Word Origins
It's the nickname of a $10 bill, because the Roman numeral X on it looked like a sawhorse
sawbuck
These costume accessories that covered the actors' heads had open mouths & attached hair
Masks
In Arthur Bliss' 1949 opera, the gods of this Greek mountain have been reduced to strolling players
Mt Olympus
As you might expect, this bird is a symbol of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom
Ostia stood at the mouth of this river, about 15 miles from Rome
Tiber
The name of this breed of dog comes from the Low German for "puddle dog"
poodle
Around 420 B.C. Euripides wrote a play about one of these one-eyed giants
cyclops
Charles II's mistress May Davies starred in John Blow's opera about this goddess "and Adonis"
Venus
This single-horned creature has the legs of a deer & the tail of a lion
unicorn
This founder of The Academy was ill at the time of Socrates' execution & was not present
Plato
This term for the poisonous secretion of a snake comes from Latin for "poison"
venom
It's believed that this group consisted of 12 speakers until Sophocles added 3 more to the line
chorus
The title of Offenbach's opera "La Belle Helene" refers to her
Helen of Troy
Legend says that people condemned by their churches are likely to become these creatures, like Lestat
vampires
This city on the Euphrates became important during the reign of its Amorite King Hammurabi
Babylon
Grade of black tea whose name comes from Chinese meaning "white dawn"
pekoe
The "Oresteia" is a trilogy of plays about this man, Agamemnon's son
Orestes
Ramen was renowned for his 1737 opera about Castor & this brother
Pollux
It's the most magnificent hall in Asgard, & it's roofed with battle shields
Valhalla
Roman emperor Claudius wrote a history, now lost, of this pre-Roman people of Central Italy
Etruscans
The name of this dense-pile fabric comes from the Latin villus, meaning "shaggy hair"
velvet
This master of old comedy wrote many plays, but "The Birds" is one of only 11 that have survived
Aristophanes
The 3 Norns foresee that the Norse gods are doomed in this opera that ends the Ring Cyle
Gotterdammerung
This last king of Troy was originally named Podarces, which means "the swift-footed"
Priam
This city was the capital of Egypt's Old Kingdom & later, the seat of the Persian governors
Memphis