Primary sources for classics are the documents and artifacts from the ancient Mediterranean world. These sources are the backbone of classical studies. On this page we will look at the main resources for locating primary sources.
Digital Loeb Classical Library The Digital Loeb Classical Library is an online version of the Loeb Classical Library series. This series offers introductions, texts, and translations of ancient Greek and Latin writings, making it a key resource for primary sources. There are more than 500 discrete volumes spanning from Homer (700 BCE) to Bede (700 CE). Most major classical authors are covered and new editions are added each year. |
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Perseus Digital Library The Perseus Digital Library (or Perseus Project) presents a substantial collection of Greek and Roman writings in both their original languages and in English translation. This is a free resource and there are some holes in the collection and some works are quite dated. One of the strengths of the Perseus Digital Library is the Greek and Latin morphology tools that are interconnected to the texts. See the Perseus Digital Library Research Guide at Pitts Theology Library. |
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Thesaurus Linguae Graecae (TLG) TLG is a comprehensive digital library of Greek from Homer to the fall of Byzantium in 1453 CE. There are over 12,000 works from 4,000 authors in the database. Its strengths are searching for specific Greek words across multiple works or simply reading the texts in the Greek. There is some connectivity to the Perseus Digital Library but it is not integrated very well. See the TLG Research Guide at Pitts Theology Library. |
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Library of Latin Texts The Library of Latin Texts, published by Brepols, contains more than 3,200 Latin works from Antiquity to the twentieth century. Some of the texts are drawn from the following series: Bibliotheca scriptorum Romanum Teubneriana and Corpus Christianorum. |
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Supplementum Epigraphicum Graceum Online A database of Greek inscriptions, which includes the text of the inscriptions and information about them. |
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Searchable Greek Inscriptions A collection of both Greek and Latin inscriptions based on their location. |
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ARTstor A visual database of art and artifacts. You can search by keyword and limit the results to a certain time period and geographical location. |
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Census of Antique Art and Architecture Known to the Renaissance (via Dyabola Projekt) A database containing images of classical art and architecture that known during the Renaissance along with references from the Renaissance period. [attach video] |
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Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum The Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum ('Corpus of Ancient Vases') consists of a series of high-quality catalogues of mostly ancient Greek painted pottery in collections around the world. The first fascicule appeared in 1922 and since then around 380 have appeared, illustrating more than 100,000 vases in 24 countries. |
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Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae LIMC is a searchable database that displays portrayals of figures from classical mythology. Here you can find images along with a lot of important metadata such as provenance, date, medium, and bibliography. Many of the images are relatively small, though some can be enlarged. This is the digital counterpart to the series located at Woodruff Reference NX650 .M9 L48. |