iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 525 Silvius pinnas plumasque pavonis collegit et laro affixit (Silvius has collected feathers and down from a peacock and fixed them to the seagull). amici cacchinant - nunc Lara pavo est! (The friends giggle - now Lara is a peacock!)

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, with his friend Lara the seagull. She is displaying her new outfit of peacock feathers (shed, not stolen!) while Silvius the finishing touches.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 524 Silvius fundum praecipuum visitat, ubi animalia liberata curantur (Silvius visits a special farm, where rescued animals are looked after). pastinacā caviae pascit (He feeds a guinea pig with a carrot).

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, offering a carrot to a young guinea pig that is bigger than he is. Guinea pigs are from South America, so were unknown to the ancient Romans, but Minimus and his family are used to time travel...

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 523 Silvius nuces iuglandis cadivas celeriter colligit, antequam sciuri omnes infodiunt. (Silvius is collecting fallen walnuts quickly, before the squirrels bury them all).

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, with fresh walnuts in a basket. The wind brought a lot of them down yesterday, but the squirrels have already whisked most of them away.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 522 hodie spatium studiorum Minimi incipit (Today Minimus' teaching term begins). ut mos est, Silvius pro ianuam cavi stat, capsulam tenens (As is the custom, Silvius is in standing front of the mousehole door, holding his satchel). #notbacktoschool

Photo of Silvius the little Latin mouse, outside the front door of the mousehole. He's holding his little red satchel. Silvius doesn't go to school, but learns at home with his parents.

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Finn McLellan @saranadosfiction.com · 22/08/2026

Minimus is wonderful always, but I particularly like this one for the reminder that Latin was used for documents and speeches and high-falutin stuff... but it was also the everyday language of kids complaining on long trips and parents having to deal with that, because people have always been people

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Gromit @samsgromit.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

salve silvius! un pane, due crustulae, et er... some olives and cheese, per favore.

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Graham Taylor @pottedhistory.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Yep, someone got rather overenthusiastic with the stoking. These look as if they've been up to about 1200C.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 521 mures panem et dulcia in furno coxerunt (The mice have baked bread and sweet treats). Silvius panem, crustulas arculataque in tabernulā ordinat et emptores exspectat (Silvius sets out bread, tarts and ring-loaves in his little shop, and waits for customers).

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, standing in a mouse-sized wooden market stall. There are variously shaped loaves and little fruit tarts on the shelves, and bread rings strung on a nail above the counter. Silvius has his takings on the counter, and a coin in his paw.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 520 familia murina ad mare revenit, sine manu consobrinorum (The mouse family returns to the sea, without the gang of cousins). Silvius immensam testam ostreae invenit (Silvius finds a massive oyster shell). "tata! nonne scapha est?" (Daddy, is it a boat?)

Photo of Minimus and Silvius, the Latin mice, on the Norfolk coast at Hunstanton. Silvius is in an enormous oyster shell, big enough for him and his parents to sail in. It's probably a feral Pacific oyster shell (invasive species)

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Ticia Verveer @ticiaverveer.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Areas with cold water pools (frigidaria) and a changing room (apodyterium) have been unearthed at the 1,700-year-old Western Bath at the sanctuary of Apollo Smintheus, near the coast of northwestern Türkiye. www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ancient-bath...

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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

For #RomanSiteSaturday let's go to Leptis Magna on the coast of Libya. It's one of the best preserved Roman cities. The city was founded in the 7th c. BC by the Phoenicians. In Roman times it became one of the most important cities of North Africa and a major trading post.🧵1/2 📷Georg Steinmetz

The picture shows an aerial view of Leptis Magna on the coast of Libya with the well-preserved Roman theatre and several other buildings

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 519 Silvius partes in comoedia meditatur (Silvius is rehearsing his role in a comedy). personam aeneam gerit (He wears a bronze mask). theatrum idoneum invenit, sed hoc nimis parvum etiam muri est! (He finds a suitable theatre, but it is too small even for a mouse!)

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse with a bronze-coloured Papposilenus comic mask, standing next to a model of the Roman theatre at Arelate (Arles). The mask idea is based on a bronze mouse in the British Museum; I made the model theatre for the Suburani 'Build It!' Challenge

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Flora 🏺 Ancient History Art @flaroh.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Looks like interesting research but pls hire historical illustrators instead of this 😭

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Graham Taylor @pottedhistory.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Kiln done! Fingers firmly crossed and offerings made to Fornax (OK It's a glass of beer that I will drink) but it's the thought that counts!

