“Good afternoon Joe. I would like you to meet Doctor Hadley. He is the chair of the Classics Department at the university.”
Doctor Hadley stood up, reaching out his hand to shake Joe’s hand. “Simone tells me that you are one of this region’s best winemakers. You can call me Rick.”
As Joe shook Rick’s hand, he could not help noting that the letters “LOVE” were tattooed across the tops of his fingers. Glancing at his other hand, he could see the words “HATE” in the same position on the other hand.
Rick’s eyes brightened. “Simone told me about the grape leaf symbol with the eye from your cousin’s drawing. That is an obscure image from ancient Greek alchemy. The information you have is very exciting.”
Simone chimed in. “Rick’s doctoral dissertation was on the epigraphy of classical Mediterranean region languages. He is one of the few people I know who is fluent in the ancient dialects of the Adriatic.”
“What Simone describes sounds like notes on alchemical recipes. What is also intriguing are the different languages and dialects that seem to be represented.”
Continued ...
