I’d always been baffled by the German phrase “Eule nach Athen tragen”.  Its English equivalent, “Carrying Coals to Newcastle” is self-explanatory, given the mining traditions of that hard-bitten northern English town.  But owls to Athens? 

 As it happens, the Greek capital did have a large owl population in its day, even meriting a reference by local author Aristophanes in his play “The Birds”.  However, the popular expression is more likely to refer to the owls printed on the coins in circulation in the wealthy Greek capital.  As such, they stood for a surfeit, an abundance – with the expression coming to mean that adding to the existing stock would be an exercise in futility.

As the EU and the European Central Bank rally round to bail out the modern Greek state, it’s clear that a lot has changed since those halcyon days of Hellenic prosperity.  Although the Greeks are in trouble now, they’re unlikely to be the last nation in Europe in need of assistance.  Others are likely to join them before this year is out. Continue Reading