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2001 Ancient / Classical History Features
12/30/01 - Augustus
Octavian, the son of Julius Caesar's niece, became the first princeps of Rome. Adrian Dorrington reports on the life, significant contributions, and evaluation by modern historians of this man whom we call Augustus.
12/28/01 - Review - "Disease"
Disease, written by Joyce Flier, a Special Assistant for Human Remains in the Department of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum, amply fulfills its goal to be an introductory text on the health of Egyptians and Nubians.
12/26/01 - Fall of Rome
The Romans had existed as an important power for over 1000 years. They had brought stability, prosperity, and order to the civilised West, but they only had 500,000 soldiers to defend a frontier that required 3 million or more to be secured. Guest feature by Adrian Dorrington.
12/23/01 - Review - "Imperial Exits"
Julius Cicatrix' tiny "Imperial Exits" features many emperors and, in some chapters, more than one. Selection appears to be based on how well an emperor's end can be turned into a humorous caricature.
12/16/01 - Review - "Ramses: The Son of Light"
Review of Christian Jacq's Ramses: The Son of Light, the first volume of his fictional biography of the pharaoh of Egypt, Ramses.
12/09/01 - Buildings of Artificial Stone
Guest writer Judith Geary explains how the Romans constructed lasting edifices by adding a special ingredient to their cement.
12/02/01 - Review - "Two for the Lions"
Marcus Didius Falco works for Vespasian as a tax agent, but winds up solving murders at gladiatorial schools and his own family's personal problems.
11/26/01 - Review - "Silver Pigs"
Lindsey Davis' first novel features Falco, an informer in Flavian Rome, and his future wife, Helena.
11/19/01 - Republican Roman Construction
Guest writer Judith Geary explains what happened to ancient Roman buildings, the "masses of crumbling stone blocks, like a giant´s building blocks, their featureless faces mysteriously pockmarked."
11/12/01 - Top Five Scullard Roman History Books
Howard Hayes Scullard (1903-1983) was a professor of ancient history at King's College, London. He edited the Oxford Classical Dictionary and Atlas of the Classical World, as well as writing several standard reference works on Roman history and Roman Britain.
11/05/01 - Top Five Worst Roman Emperors
Many emperors had unusual sexual appetites and more were guilty of murder, but somehow these five stand out as too bizarre or excessive -- today.
10/29/01 - Before You Buy Ancient History Books
Your Guide hasn't had much luck recommending ancient history books to friends deeply rooted in the present, but if you're already interested in ancient history, and don't know where to go, read these suggestions and try a sample chapter.
10/09/01 - Latin Textbook Picks
A look at six textbooks you might want to buy to teach yourself, your kids or your students Latin.
09/18/01 - Outlines for History Papers
For some, writing the research paper isn't the hard part, it's coming up with a plausible outline. Here are some tips for overcoming outline obstacles.
09/11/01 - The Twelve Tablets
As one of the concessions made by patricians to the demands of the plebians, a group of ten was appointed to codify the laws of the Romans. The next year a second group was appointed. Together, the two groups of ten created the twelve tablets.
09/04/01 - Review - "Cleopatra of Egypt: From History to Myth"
Eleven essays on the changing images of Cleopatra and a catalogue of artifacts, from an international exhibit on Cleopatra and her world, leave many unanswered questions.
08/28/01 - Review - Karen Essex' "Kleopatra"
According to Karen Essex, when Cleopatra died Octavian destroyed favorable histories of the pharaoh. This fictional biography looks at what the remarkable woman might have been like -- more intelligent and less femme fatale.
08/21/01 - Asclepius - Healing God
The son of Apollo healed mankind and defied Zeus by bringing mortals back from death. For this he was killed, but his children kept up the healing tradition.
08/14/01 - The Eras of Roman History
The four periods of Roman History, Regnal, Republican, Imperial and Byzantine, correspond with changes in the central government.
08/07/01 - Chaos Emperors
Between the Severans and Diocletian was a half century of military anarchy and imperial crises.
08/01/01 - 101 Roman Terms to Know
101 terms and names from ancient Roman history with which you should be familiar.
07/24/01 - Last Best Chance Against the Goths
Because of personal ambition, Praetorian Prefect Rufinus prevented Stilicho from destroying Alaric and the Goths when they had a chance.
07/17/01 - The Sons of Nubel and the Gildonic War
If the sons of Nubel hadn't been so eager to do away with one another, Africa might have become independent of Rome.
07/10/01 - Review - Saylor's "House of the Vestals"
An entertaining collection of nine mystery short stories which incidentally explain how characters like Eco, Belbo and Lucius Claudius came into Gordianus the Finder's life.
06/26/01 -
Theodosius I
Theodosius put an end to the heresies at Constantinople and was the last emperor effectively to control both East and West.
