Studies of the ancient Mediterranean are increasingly popular. Once a privilege of the élite, whose schools prepared predominantly male students for tertiary study of Greek and Latin, Classics now has a much wider audience. This is partly the result of scholars such as Mary Beard (recently the recipient of a damehood) who have made inroads into popularising ancient Greece and Rome. While general interest is on the rise, study of the languages has stagnated in most Western countries, and translations have largely replaced reading works in the original language. This means that, more than ever, translators need to be attentive to the nuances of a Greek or Latin text, and to capture the essence and tone of the literature, while providing accuracy at the same time.