Archaeologists have found something unexpected inside a 1,600-year-old Roman-era Egyptian mummy: a fragment of Homer’s Iliad. It wasn’t placed beside the body, but inside the mummy’s abdomen. But the real surprise isn’t just where the fragment was found. It’s how it got there. To understand, we must go back – to the Iliad itself, and to what it became in the Roman world.

In The Iliad, a poem shaped in the 8th century BC and attributed to Homer, the Trojan war does not end in triumph or renewal. It ends in devastation. The poem closes at the edge of collapse, with Troy reduced to a landscape of heroic ruin. And yet, this is not where the story ends.

According to later Roman tradition, one Trojan escaped. Aeneas – son of Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite – fled the burning city carrying his father on his shoulders and the household gods in his hands. He moved west, across the Mediterranean, towards Italy, where he became the ancestor of Rome.

This continuation did not come from the Iliad itself. It was shaped centuries later, most famously in Virgil’s Aeneid. But it changed the meaning of the Trojan war entirely. The past, in other words, was actively reorganised – through stories that could be reworked, extended and connected across time and space.

Turning defeat into origin

For Roman audiences, the Trojan war was more than a distant Greek legend. It became a way of thinking about origins, identity and power.

Claiming descent from Troy was more than a matter of tracing a lineage. It required constant cultural work – through storytelling, education and shared knowledge. The Iliad provided the raw material: characters, events and genealogies that could be reshaped and redeployed across generations.

Across the Roman Empire, educated elites learned Homer as part of their schooling. They quoted him in speeches, analysed him in classrooms and used him to signal cultural authority. To know the Iliad was to speak a language that others across the empire understood.

A senator in Rome, a teacher in Asia Minor or a student in Egypt could all draw on the same stories. The poem created a shared frame of reference – one that allowed very different people to situate themselves within a common past.

In the Roman imperial period, the site of ancient Troy – located in modern-day Turkey – became a destination. Emperors invested in its development, tying it directly to Rome’s claimed Trojan origins. Under Emperor Augustus, Troy was folded into the political language of empire. And under Emperor Hadrian, it became part of a wider culture of travel, memory and heritage.

A visitor to Troy in the 2nd century AD would have arrived at a curated landscape. There were baths, places to stay and spaces for performance. A small theatre – the Odeion – was built directly into the ancient citadel, so that the remains of the bronze age city, understood as the setting of the legendary battles around Troy, formed a dramatic backdrop.

Visitors could walk through what was presented as the setting of Homeric epic, experiencing the Trojan war as something anchored in the ground beneath their feet.

From Troy to Egypt

Across the Roman Empire, the Iliad circulated as a living text: copied, taught and read. Egypt, one of Rome’s most important provinces, was no exception. Yet here, Homer circulated within a cultural landscape that differed in important ways from the Greek literary world in which the poem had first taken shape.

For Roman observers, Egypt often appeared as a place where antiquity was materially preserved as well as remembered – through temples, monuments and practices that emphasised continuity with the past. At the same time, it was a deeply hybrid society, where Egyptian, Greek and Roman traditions interacted in complex ways.

Homer was among the most widely copied authors in Roman Egypt – read and taught as a marker of education and cultural belonging and deeply embedded in everyday literary culture.

The Homeric version of the Trojan War was particularly prominent among the Greek-speaking elite, especially in urban centres such as Oxyrhynchus, where the mummy was found. Other versions of the story – which placed greater emphasis on Paris and Helen’s stay in Egypt, as reported by Herodotus based on accounts from Egyptian priests – were probably more widespread among the broader Egyptian population.

The initial media coverage of the discovery of the fragment inside the Egyptian mummy suggested the text was deliberately chosen to accompany the deceased. As a personally meaningful object, perhaps reflecting their education or cultural identity.

The most telling explanation, however, may be the most straightforward. Discarded or damaged papyri could be reused as inexpensive material. The fragment may therefore have functioned as stuffing – bundled together and inserted into the body cavity without particular regard for its literary content.

The very fact that a scrap of the Iliad could end up as disposable filling, however, speaks to how deeply Homer had penetrated everyday life in Roman Egypt.

A text in motion

To make sense of the past in the Roman world meant moving between story and monument, between genealogy and deep time. Each perspective made the others more intelligible.

