On Tuesday 11 March, His Excellency the Hellenic Ambassador to the UK, Mr Konstantinos Bikas, came to Cranleigh school to speak about ‘The Relevance of Ancient Greek Civilisation to the modern world.’
An audience made up of all year groups, members of staff and parents heard him talk through a
huge variety of topics, from epic to astronomy, from music to mathematics, from comedy to architecture. Mr Bikas showed us what the Ancient Greeks were thinking, creating and observing, and how this has a direct influence on the world around us today.
Starting from the Cranleigh motto, Ex Cultu Robur, he demonstrated through his own personal enthusiasm just how important culture is to one’s life, as well as to our societies. His passion was indeed most clear perhaps when he sang part of an ancient Greek song, the first piece of music to have survived and been decifered. When answering questions at the end of his talk, it became abundantly clear to all that he holds all disciplines in equally high regard and was therefore not able to pick ‘the best’: everything has tremendous value. His holistic approach to the topic reminded us that humanities and sciences are intertwined and to understand either, you must learn to appreciate both.
We are intensely grateful that he took the time to come to us and speak about something in which he believes so greatly. It was certainly a unique opportunity and one that will be remembered.
Athina Mitropoulos
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