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marybeard @wmarybeard.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

"Reading the Iliad & the Odyssey is still one..of the great privileges of my life.” Says Tom Hiddleston! Discover his student dissertation & why he thinks Classics important (“it's given me...the courage to live in the question, to tolerate uncertainty"). www.youtube.com/watch?v=i71H...

youtube.com

Classic Chats: Tom Hiddleston on Pompeii

YouTube video by Instant Classics

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Natalie Haynes @nataliehaynes.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

IT'S TODAY!! Tune into BBC Radio 4 at 9am to kick off the new series. We're getting inventive in ancient Alexandria, with professors Islam Issa and @adamrutherford.bsky.social ⚗️🥽 I'm so happy to finally share these episodes with you 🥰 🎧 Listen back on BBC Sounds: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand...

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 518 Minima fabulam parvis consobrinis narrat, sed Impudica fatigata est (Minima is telling the little cousins a story, but Impudica is bored). Silvius vigilans patrem monet "illa mare petit!" Watchful Silvius warns his father "She's heading for the sea!").

Photo of Minimus, Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, on the beach in Suffolk. Minima is telling four of the fingerpuppet mice a story, but Impudica (Cheeky) has escaped and is heading for the water. Silvius has spotted her, and is letting Minimus know so he can scoop her up before she wades in. She can't swim, but that won't stop her!

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 517 mures iter ad litus faciunt (The mice are on a trip to the seaside). Minimus et Minima velarium erigunt, ne musculi adusti fiant (Minimus and Minima put up an awning, so the little mice don't get sunburned).

Photo of Minimus, Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, with the little fingerpuppet mouse cousins, at Walberswick on the Suffolk coast. They are all under a green linen sun shade supported by sticks.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

adsunt novae merces in tabernā Minimi (New merch in Minimus' shop). Minima et amicae vestes natatorias gerentes in vestimentis et saccis pictae sunt (Minima and her friends, wearing swimsuits, are depicted on clothes and bags). www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/1818... #minimuslatin

Photo collage of items from my Minimus & more Redbubble shop, featuring the new "dekakini" design.

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Natalie Haynes @nataliehaynes.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

What great timing! Fans of I, Claudius definitely want to tune in to the new series of Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics, Thursdays at 9am from 30th July… 👀 #IfYouKnowYouKnow

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marybeard @wmarybeard.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

I have a little essay about the Nolan Odyssey in the Times today. I enjoyed it, but wonder how much you lose when (eg) you lose Nausicaa… and the humour of the original. Hope some of you can access it! www.thetimes.com/article/ad40...

thetimes.com

Mary Beard on The Odyssey: It’s great, but where are Homer’s jokes?

Matt Damon and Anne Hathaway are marvellous in Christopher Nolan’s stunning epic for today but he misses the original’s humour — and eroticism

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 515 consobrini queruntur "necesse est mingere! nonne advenimus? nauseo! cur licet Silvio in prora sedere!" (The cousins are complaining "I need a wee! Are we there yet? I feel sick! Why does Silvius get to sit in the front?"). Minimus suspirat (Minimus sighs).

Photo of Minimus, Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, with the little cousins, afloat in their boat. As usual, Minimus is rowing (sitting the right way round this time!) and Minima is steering, while Silvius keeps watch from the prow. The baby mice are whingeing, but at least none of them have fallen overboard yet...

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marybeard @wmarybeard.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/i... what you need to know before you go!! Instant Classics offers you a 50 minute guide to Homer’s Odyssey… to get you up to speed for the movie!

podcasts.apple.com

Christopher Nolan's Odyssey 1: What you need to know before you go

Podcast Episode · Instant Classics · 9 July · 48min

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 516 color flammeus et odor suavis rosarum Silvio delectant (The flame colour and sweet smell of the roses delight Silvius). cavē aculeos, muscule! (Mind the thorns, little mouse!)

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, in a bush of orange-red roses ("Super Trouper", apparently)

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 514 Silvius matri potionem frigidam fert dum apricatur (Silvius brings his mother a cold drink while she sunbathes) Minima bene ornata est flabello, poculo et pulvino et veste natatoria murina (Minima is well equipped with a fan, a cup, a cushion and a mouse swimsuit).

Photo of Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, in a sunny garden. Minima is wearing a dekakini - a mouse-style bikini with ten cups instead of two, and waving a circular fan. Silvius is kindly bringing a jug to refill her drink.

