2003 Ancient / Classical History Features
11/01/03 - Review - Ovid, by David Wishart
Ovid is a light-hearted historical mystery in the same vein as the Lindsey Davis Falco series. The time period and class of Wishart's sleuth are different (Falco lives in Flavian Rome and has just worked his way into the Equestrian class, while Corvinus is a patrician in the age of Tiberius), but the characters of Corvinus and Falco are similarly appealing.
10/29/03 - Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D., by Robert F. Pennell
In this 1890 book, Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D., Robert F. Pennell presents what he hopes will be "a short and clear statement of the rise and fall of Rome, with a biography of her chief men, and an outline of her institutions, manners, and religion." Even if you prefer your historians more modern, you may enjoy the lengthy section on Specimen Examination Papers from Harvard.
10/22/03 - Titanomachy
When immortals fight, the battle can last forever, but ten years seems to be the proper time span for a classical Greek war, so at the end of ten years, the war between the Titans and the Olympians ended. This war was called the Titanomachy. Chris Camfield tells what else we know about it.
10/22/03 - Myth vs. Legend
When you read a story about ancient heroes with gods in it, how can you tell whether it's a legend of a myth? Bingley tackles this question and the related issues of distinguishing myth from folk and fairy tale.
10/22/03 - Cimon
The Athenian general Cimon was probably a cousin of the historian Thucydides. Cimon helped bring the Greeks to victory at the Battle of Salamis in the Persian Wars. Guest article by Bingley.
10/22/03 - The Goddess of Justice
A look at the Greek and Roman goddesses who make up our Ladies Justice and Liberty.
10/22/03 - Review - "White Murder"
"White Murder," by David Wishart, is a Marcus Corvinus Imperial Roman historical mystery about the murder of a leading horse racer. Corvinus == who should be called Corvinus the lush == is like an aristocratic Falco (from Lindsey Davis' series) who despises his current emperor, Tiberius (the wart).
10/22/03 - Lysander
Bingley explains how this Spartan general helped bring an end to the Peloponnesian War.
10/19/03 - The Heroes, or Greek Fairy Tales for My Children, by Charles Kingsley
Charles Kingsley's retelling of the greek stories of the Argonauts, Theseus and Perseus.
10/19/03 - Boethius
Profile of the Christian philosopher Boethius.
10/15/03 - Publius Quinctilius Varus and the Battle in the Teutoburg Forest
Find out about one of the biggest military disasters in Roman history.
10/15/03 - King Pyrrhus of Epirus
Have you ever heard of a Pyrrhic victory? Although King Pyrrhus of Epirus won a victory against the Romans at Asculum, it was said at the time "One more victory against the Romans and we will be ruined." Still, Hannibal counted him one of the greatest generals of all time. Find out more about him in this guest article.
10/15/03 - Philopoemen
Philopoemen (253-184 B.C.) was a Greek general and leader of the Achaian (Achaean) League. Guest article by Bingley.
10/15/03 - Cato the Elder
M. Porcius Cato (Cato the Elder or Cato the Censor) was a 2nd Century B.C. Roman politician, general, and writer noted for his austere way of life and rigid principles. Guest article by Bingley.
10/15/03 - Etymology - English Words with Latin Prefixes
Formation of English words from Latin prepositions.
10/15/03 - Review - "The World of Odysseus"
Review of the 2002 revision of M.I. Finley's classic "The World of Odysseus," originally published in 1954.
10/15/03 - Medea by Euripides
The context of Medea's actions in the Euripides tragedy Medea.
10/15/03 - Review - "Slayer of Gods"
"Slayer of Gods," by Lynda S. Robinson, is an excellent, polished mystery about the poisoning of the beautiful Queen Nefertiti. Sixth in the series, it is set in the time of the boy-king Tutankhamen.
10/09/03 - Thomas Bulfinch
Profile of the nineteenth century American storyteller Thomas Bulfinch.
10/09/03 - Prometheus
Profile of the Titan Prometheus.
10/09/03 - Zeus
Profile of Zeus, the king of the Greek Gods.
10/09/03 - Dionysus
Profile of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and ecstasy.
10/09/03 - Hades
Profile of Hades, the Greek god of the Underworld.
10/09/03 - Demeter
Profile of the Greek goddess Demeter.
10/09/03 - Hephaestus
Profile of Hephaestus, the blacksmith god.
10/09/03 - Pan
Profile of Pan, the Greek god with goat's feet and horns.
