Laudator Temporis Acti

H.I. Marrou, A History of Education in Antiquity, tr. George Lamb (1956; rpt. New York: The New American Library, 1964), pp. 224-225:

As something essentially classical, Hellenistic civilization was the opposite of those revolutionary, innovating cultures that are propelled forward by a great creative drive. It rested essentially upon the peaceful possession of an already acquired capital. It is a mistake to say, as is often said by its detractors, that it "was born with its head back to front," looking back to the past. It is not autumnal, tormented with nostalgic regrets for a vanished spring. On the contrary, it looks upon itself as firmly established in an unchanging present, in the full blaze of a hot summer sun. It knows what mighty reserves it possesses, what past masters it has. The fact that these appeared at a certain moment of time, under the influence of certain historical forces, is unimportant; what matters is that they exist and can be re-discovered in the same way, again and again, by each successive generation, can be recognized and admired and imitated. A classical culture can be defined as a unified collection of great masterpieces existing as the recognized basis of its scale of values.