The Iliad helped create a world in which different pasts could be connected, compared and reshaped. By linking stories, places and traditions across the Mediterranean, the Roman world turned the past into a flexible resource – one that could generate identity, authority and belonging in shifting contexts.

This is why the Iliad mattered: it circulated across many different settings. It shaped elite education, but it was also part of everyday reading culture. At Troy, it helped transform the city into a place of cultural memory. The text itself also had a long material afterlife, surviving not only as an authoritative story, but through manuscripts and writing materials that were copied, passed on – or even reused for entirely different purposes.

Its most enduring insight is therefore this: the past is not something simply preserved, but something continuously made and remade – through the stories, practices and materials that carry it across time.

This article features references to books that have been included for editorial reasons, and may contain links to bookshop.org. If you click on one of the links and go on to buy something, The Conversation UK may earn a commission.

President Donald Trump has commissioned the renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool as part of his initiative to make Washington DC ‘safe and beautiful’ ahead of the nation’s 250th birthday this summer. As part of that, contractors began work last week to paint the pool blue.

The historic pool, stretching 2,030ft (620m) between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, has long been plagued by leaks, structural deterioration, faulty pipes, algae growth and bird droppings.

Trump has said his project to restore and paint the monument would solve the leaking problem and make the pool more beautiful than ever. But it is unclear whether the repairs can specifically fix the underlying structural issues at the attraction, which was built in 1922.

The BBC spoke tourists and locals near the pool, who were conflicted on the renovation.

Video by Meiying Wu, produced with Madeline Gerber

Blood cancer survivor Dan is now cancer-free after being diagnosed aged 28, sharing how one surprise symptom which wasn’t lumps or weight loss was his key warning sign

A cancer survivor diagnosed with the condition at 28 has revealed how his primary symptom wasn’t one commonly linked to the condition. Dan, who has nearly 14,000 followers on TikTok where he posts as daninprogresss, frequently shares details about his diagnosis, treatment and recovery journey.

Having been declared cancer-free more than a year ago, he now dedicates himself to supporting others through their physical and mental rehabilitation. In a recent video, he discussed the principal symptom that prompted him to seek medical assistance, reports the Mirror.

“If I had to pick the biggest sign that I had cancer at 28, it wouldn’t be what most people think,” he said. “My name’s Dan, I got diagnosed with blood cancer at the age of 28 and I went into hospital for chemo and a transplant. Now I’m rebuilding my life both mentally and physically and trying to help as many people do the same as I can.”

He continued: “Most people, when it comes to cancer, think about lumps or sudden weight loss. For me it was fatigue.

“But when I say fatigue I don’t mean being tired for work or being tired after going to the gym the previous day. I mean doing absolutely nothing and feeling like you just run a marathon.

“For me, I just remember being out shopping and out of nowhere just coming across really lightheaded and faint and I started to see [those], like, squiggly lines in your eyes. And I was like, I need to go home, I don’t feel great.

“So I got home and just remember literally collapsing and falling asleep for like six or seven hours, and then, when I woke up I felt even worse than when I went to sleep. I just knew something wasn’t right.

“It just felt like my body was shutting down. I’m not gonna life, I was very lucky that I listened to my body when I did because that was just the start.”

Common signs of cancer

Identifying the possible warning signs of cancer at the earliest opportunity is crucial to ensuring treatment proves effective, according to Cancer Research UK. While there are numerous different indicators, the charity highlights some of the most frequently occurring:

General signs

• Heavy night sweats or fever
• Feeling more tired than usual
• Unexplained bleeding or bruising
• Unexplained pain or aches
• Unexplained weight loss
• An unusual lump or swelling anywhere on the body

Symptoms affecting the mouth, throat, or voice

• Croaky voice, hoarseness, or a cough that won’t go away
• A mouth or tongue ulcer that lasts longer than three weeks
• Difficulty swallowing

Symptoms affecting breasts or the chest

• Changes to the size, shape, or feel of breasts or the chest area, including the nipple

Symptoms affecting breathing

• Breathlessness
• Persistent cough

Symptoms affecting the tummy

• Persistent bloating or stomach pain
• Loss of appetite
• Persistent heartburn or indigestion

Symptoms affecting going to the toilet and the genitals

• Problems peeing
• Bowel changes
• Blood in poo or pee

Unexplained vaginal bleeding

• Symptoms affecting the skin
• A new mole, or changes to an existing mole

Changes to the skin or nails

• Sores that don’t heal
• Yellowing of the skin or eyes

VAR: Let’s get a tighter angle on the goalkeeper please. Slow it down, frame by frame. For me, there is a foul. Potential foul with the arm. His hand is holding his arm down. That’s impactful for me. The left arm, there, is holding, across the body and head. He’s holding the left arm of Raya there, which impedes his ability to get to the ball properly. Doesn’t look that impactful from that angle.

