goddess in ancient Greek religion, associated with boundaries, transformation, and magic. Her depiction evolves from a cosmic power in Hesiod’s Theogony to a chthonic, liminal figure in later texts such as the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, Apollonius of Rhodes’ Argonautica, and Lycophron’s Alexandra. She is linked to necromancy, nocturnal rituals, and the supernatural. Hecate is also invoked in curse tablets and Greek magical papyri. This article explores how a range of literary texts, supplemented by ritual and magical evidence where appropriate, establishes Hecate as a powerful mediator between realms, shaping ancient Greek understandings of transition, the divine, and magical practice. By tracing how boundary language (spatial, generational, nocturnal, and ritual) structures these texts, the article argues that Hecate’s liminality is not a later accretion but a coherent literary logic visible across genres.

THE ROLE OF CEPHALUS IN PLATO’S REPUBLIC

Jennifer Rout — 2026-04-07

At first glance, Cephalus’ role in the Republic is brief and superficial. In this very long dialogue, Cephalus features in only a few passages during which he initiates the Republic’s famous discussion of justice but then departs as it begins. This unusual and seemingly unnecessary choice by Plato to remove Cephalus from the conversation is fascinating and begs for a deeper exploration of this character. This paper explores Cephalus’ role in the Republic’s discussion of justice and its concluding myth. The significance of Cephalus’ departure and the narrative connections between Book 1 and Book 10 indicate that Plato had a greater role in mind for Cephalus than as a mere catalyst. Interpreting Cephalus’ character in light of the myth of Er shows that he serves as a cautionary example of the fate awaiting those who practise justice without philosophy.

‘JUSTICE IS THE ADVANTAGE OF THE STRONGER’: A SOCIOLOGICAL READING OF THRASYMACHUS’ THESIS IN PLATO’S REPUBLIC 1.338C1–347E3

Emmanuel Kofi Ackah — 2026-04-07

Thrasymachus’ thesis that ‘justice is the advantage of the stronger’ has been interpreted in three main ways: (1) sociologically, (2) prescriptively, and (3) as a definition of justice. In three sections, this paper focuses on (1) to advance the thesis’ sociological reach and applicability. But as claims that the thesis is incoherent threaten its explanatory and predictive power, Section One addresses that problem and shows that the thesis is neither elenctically nor definitionally incoherent. Section Two provides textual grounds for a sociological reading of the thesis, and Section Three indicates the thesis’ sociological capacity to explain human relationships.

DECEPTION, COMMUNICATION AND MILITARY MANUALS IN CLASSICAL GREEK AND ROMAN WARFARE

Martine Diepenbroek — 2026-04-07

This article examines how Greek and Roman military manuals codified deception and the concealment of information as a central element of warfare. Authors, including Xenophon, Aeneas Tacticus, Frontinus and Polyaenus, provide systematic instructions for hiding messages, exploiting perception, and securing communication. From steganography and signalling systems to inventive devices such as water clocks and astragali, these manuals show that concealment was not ad hoc but operationally essential. By focusing on prescriptive texts rather than narrative histories, the study highlights the practical sophistication of ancient military strategy and the enduring cross-cultural continuity of information as a decisive resource in warfare.

SYNCRETISM AND JEWISH INFLUENCE IN THE GREEK MAGICAL PAPYRI: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Sihe Khumalo — 2026-04-07

This article examines the presence of Jewish elements in selected texts from the Greek Magical Papyri (PGM), including the Prayer of Jacob, Charm of Pibechis, Eighth book of Moses, and A love spell of attraction. Through textual and comparative analysis, it argues that Jewish divine names, biblical figures, and ritual registers operate not as markers of Jewish authorship or confessional identity, but as adaptable sources of ritual authority within a broader syncretic repertoire. Hebrew-associated names such as Iaō, Sabaōth, and Adōnai are shown to circulate alongside Egyptian, Greco-Roman, and early Christian elements in efficacy-driven ritual collections shaped by performance, technical competence, and persuasive power. By situating these texts against both Greco-Egyptian magical traditions and materially attested Jewish magical corpora, the study demonstrates that syncretism in the PGM reflects pragmatic strategies of ritual authentication rather than the fusion of coherent belief systems. The article, therefore, contributes to ongoing debates on syncretism, authority, and religious interaction in Late Antiquity by foregrounding practice, transmission, and ritual expertise over rigid notions of religious identity.

CENA TRIMALCHIONIS: THE MAN BEHIND THE MASK

Peta Fox — 2026-04-07

This article re-examines the figure of Trimalchio in Petronius’ Cena Trimalchionis, arguing against the enduring tendency to dismiss him as a purely grotesque parody of the nouveau riche. Through close analysis of the banquet’s spectacles, narrative instability, and Encolpius’ unreliable focalisation, it is argued that Trimalchio’s excesses function as performative self-fashioning rooted in freedman status anxiety, Roman social hierarchy, and social liminality. Rather than mere buffoonery, Trimalchio’s world of illusion exposes the fragility of social hierarchies and implicates the reader in the text’s unsettling play between ridicule, identification, and self-recognition.

REDISCOVERING THE ETRUSCANS: ETRUSCAN ELEMENTS IN LATE NINETEENTH- AND EARLY TWENTIETH-CENTURY EUROPEAN PAINTING

Bronwen Macdonald — 2026-04-07

Situated within the framework of Classical reception studies, this article examines examples of Etruscan motifs in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century European academic paintings, challenging the conventional emphasis on Greco-Roman classicism in the history of art. The analysis of artworks by Kristian Zahrtmann, Aleksandr Svedomsky, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, John William Godward, and Edward John Poynter reveals a subtle yet significant incorporation of Etruscan imagery. This research examines how these artists engaged with Etruscan motifs, either intentionally or inadvertently, and challenges the historiographical bias that has marginalised Etruscan contributions in the study of Classical reception. It advocates for a more inclusive understanding of ancient cultural influences in nineteenth and twentieth-century art.

HOW CULTURE AFFECTS CHARACTERISATION: A RECEPTION STUDY OF CIRCE IN EPIC: THE MUSICAL

Hannah Anspach — 2026-04-07

Epic: The Musical is a modern reimagining of Homer’s Odyssey in which the character of Circe is reframed. In the Odyssey, Circe is depicted as a magically and sexually dangerous adversary of Odysseus. In the musical, Circe’s narrative role is more complex, and her perspective is included to shed light on her actions. Further, while Circe and Odysseus have sexual intercourse in the Odyssey, they do not in the musical. The significance of these changes is investigated by analysing the cultural norms and social morality which underlie the respective portrayals of Circe in the Odyssey and in the musical.