Parsing the Past: Venus de Milo - The Goddess in the Garden Centre 🏛️💗

Welcome to Parsing the Past, North East Culture & Conversation’s History Club!

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We meet each month to discuss an exciting era and some intriguing figures from ye old days of yore, hopefully learning a thing or two from one another, in the historic Town Wall bar.

This time, with Classics Fest 2025 on the horizon, we’re doing an art and ancient history special, beginning the evening by attending a one off lecture at the marvellous Lit & Phil, Newcastle’s literary and philosophical society …

Entitled Venus de Milo: The Goddess in the Garden Centre, and delivered by Dr Gail-Nina Anderson, the talk will explore the iconic statue, the history around it, ancient Greek and Roman art and the statue’s eternal cultural impact!

Tickets are free, but must be booked in advance and these lectures often ‘sell out’, so it’s advisable to book ASAP. Click here for the link to reserve your place 🎟️.

Once the lecture concludes, we’ll head over to The Town Wall on Pink Lane together around 7pm, to continue onto our own discussion! You are welcome to join us at this point if you can’t make it to the talk at the Lit & Phil.

We’ll be exploring classical myths around Venus and Aphrodite and other analogous goddesses, their role in the pantheon and what they tell us about ancient societies, alongside representations of love/fertility symbols and deities throughout history, discussing their relevance to life in the present day versus the past.

You can research in advance as much or as little as you like (you don’t have to read the book) - just show up prepared for a chat!

Our recommended text for this event is Venus & Aphrodite: History of a Goddess by the wonderful Bettany Hughes, which “tells the remarkable story of one of antiquity’s most potent forces, and the story of human desire - how it transforms who we are and how we behave”, via philosophy, art history, myth and archaeology 📖.

The Town Wall is on the site of the old Gunner Tower, and inside the home to famed naturalist Thomas Bewick; it is located right in the heart of Newcastle city centre, close to the train station (and the Lit & Phil!).

If you get hungry whilst we’re chatting, the bar serves food as well as a wide range of drinks.
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Should you come across any other interesting source materials, feel free to examine those instead and share your findings with us! Check the event comments for suggested articles and documentaries 🤓.

And if all else fails and you’re short on time but still want come along for the chat and the chips, there’s always Wikipedia 😉 …