Edith Hamilton (1867–1963) was born in Dresden, Germany, to American parents and relocated to Indiana shortly after. She was an educator at the Bryn Mawr School, Baltimore, Maryland, and began her writing career at the age of sixty-two with the release of her debut novel, The Greek Way (1930). Her other works include, The Roman Way (1932), The Prophets of Israel (1936), Three Greek Plays (1937) and her magnum opus, Mythology (1942). She received honorary degrees from the University of Rochester, University of Pennsylvania and Yale University. She was also elected to the American Institute of Arts and the American Academy of Letters. She was awarded the Golden Cross of the Order of Benefaction, which is Greece’s highest honour, and was also given the status of an honorary citizen of Athens in 1957.