The Welsh star, 74, is currently in hospital in Faro, Portugal and was placed into an induced coma to help her recover after an intestinal surgery.

On Monday, May 11, it was reported that Tyler had to be “resuscitated after going into cardiac arrest” when doctors tried to bring her out of the induced coma.

Portuguese daily Correio da Manha reported that the singer’s medical emergency was due to a burst appendix.

A close friend of Bonnie Tyler has told Good Morning Britain he’s praying she shows some sign of improvement in hospital today.

The 74 year old Welsh singer went into cardiac arrest when doctors in Portugal tried to bring her out of an induced coma following surgery for a burst… pic.twitter.com/NK9MWr2wIN

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) May 12, 2026

The singer will remain in an induced coma in an intensive care unit at Faro Hospital until doctors can control the “serious infection” caused by a perforated intestine, according to the paper.

Bonnie Tyler resuscitated after cardiac arrest

Tyler’s close friend Liberto Mealha gave an update on the singer while appearing on Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, May 12.

Sharing: “I could not see her because she is in intensive care and we are praying to get better news.

“The doctors are positive about the situation, but so far, it’s not that good.”

The singer’s friend previously said, “She started feeling unwell during a concert in London and went to a doctor for tests, but they didn’t detect anything there.

“She decided to travel to the Algarve, where she began to feel severe abdominal pain.

“Two days later, she went to a private hospital, which urgently transferred her to the hospital in Faro because her appendix had burst and she needed emergency surgery.”

A spokesman for the singer told fans last week: “Bonnie has been put into an induced coma by her doctors to aid her recovery.

“We know that you all wish her well and ask for privacy at this difficult time, please.

“We will issue a further statement when we are able to.”

Born Gaynor Hopkins, Tyler rose to international fame in the 1980s and is known for her distinctive husky voice.

Recommended Reading

Her other hits include It’s a Heartache and If You Were a Woman (And I Was a Man).

The Grammy-nominated artist is due to tour Europe later this year to celebrate 50 years since her breakthrough hit Lost in France, released in 1976.

Tyler is due to perform in Malta and Germany later this month, with additional shows planned across the UK, Austria, Hungary, Turkey, and Romania.

She was awarded an MBE in 2023 for services to music.

A group of North Carolina college graduates was stunned to learn that their commencement speaker was paying off their senior year student loans.

Anil Kochhar took the stage Friday during the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University’s commencement, when more than 170 students earned their bachelor’s degrees, and 26 received their master’s, according to Axios Raleigh. Kochhar’s father, Prakash Chand Kochhar, received his bachelor’s and master’s from the college in the Fifties.

“It is my privilege to announce today that, in honor of my father, my wife Marilyn and I are providing a graduation gift to cover all the final-year education loans incurred by Wilson College graduates during the 2025–26 academic year,” Kochhar said.

“Marilyn and I hope that all of you leave Reynolds Coliseum today not only with a degree but with greater freedom to pursue your goals, take risks and build the lives you’ve worked so hard to achieve,” he continued.

Students appeared stunned by the generosity, clapping and jumping up and down in a video captured of the moment and shared to Instagram.

David Hinks, the inaugural Prakash Chand Kochhar Dean at Wilson College of Textiles, said in a statement: “I could not be more grateful to Anil and Marilyn for this extraordinary investment in our newest Wilson for Life alumni.

“As the preeminent institution for textiles education, research and innovation, we are deeply committed to ensuring the Wilson College enables students from all walks of life to transform their own lives while graduating with zero or low debt. One of our primary goals is to make the Wilson College affordable for all, and Anil and Marilyn are helping us achieve it.”

In the Instagram comments, many praised Kochhar for his kind gift.

“Instant tears!! As a parent of a kid in Wilson, to see them looking for their parents, it tore me up,” one wrote, while a graduate from the college added: “Absolutely incredible. We are so blessed by this donation and its impact!!!”