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Graham Taylor @pottedhistory.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Brilliant, more of this please...... possibly involving a potter? Asking for a friend 😏

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 513 Flavia, Vibrissa et Minima in sudariis virgatis apricantur ((Flavia, Vibrissa and Minima are sunbathing on stripy towels). vestes natatorias aptas gerunt (They are wearing appropriate swimsuits)

Drawing of Flavia, Vibrissa and Minima the Latin mouse, sunbathing on their stripy towels. They are wearing specially designed outfits to accommodate their feminine attributes. On the (totally made up) assumption that a bikini is so called because the top garment has two cups, Vibrissa wears a hexakini and Minima a dekakini.
Two-piece bikinis did exist in the Roman world, but were probably worn by acrobats and dancers

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marybeard @wmarybeard.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

How to party at Pompeii! Charlotte Higgins and I are doing a special recording of Instant Classics at the British Library on evening of 22 June, part of heir Food Season. Come along events.bl.uk/events/how-t...

events.bl.uk

How to Party in Pompeii, with Mary Beard and Charlotte Higgins | British Library

From elegant dinners in glamorous outdoor dining rooms (stuffed dormice optional) to down-and-dirty street food in back alley bars, the archaeology of Pomp

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Butser Ancient Farm @butserancientfarm.co.uk · 03/06/2026

How fantastic is this drawing of our Iron Age enclosure? 😍 One of our Experimentalists has drawn the roundhouse village with exceptional detail. We love seeing how our beautiful ancient farm captures the imagination of creative observers. Hand-drawn by a very talented human - magnificent! ✨

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Graham Taylor @pottedhistory.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

When is an owl, that's not an owl, probably still an owl? It all happens when you start to recreate the pottery of the ancient past. 🏺 And you really should watch through to the end. youtu.be/nT_n4pxxM1M

youtu.be

The Vindolanda Owl or When Is An Owl That's Not An Owl, Probably Still An Owl

YouTube video by PottedHistory

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 512 sol lucet inter imbres (The sun is shining between showers). Minima lenticulum gubernat, dum Minimus remigat (Minima is steering the boat while Minimus rows). Silvius in prorā sedet et laete circumspectat (Silvius sits in the prow and looks around happily).

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 511 Silvius consobrinis occurrit (Silvius meets his cousins). eos internoscit a focalibus (He knows them by their scarves). in manu musculorum Pollex, Index, Impudica, Annularis et Auricularis continet (In the handful of little mice are Thumb, Index, Cheeky, Ring and Ear)

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, with a group of five finger-puppet mice. All the mice are being held on a pair of hands. Silvius is wearing a straw hat, and the finger mice have different coloured scarves to distinguish them. They are named according to the Latin words for the different fingers.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 510 diēs aestuosus est, et mures in horto apricabantur. (It's a hot day, and the mice have been sunbathing in the garden). Silvius in labro aquae intepescit (Silvius is cooling off in a tub of water). Minima sudarium tenet (Minima is holding his towel).

Photo of Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, relaxing in the garden on a hot weekend. Silvius is reclining in a tin bath full of "water", while his mother is keeping a watchful eye and standing by with a towel.

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Sarah Lord @potsofhistory.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

I can’t believe I did this 😳 We launched our Janus Bust to our mailing list… then I forgot to tell everyone else. I’m a potter. The businesswoman part is still under construction 😅 See the Janus Bust potted-history.co.uk/products/janus

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marybeard @wmarybeard.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

The chair of US Commission of Fine Arts, in approving the proposed triumphal arch in DC, claimed that opposition to it was "due to a lack of understand<ing> about the history of such triumphal arches" Bit of an insult to those of us who really do know about triumphal arches!

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 509 auxilio Tatae, Silvius anulum vimineum in arbore posuit (With Daddy's help, Silvius has put a willow ring in a tree). bellides inter vimina nectit et sedile pulchrum facit (He weaves daisies between the twigs and makes a pretty seat).

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, standing in a small wicker ring that's decorated with daisies and balanced in the fork of a small apple tree.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 508 Silvius musculus fortissimus, simulans se Hercules esse, Cerberum ex Tartaro trahit (Silvius the strongest little mouse, pretending to be Hercules, is dragging Cerberus out of the Underworld). "canicule probe...aut caniculi probi..?" ("Good doggie...or good doggies?")