06/19/01 - Valens and The Battle of Adrianople
The Battle of Adrianople in the Eastern Roman Empire in A.D. 378, was one of the crucial events leading to the ultimate Fall of the Roman Empire.
06/12/01Ovid's "Metamorphoses"' Tiresias
Tiresias lost his sight and gained his prophetic skills at the same time -- when he used his transgendering experiences to settle an argument between Jupiter and Juno.
06/05/01 - Seneca - Healthy Mind, Healthy Body
According to Pierre Cagniart, Seneca refers to a variety of sports in his philosophical writing because they were familiar to his audience and because he thought exercise was good, as long as it wasn't an end in itself.
05/22/01 - Aristophanes and Old Comedy
Ancient playwrights of tragedy and comedy competed at the great annual
religious and fertility festivals in honor of Dionysus. Eleven Old Comedies
performed at these events survive -- all written by Aristophanes.
05/15/01 - House of Thebes
Cadmus' line, the House of Thebes, was cursed not only by the gods but by the incestuous king Oedipus who set his two sons at each other's throats.
05/08/01 - Cadmus
Cadmus, founder of Thebes, was not a Greek by birth, but a Phoenician who brought the alphabet to Boeotia where he started the Theban royal family, which included Oedipus, Antigone, Dionysus, Semele and Pentheus.
05/01/01 - Elagabalus
Elagabalus was an attractive, hormonally charged teen with absolute power,
the high priest of an exotic god and a Roman emperor from Syria who imposed
his eastern customs on Rome.
04/21/01 - Spartacus
Like a pied piper Spartacus led his ever-increasing band of slaves across the Roman countryside fighting Roman troops when necessary. In the end, Rome with three armies prevailed.
04/17/01 - Artemis
Whether it's childbirth or a timely death, Artemis can make the transition as smooth and comfortable as possible, but if she's crossed, there's no predicting what her revenge will be.
04/10/01 - Megalesia
The Roman festival and birthday celebration for the Phrygian Great Mother goddess included Roman toga-clad dramatic performances.
04/03/01 - Hercules' 12 Labors - The Sources
The twelve labors we associate with Hercules and Eurystheus may have been only nine, at one time, and Hercules may not have been performed them to atone for the crime of murdering his children. He may have done them to become a god.
03/27/01 -
Hercules Twelve labors
From the day they first saw the light, Hera pitted Hercules and Eurystheus (the king who tried to send the hero on twelve suicide missions) against one another.
03/25/01 -
Oscar Night Feature
The movies with a classical or ancient historical theme that have been nominated for an Oscar since 1929.
03/20/01 - Two Jewish New Years
The Jewish calendar is not unique in having a spring new year, nor is it unique in having another secular new year in the fall, but the way the lunar and solar calendars are combined to accomodate these events is unusual.
03/13/01 - Review - "The Venus Throw"
Steven Saylor's mystery about the murder of an Alexandrian philosopher, featuring the infamous widow Lesbia, her brother Clodius, Catullus, the poet who wrote about them, Crassus, Cicero, Caelius, and Gordianus the Finder.
03/06/01 - Geometry Etymologies
The etymology of numbers and other terms to help you in your study of geometry.
02/27/01 -
Fasti of March
The ancient Roman calendar began in March, but besides New Year's festivities lasting most of the month, they had celebrations reminiscent of Easter and Lent.
02/20/01 - Review - "Ancient Greek Love Magic"
Christopher A. Faraone, looking at what we term "magical" practices of the ancient Greeks, finds answers to some of the society's riddles in Ancient Greek Love Magic.
02/13/01 - Hellenistic Epigrams
Anyte was one of the first to apply the form of the poetic epigram beyond epitaphs and dedicatory inscriptions.
02/06/01 - Love Magic
Christopher Faraone explains the different approaches men and women would take to wooing the objects of their desire. While torturing an effigy might seem violent, it was sometimes the gentler approach that actually proved lethal.
02/01/01 - St. Patrick
Born in Britain, the patron saint of Ireland first lived in the Emerald Isle as a slave. A vision led Patrick to freedom and another led him back again to convert the heathen.
01/22/01 - Review - "Nefertiti"
Joyce A. Tyldesley explains, but doesn't solve the mysteries of the beautiful queen married to the so-called monotheistic pharaoh Akhenaten.
01/18/01 - Hanno
Hanno of Carthage traveled down the west coast of Africa to the land of gorillas in about 500 B.C.
01/09/01 - You Said It
The forum is a wonderful resource because its contributors have such a wide range of knowledge. Read some of the questions posed and topics discussed in the year A.D. 2000.
01/02/01 - Solon's Reforms
The Athenian leader Solon reformed a class system and instituted reforms that led to the beginning of democracy.
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