Felicem diem natalem, Hadriane! 🎂 FOLLOWING HADRIAN

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Felicem diem natalem, Hadriane!

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FOLLOWING HADRIAN

Happy 1949th birthday, Hadrian!

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In keeping with tradition, I prepared a birthday cake for Hadrian. This year, I chose to bake a Roman honey cake.

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Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 200 grams liquid honey
• 50 grams spelt flour

Instructions:

Whip eggs with an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat them until they are stiff and form peaks. Slowly pour in the honey and continue to mix until well incorporated. Add the flour in small amounts at a time by folding it into the egg mixture. Continue this until all of the flour has been incorporated. Pour the mixture into a greased 17cm cake tin, and bake for 30-40mins at 200°C. It is best served warm, with honey drizzled on it.

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In celebration of Hadrian’s birthday, I also opened a bottle of Hadrianus Etna Rosso 2016, a red wine from Terre Siciliane in the area of Etna in Sicily, made from Nerello Mascalese, an indigenous grape variety from Etna’s slopes that already existed on the island when Greeks first appeared during their colonization of Sicily in the 6th century BC. The slopes of Etna, rich in minerals and volcanic ash, create an ideal environment for growing grapes. Red wines, such as Etna Rosso DOC, are distinguished by their aromas of ripe red fruit, spices, and mineral notes, accompanied by elegant tannins and good acidity.

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Hadrianus Etna Rosso 2016

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Hadrianus Etna Rosso celebrates Hadrian’s visit to Sicily in AD 125 when the Emperor climbed Mount Etna to witness the sunrise from its summit. I plan to make the ascent myself next month as part of my Hadrian1900 project.

“Afterwards, he sailed to Sicily,​ where he climbed Mount Etna to see the sunrise, which is many-coloured, it is said, like a rainbow.” Historia Augusta, The Life of Hadrian 13.3

“They had told me much of the curious colours of dawn on the Ionian Sea when beheld from the heights of Aetna. I decided to make the ascent of the mountain. We passed from the region of vines to the beds of lava and onto the snow; the agile youth fairly ran on those steep slopes, but the scientists who went with me climbed by muleback. At the summit, a shelter had been built for us to await the dawn. It came: an immense rainbow arched from horizon to horizon; on the icy crest, strange fires blazed; earth and sea spread out to view as far as Africa, within sight, and as Greece, which we merely guessed at. That was truly an Olympian height in my life. All was there, the golden fringe of cloud, the eagles, and the cupbearer of immortality.” Marguerite Youcenar, Memoirs of Hadrian

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Mount Etna

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One thousand nine hundred years ago, Hadrian likely celebrated his 49th birthday in Athens or somewhere in the Peloponnese. After attending the Eleusinian Mysteries (read here), the philhellenic emperor spent much of the winter of 124/5 touring the Peloponnese. His presence at a series of famous cities, such as Argos, Sparta, and Corinth, is well documented. On his way back to Rome from Greece, Hadrian went to Sicily and climbed Mount Etna.

Hadrian’s first visit as emperor to the province of Achaea in 124/5 constituted the starting point of a second Golden Age. He adorned the cities with all kinds of buildings, built temples, made financial donations to sanctuaries and organisations, and reformed local regulations. The measures the Emperor undertook were so widespread that he was given the title of Restitutor Achaeae (restorer of Achaea). 

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Gold coin showing Hadrian raising Achaia from her knees with the legend RESTITVTORI ACHAIAE (restorer of Achaea).
© The Trustees of the British Museum (link)

The upcoming blog post on #Hadrian1900 will detail Hadrian’s journey through the Peloponnese in early AD 125!

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#Felicem #diem #natalem #Hadriane #HADRIAN

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