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, holding the lead of a three-headed dog. Cerberus has one black head, one white head and one terracotta coloured head, in reference to this Etruscan vase painting from the Louvre: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Herakles_Kerberos_Eurystheus_Louvre_E701.jpg

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 507 tempus est suffragium ferre (Time to vote)! Minimus, Minima et amicus Spicus tabellas in cistam demittit. (Minimus, Minima and their friend Spike drop their ballots into the box. Silvius intente spectat (Silvius watches closely)

Photo of Minimus, Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, with their friend Spike the hedgehog, at the polling station for local elections. They all have their painted identification tablets, and are holding their ballots (wax tablets with a mark made next to their chosen candidate's name) in their paws. Silvius is still too young to vote, but he finds the process very interesting!

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Ashmolean Museum, Oxford @ashmoleanmuseum.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Happy #StarWarsDay! May the 'fourth' be with you. There are many items in our collection which could easily be mistaken for coming from a galaxy far, far away. This Greenware water pot in the form of a frog, for instance, reminds us a *little bit* of Jaba the Hutt. EA1956.983

A Greenware water pot in the shape of a frog

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National Trust @nationaltrust.org.uk · 04/05/2026

We've found the droid you're looking for... Is it just us, or does the Temple of Apollo at Stourhead in Wiltshire bear a passing resemblance to R2D2? #StarWarsDay 📷Clive Nichols

The Temple of Apollo sits on a hill. It is a folly in a landscape. It has a domed room and columns around the outside. The building is bathed in sunlight, surrounded by trees and the view is reflected in the lake below

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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

#MayThe4th Happy Star Wars Day – May the Force be with you! ✨ Looking for a real-life galaxy far, far away? The Zweibrücken Observatory has you covered! 🔭 #StarWarsDay 📷 www.zeit.de/zett/2019-03...

A large, white-and-blue dome-shaped observatory that resembles Star Wars‘ R2-D2 stands beside a smaller physical model of the same character, set against a backdrop of a partly cloudy sky and a tree on the right.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

#fabula murina (mouse story) 506 Minimus, Minima et Silvius diem Bellorum Stellarum celebrant (Minimus, Minima and Silvius are celebrating Star Wars day). vis tecum sit! (May the Force be with you!) #starwarsday #maythefourth #maythe4th

Photo of Minimus, Minima and Silvius, the Latin mice, dressed as Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Yoda for Star Wars Day.

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Rosemary Allison @rozesall.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Thanks to these mouse stories I'm understanding more Latin!

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

#fabula murina (mouse story) 505 Silvius ranunculum sub menti tenet, ut flos nitidus repercutiat lucem flavum (Silvius is holding a buttercup under his chin, so the shiny flower reflects yellow light). nonne butyrum amas, Silvi? (Do you like butter, Silvius?)

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, standing on an ivy-covered stone. He is holding a buttercup under his chin, so that the shiny petals cast a yellow reflection. It's supposed to show whether he likes butter!
Language note: The word ranunculus. buttercup, also means a little frog or a tadpole in Latin, apparently because the flowers like to grow near water. (Hmm... I'm not convinced!)

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 504 diēs terrae adest! (It's Earth Day!) Silvius, stipatus floribus, tunicam fungorum rubeorum ornatam gerit (Silvius, surrounded by flowers, is wearing a tunic decorated with red mushrooms) #EarthDay

Photo of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, celebrating Earth Day. He is in the branches of a wild apple tree, wearing a green tunic decorated with tiny fly agaric motifs, and holding a dandelion and a bluebell.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 503 omnes pomi in horto florent; cerasus, pirus et morus (All the fruit trees in the garden are blossoming; cherry, pear and mulberry). Silvius malum novellum mavult (Silvius prefers the new apple tree).

Photo collage of Silvius, the little Latin mouse, perched in a very young apple tree in full bloom, against a blue April sky.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 502 Silvius et amicae Lara et Fusca in litore ventoso prope Gariannonum ludunt. (Silvius and his friends Lara and Dusky are playing on the windy beach near Caister-on-Sea).

Photo of Silvius the little Latin mouse, with his seagull and crow friends, on the Norfolk coast. They are gathered around a red parade flag, planted in the damp sand.

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Minimus @minimuslatin.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

#fabulamurina (mouse story) 501 Minimus et Minima plaustrum ponderosam per harenam trahunt (Minimus and Minima are dragging the heavy wagon through the sand). plenum est Silvio et amicis, qui laete exsiliunt! (It's full of Silvius and his friends, who jump out happily!)

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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

Timeline cleanse! An adorable #Roman bronze figurine of a dormouse holding a nut (height 2.7 cm). The edible dormouse was a delicacy in Roman times. It was considered a dish of the rich and a symbol of prosperity. From Oberstimm, ca. 100 AD. On display at Archäologische Staatssammlung 📷 me 🏺

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