10/08/03 - Review - "Words and Ideas"
"Words and Ideas," by William J. Dominik, combines word building and etymology with Greco-Roman culture. It even explains the oddities of spelling conventions and why a name like Aeschylus is also spelled Aischylos.
10/08/03 - Roman Military Diet
In an article from 1971, R.W. Davies looks at archaeological, literary, and epigraphical evidence of the diet of the Roman soldier. He concludes that the assumption that Roman soldiers usually avoided meat is wrong.
10/06/03 - Aphrodite
Profile of the Greek goddess Aphrodite.
10/06/03 - Athena
Profile of the Greek goddess Athena.
10/06/03 - Artemis
Profile of the Greek goddess Artemis.
10/02/03 - Apollo
Profile of the Greek god Apollo.
10/03/03 - Callimachus
Callimachus was the greatest Hellenistic era poet.
10/03/03 - Mimnermus
Mimnermus was remembered as a love poet.
10/03/03 - Tyrtaeus
Tyrtaeus was a Spartan who wrote elegies.
10/03/03 - Callinus
Callinus of Ephesus was one of the first ancient Greek elegiac poets.
10/02/03 - Early Greek Poets Timeline
After the blind bard Homer recited his epic stories about the Trojan War, other songwriters developed new styles that affected the way they performed and their choice of musical instrument. Not exactly rock concerts, but poetry readings were a lot livelier in the days when a performance involved song and dance and, perhaps, a drinking party. Here's an introductory look at the early Greek poetic styles and the chronology of the major poets.
10/02/03 - Ares - Mates
List of the mates and offspring of Ares.
10/02/03 - Ares
Profile of the Greek god Ares.
10/01/03 - Theognis
Profile of the Greek poet Theognis.
10/01/03 - Semonides of Amorgas
Profile of the Greek poet Semonides of Amorgas.
10/01/03 - Philemon and Baucis
Jupiter was about to wipe out mankind because people seemed so completely evil and worthless to him, when he heard about a virtuous old couple named Philemon and Baucis.
10/01/03 - Aristides
Aristides was known as "The Just." The most familiar Aristides anecdote is about an illiterate farmer who asked Aristides to write down a name on an ostraka. Aristides agreed and wrote the name the farmer asked == Aristides. The farmer's grievance? He was sick and tired of hearing Aristides called "the just." Guest article by Bingley.
09/24/03 - Semele
The story of the pregnancy, death, and resurrection of Semele, the mother of the Greek god Dionysus, from the perspective of Nemesis.
09/17/03 - Caesar Declines a Triumph
In 60 B.C., Caesar was entitled to a lavish triumphal procession through the streets of Rome. Even Caesar's enemy Cato agreed that Caesar's victory in Spain was worthy of the highest military honor. But Caesar decided against it.
09/15/03 - Lucullus
Lost among the reams of information about the period of Spartacus, the Mithridatic Wars, and the first triumvirate, is the Roman general Lucullus. Lucullus defeated the king of Pontus at the Battle of Granicus, helped the Asians by introducing measures to lower extortionist interest rates, and imported the cherry tree to Italy. Publius Clodius undermined his efforts in Asia, so he returned to Italy where he lived a life of Lucullan luxury. Biography by Bingley.
09/16/03 - Nicias of Athens
Nicias was an Athenian of the fifth century B.C. Getting credit for a victory in war wasn't important enough for this general to let two soldiers lie unburied. Later, during the Peloponnesian War, Nicias was captured by the enemy and executed. Guest biography by Bingley.
09/10/03 - Marcellus
It was a singular honor for the Romans to win the "spolia opima," the armor and weaponry of a slain enemy leader. Only three Roman leaders won this honor. Marcellus, the last, won the armor of King Britomartus of the Insubrian Gauls. Marcellus was also in charge of the seige of Syracuse at which the engineer Archimedes was killed. Guest article by Bingley.
09/03/03 - Pelopidas
At the Battle of Leuctra, the Spartan army of 10,000 foot soldiers and 1000 cavalry was defeated by a much smaller army, the Theban forces, consisting of the Sacred Band, an elite squadron of 300 lover-soldiers led by Pelopidas. Guest article by Bingley.
08/27/03 - Review - "A.D. 62: Pompeii"
In Rebecca East's historical fiction time travel story, the heroine lands in Pompeii right before a devastating earthquake, but several years before the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. She is able to use her modern knowledge of events in history to work her way up the ancient social ladder.
08/20/03 - Review - "Confessions of a Deathmaiden"
Ruth Francisco combines the ancient traditions of human sacrifice and ritualized cannibalism in a mystery about the descendants of the ancient Maya. Smuggled archaeological artifacts posing as containers for marijuana put the police off the scent of an organ harvesting organization.
