William Sterling

Introducing

Achilles killing Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons by Exekias of Athens c. 560 BC. This type of pot is called Black Figure ware as the figures were filled in using the liquid or slip clay which miraculously turned black during the firing process. One of the incidents during the Trojan War not recorded by Homer was the fight between Achilles, hero of the Greeks, and Penthesilea, queen of the tribe of warrior women called the Amazons. Achilles won but at the moment he drove his spear into her neck their eyes met for the first time and they fell in love with each other. Exekias shows this ultimate Greek Tragedy by suggesting Achilles is trying to pull the spear out rather than thrust it home but all too late. Image © Trustees of the British Museum
My name is Dr William Sterling ~ welcome to my website. I have degrees in History and Geography with additional qualifications in Music and Education. I taught full-time at an Independent School in Kent for four years before joining the Civil Service. I worked for 16 years in the Department of Transport… Read more »

Look out for…

  • Upcoming Events

    1. Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

      When: April 16 @ 5:30 pm - April 30 @ 7:30 pm

      The Seven Wonders fascinate us, but what were they and why were they wonders? Using art, literature and archaeology we’ll explore possible answers. What is the course about? The famous seven wonders of the ancient world: the Pyramids, the Alexandrian Lighthouse, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the statue of… Read more »

    2. Heroes and Gods: 19th and 20th Century Classical References in the British Museum and elsewhere

      When: April 24

      What is the course about? Delve into classical myths used in naval related items by examining some objects from various collections. What topics will we cover? Following on from the previous course we shall look at what Classical artworks were available to artists in the C19th and what literary works were studied in schools and… Read more »

    3. Life and Times of King George IV

      When: June 6 @ 11:00 am - June 13 @ 1:30 pm

      George IV waited till he was nearly 60 before succeeding as king but once he had was diligent and successful. Course Description George IV is perhaps best remembered as the Prince Regent whose extravagance was matched by his good taste.  He built Brighton Pavilion in an exotic style which led the way to great changes… Read more »

    View All Events

Featured articles

Franz Liszt

Chopin and Liszt Two of the greatest ever piano composers were also great friends and had a huge influence on their contemporaries and later composers. Two of the greatest pianists of the C19th and the first great composers to emerge from their respective countries; Poland and Hungary. Their music is so familiar today it is… Read more »

Sport in the Ancient World

I first ran a course at the City Lit on this on 12 February 2012 ready for the Olympics coming to London.  I also run private tours on the same subject at the British Museum and ran several during the Olympics. In 2015 the joint City Lit/UCL/British Museum annual Classics Day on Saturday 7th March… Read more »

Music and Art Inspired by Shakespeare 5

MUSIC AND ART INSPIRED BY SHAKESPEARE No. 5: All At Sea – [this talk was cancelled but I have included it so that anyone interested can see what art I was going to talk about. I have adjusted the music as I included some works in other talks]. Much of Shakespeare takes place when characters… Read more »

Resources

  • The Music Section

  • Composers’ lives

  • Music courses

  • My music

  • Shakespeare

  • The History Section

  • British Museum Tours

  • History courses

  • Kings & Queens

  • Anglo Saxons & Vikings

  • Shakespeare

Top