“I can only imagine they were clapping but were in shock and not fully processing the generosity. That’s a huge gift!” a third wrote.

Two months before the commencement, the school announced that Kochhar and his wife were gifting three funds in honor of his father, who earned his bachelor’s degree in textile manufacturing.

The offerings, all named after Kochhar’s dad, included the Dean’s Chair Endowment, the Endowed Faculty fund and the Graduate Support Endowment.

Alan Peacock, who died last June at the age of 87, was posthumously awarded the Freedom of the Borough at a ceremony held at Middlesbrough Town Hall on Wednesday, May 6.

The honour recognises his achievements as a Middlesbrough FC and England footballer, as well as his tireless work raising awareness of dementia following his diagnosis in 2018.

Boro legend Alan Peacock who has been posthumously awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Middlesbrough (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

His daughter Diane Symington, grandson Harry, and great-grandson Luca received the award on his behalf.

Ms Symington said: “Dad was born and bred in Middlesbrough and he was so proud of his roots here, so this would have meant the world to him.

“It means such a lot to us as a family and is a wonderful recognition of his life and legacy.

Boro legend Alan Peacock who has been posthumously awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Middlesbrough (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

“He was such a passionate advocate for Middlesbrough and its people.

“I just wish he could have been here.”

Mr Peacock scored 140 goals for Middlesbrough and played for England at the 1962 World Cup.

Following his dementia diagnosis, he became an ambassador for the club and championed its Dementia Friendly approach, supporting those living with the condition through community engagement and awareness-raising.

Middlesbrough Council Chair Jack Banks, Mr Peacock’s daughter Diane Symington, great-grandson Luca and grandson Harry (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

He helped develop football-inspired memory resources and engaged with more than 1,000 people affected by dementia during his campaigning.

Dr Tosh Warwick, a local historian who nominated Peacock for the award, said: “Alan was a true local legend whose influence continued long after his playing career came to an end.

“In raising awareness of the challenges and opportunities presented by living with dementia, he had a profound impact not just locally but regionally and nationally.

Mr Peacock’s family were presented with a certificate marking the conferment of the Freedom of the Borough, and his name is added to the Roll of Honorary Freemen (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

“That’s an amazing contribution to the life of our town, and one that fully merits this prestigious accolade.”

Mr Cooke said: “Alan Peacock was enormously proud of his home town, and that feeling was reciprocated.

“His ability as a footballer is well known and he had a long and illustrious career.

Mr Peacock’s family were presented with a certificate marking the conferment of the Freedom of the Borough, and his name is added to the Roll of Honorary Freemen (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

“But his work after his playing days was no less important, and this work and its far-reaching impact would not have been possible without Alan’s time, dedication and inspiration.”

In tribute to Mr Peacock’s legacy, close friend Alan Geddes established the Alan Peacock Memory Walk to raise funds for the MFC Foundation and Dementia Action Teesside.

The next walk will take place on Sunday, September 27.

Middlesbrough Councillors and civic dignitaries gathered in the Courtroom at Middlesbrough Town Hall to confer the Freedom of the Borough on Middlesbrough Foodball Club legend and dementia awareness campaigner Alan Peacock (Image: Middlesbrough Council)

Director Eugene Yi has always been interested in the term Asian American and Pacific Islander and which ethnicities it includes.

“When we’re talking about Asian Americans or Asian people in the U.S., oftentimes it’s people who might look like you and me, and maybe not people who look like (New York City Mayor) Zohran Mamdani,” Yi told The Associated Press. “Why is that when this term is supposed to be so capacious and so inclusive?”

So Yi, who is Korean American, was beyond excited when approached to helm a new HBO documentary dedicated to AAPI identity and community.

Timed for release during AAPI Heritage Month, “The A List: 15 Stories from Asian and Pacific Diasporas” drops Wednesday on HBO Max. It’s the latest in “The List Series” created by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. The franchise has previously produced documentaries on prominent Black, Latino and LGBTQ+ Americans.

In the documentary, Yi captures no-frills, intimate interviews conducted by journalist Jada Yuan with 15 people of AAPI heritage across industries. They include TV broadcaster Connie Chung, Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth and “Basement Bhangra” creator DJ Rekha. Actors Sandra Oh, Kumail Nanjiani and Bowen Yang — who are sometimes more associated with comical roles — also shared their thoughts about identity and belonging.