08/13/03 - Guest Review - "The Tribune"
Irene Hahn reviews "The Tribune," historical fiction about the early Church, by Patrick Larkin.
08/06/03 - Learning About Teaching History
Some ideas from the Internet on how to engage your homeschooled or classroom-taught students' attention when you want them to learn about ancient history.
07/30/03 - Review - "The Jupiter Myth"
The fourteenth Lindsey Davis mystery featuring informer Marcus Didius Falco. In this episode, Falco and family are still in Britain where they run into an organized crime operation.
07/23/03 - Guest Review - "Cleopatra's Heir"
Irene Hahn reviews "Cleopatra's Heir," historical fiction about Caesarion, by Gillian Bradshaw.
07/16/03 - Review - "Cicero," by Anthony Everitt
Anthony Everitt deftly weaves Roman hoodlums, generals, and moralists of the first century B.C. into his story of the life and tragedy of Marcus Tullius Cicero.
06/12/03 - "The Good Life"
A Guest Submission by a philosophy class taught by Michael Bakaoukas of the University of Piraeus. The primary focus is on Socrates' moral philosophy and its effects on both Plato and Aristotle.
06/05/03 - Genealogy of Achilles
The family tree of the great Greek hero Achilles features Zeus (repeatedly) and Pelops, the mortal whose shoulder the goddess Demeter ate.
05/29/03 - Hades
The three main stories featuring Hades == with Heracles, Persephone, and Theseus.
05/22/03 - Punic Wars POWs
Did the Phoenicians and Romans really crucify captured enemy generals?
05/22/03 - Julius Caesar TNT Miniseries
What may be in store for us in the DeAngelis Group's production of the made-for-TV miniseries about Julius Caesar. Cast includes Richard Harris and Christopher Walken.
05/15/03 - The Roman Circus and the Circus Maximus
The first arena in which racetracks were held in ancient Rome was built by a king. The games ended more than a millennium later.
05/08/03 - Ancient Women Warriors
Ancient queens and other women who led their people into battle: Amazons, Queen Artemisia, Queen Boudicca, Queen Samsi, Queen Tomyris, Trung Sisters, Queen Zenobia.
04/28/03 - Ludi Florales
The ancient licentious games in honor of the Roman goddess of flowers.
04/24/03 - Early Mesopotamian Religion
From individual magic to organized group religion greatly in need of a priest.
04/21/03 - Helen of Troy Basics
Some basic background information on Helen of Troy to help with the television miniseries on Helen of Troy.
04/17/03 - Roman Emperors Age at Accession
Is youthfulness a good and sufficient explanation for the horrendous behavior of certain Roman emperors?
04/03/03 - Ancient Love Goddesses
Ancient love goddesses were not just divine figureheads women appealed to to make men fall in love with them, but deities about whom some of the most fascinating stories were written.
03/26/03 - Curia - Roman Senate House
First built by the third king of Rome, Tullius Hostilius, the Roman senate house was known as the curia.
03/19/03 - Ancient Artifacts and the Iraq War
Gulf Wars make inevitable widespread destruction of artifacts from the cradle of civilization.
03/13/03 - Hygiene in Ancient Rome
When trying to explain to children, students, readers, or friends what life was once like, nothing gets to the heart of the matter more poignantly than intimate details about daily life.
03/08/03 - The Colosseum or Flavian Amphitheater
The emperors of Rome created and maintained the Colosseum to provide the people with the spectacle of mock sea battles, wild beast fights, and the combat of gladiators.
02/27/03 - After the Peloponnesian War - The Thirty Tyrants
When Athens surrendered at the end of the Peloponnesian War, democracy was replaced by the oligarchic rule of the Thirty Tyrants.
02/13/03 - Guest Review - "The October Horse"
Irene Hahn reviews "The October Horse," the last volume of Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series.
02/01/03 - Egypt Term A Day
Basic information about Ancient Egypt provided a term at a time, with 28 Egyptian terms for African History month == the month of February.
01/29/03 - The Story of the Trojan War
Summary of the sequence of the major events of the Trojan War.
01/15/03 - Review - "Troy - A Novel"
Young adult fiction about life inside the walls of Troy during the Trojan War, from the perspective of a girl who tends the wounded and another who communes with the gods and goddesses.
01/01/03 - The Persian Wars
Notes on the individuals and groups of people involved chronologically in the Persian Wars, with links to supplemental pages on this site.
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