“When talking to people who are professionally funny, oftentimes they’re really comfortable not being funny,” in unscripted conversation, Yi said. “I appreciated that chance to get a little bit deeper into some of their stories.”

Stars say talking about growing up AAPI on camera was cathartic

Yia Vang, chef and owner of Vinai, a popular Hmong restaurant in Minneapolis, filmed his “A List” interview three years ago. Since then he’s been featured in various cooking and lifestyle shows. Vang, who was born in a Thai refugee camp until his family settled in Wisconsin when he was 4, likened the experience of being interviewed on camera to a confessional.

Vang tearfully recounts to viewers how his desire to not be “the weird kid” drove him to throw out school lunches of sticky rice and fermented vegetables packed by his mother. He did not expect to get emotional but the memory sparked a core life lesson.

“I will never, ever try to be ‘cool,’” Vang said. “That’s why I guess I get so intense about like how we do our food here. Not because I’m chasing perfection or some kind of award, but I just want to make sure I stay true to the integrity that they (my parents) laid before me.”

In what Vang calls “full-circle redemption,” those dishes he used to throw out are now on his restaurant’s menu.

Last month, Vang got a taste of reactions to the documentary back home at a Milwaukee Film Festival screening. He definitely was not seen as the weird guy.

“The audience really connected because I’m a Wisconsin boy,” Vang said. A few approached him just to say “It’s so awesome to see a Midwest kid in there.”

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders still struggle for visibility

Asian Americans make up one of the fastest growing U.S. populations. Still, adults in the U.S. have a harder time recognizing the influence of AAPI people than people from other racial groups, according to a new survey by The Asian American Foundation.

The annual Social Tracking of Asian Americans in the United States, or STAATUS, Index, done in partnership with NORC at the University of Chicago, found 4 in 10 U.S. adults cannot think of a single, famous Asian American; Jackie Chan, who is not American, was among the most frequently named. About half were unable to name examples of famous Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

“It’s an indication of just how for most of America — and our data shows this as well — people get most of their information about Asian Americans not so much from direct contacts, but from the media,” said Norman Chen, CEO of The Asian American Foundation.

Chen recently attended a screening of “The A List.” He applauded the breadth of personal stories Yi and his team curated. It’s a film he’s not sure would have gotten made a decade ago. So, it was gratifying to see how moved the audience was by stories recounted by celebrities and everyday people.

“Even people that we don’t know have such powerful stories to show you the depth and richness of our community and the struggles that we’ve had to go through in multiple generations,” Chen said.

Working on a film about identity as the political climate changed

When Yi and the crew started working on the documentary, Vice President Kamala Harris was running against Donald Trump for president. Now under a Republican Trump administration that vehemently opposes diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, Yi acknowledges how the documentary might come off as inherently political.

“What I’ve certainly seen during the stretch of time — just speaking for myself — is just how quickly things can backslide and how quickly people can be erased,” Yi said. “We literally have people being disappeared on the streets and we literally have histories being erased.”

He is especially gratified that some of the documentary’s older participants related to historical events such as a story told by activist Kathy Masaoka, whose mother was held in Japanese American incarceration camps. Yi hopes people recognize the struggles AAPI people have endured in the past and present while building community.

“We can really move forward from this moment in terms of rebuilding and reclaiming and taking up space with confidence and hope again,” Yi said.

The area was cordoned off this afternoon

Police have shared an update following a cordon being in place after reports of a “suspicious item” inside an address in Wisbech on Tuesday, May 12. Cambridgeshire Police confirmed that a precautionary 100m cordon was put in place around an address in Oil Mill Lane, Wisbech, earlier today.

People were advised to avoid the area around Aldi, Oil Mill Lane, and Old Market Street. A 33-year-old man has since been arrested on suspicion of possessing explosive items.

He remains in custody at King’s Lynn Police Investigation Centre. In a new update, police have confirmed that the suspicious item has been deemed not to be dangerous or explosive.

A spokesperson from Cambridgeshire Police said: “The suspicious item inside a property in Old Mill Lane has been examined and deemed not to be dangerous or explosive.

“The cordon has been scaled back to the property, and we thank residents for their patience. The man arrested remains in custody.”