Roman History Books and More

online book chats

This blog is an adjunct to The Roman History Reading Group which meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month except August in our chat room from 9:30 to 11:00 p.m. US EDT (UTC/GMT -04).  This means that in Asia and Australia/Pacific, it's daytime. Here is a world time clock as a general assistance for non-USAns.

Please note the time change effective March 10.

Chat room location (with instructions) at Google Talk.

2013 Reading Schedule

June 5 & 19
Fire in the East (Warrior of Rome, Book 1)
by Harry Sidebottom
(also as eBook)

July 3 & 17
Cast Not the Day: A Novel of Love and Tyranny
by Paul Waters

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Proceeds from any book sales benefit our local historical society, a non-profit corporation. Change of links from Amazon.com to B&N are in the process of being made.

... and another book chat baby

Carson Skelly, age 7 weeks (typo corrected!)

sarahpothecary.com

sarahpothecary.com

Major project: Sarah Pothecary’s current project is the translation into English of Strabo’s Geography, originally written in Greek in the first quarter of the first century CE. The work is extremely long and complex, containing approximately a third of a million words. Yet it has much to offer, both to modern readers whose main interests lie in the contemporary world and those whose focus is on antiquity.

Of special interest: Peer-reviewed books and journal articles

book chat baby ...

Ada Grace O'Connor, born September 12, 2010

wednesday's read: the roman way by edith hamilton

Time has gotten way from me!  And the library was closed Saturday for the holiday weekend, so I didn't get the book until today and am furiously reading now.

The Roman Way by Edith Hamilton.  Edith Hamilton (1867–1963) didn't start writing until the age of 62!  "The Greek Way" was her first book (1930).  "The Roman Way" was published in 1932.

Edith Hamilton on Wikpedia (as usual handle with care).

[The Roman Way] is in no sense a history of Rome, but an attempt to show what the Romans were as they appear in their great authors, to set forth the combination of qualities they themselves prove are peculiarly Roman, distinguishing them from the rest of Antiquity.  A people's literature is the great text-book for real knowledge of them … The force Rome had to mould her people is evident on every page of her literature.

So Hamilton writes in her Preface.  This promises to be an excellent discussion.  From Plautus to Juvenal.  No Apuleius?

   

Hamilton circa 1897, Dresden. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

a history of the romans in germany as told in stamps

Mainly for German speakers … but you might enjoy the stamps anyway.

Die Römer auf Deutschen Briefmarken

Images are here:

• Stadtjubiläen I
• Stadtjubiläen II
• Andere Städte
• Ereignisse
• Bauwerke
• Fundstücke
• Alltagskultur
• Kulturerbe
• Und sonst
• Was fehlt

Hat tip: Lindsay Powell

video: rome reborn, an inside view

A video by Paladin Media about IATH's Rome Reborn project, premiered at Siggraph 2008. Provides technical and background information on the project, images of the model, and interviews with Director Bernard Frischer.  Lots of related videos are listed on YouTube. (see also Rome 2.0)

Hat tip Mary Harrsch.

Enjoy!

pliny the younger, his life and letters

In our next book chat on October 21 we are going to discuss the Letters of Pliny the Younger (Plinius Secundus).  There are more translations in print, and the letters  also available online:

• Letters of Pliny the Younger at About.com
• Letters of Pliny the Younger at VRoma (Latin and English)

Jona Lendering at livius.org has an extensive (in 6 parts) biography of Pliny the Younger.  It's an all you want to know about ... and more essay.

For my next post on Plinius Secundus, I may explore JSTOR.

But there is also a beer called Pliny the Younger … maybe we should lift a cup in his honor …

timelines of art history, metropolitan museum roman republic and roman empire

An e-mail from the MetMuseum today led me to its Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, and the subsections Roman Republic and Roman Empire.  Both pages have related timelines and links to Thematic Essays.

They are interactive in many ways, as the Fresco wall painting from the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale shows.

Fresco wall painting in a cubiculum (bedroom) from the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
ca. 40–30 b.c., Late Republican Roman, Pilaster

Image courtesy www.metmuseum.org, click on it for interactive page.

did you know that …

… Julius Caesar tweets?

Julius_Caesar checks in daily on Twitter.

• Name Gaius Julius Caesar
• Location Rome
• Bio Descendent of Venus, conqueror of all Gaul, dictator for life

'blogging pompeii'

First we had Ostia antica, now there is:

Blogging Pompeii
A blog for all those who work on Pompeii and the other archaeological sites ofthe Bay of Naples. Here we share news and information about Pompeii and the other sites, and we discuss current research.

There is also a related Facebook page Blogging Pompeii.

roman mystery series for children: 'the roman mysteries' (caroline lawrence)

WELCOME  TO THE WORLD OF FLAVIA GEMINA

 THE YEAR IS AD 79.

THE PLACE IS OSTIA, PORT OF ROME.

FROM HERE, FLAVIA GEMINA, DAUGHTER OF A ROMAN SEA CAPTAIN, EMBARKS ON THRILLING ADVENTURES WITH HER THREE FRIENDS JONATHAN, NUBIA AND LUPUS.

AS SHE AND HER FRIENDS ATTEMPT TO SOLVE THEIR FIRST CRIME, THE CLUES LEAD THEM AROUND OSTIA: TO THE HARBOUR, THE FORUM, THE LIGHTHOUSE AND THE TOMBS OF THE DEAD.

LATER MYSTERIES TAKE THEM TO POMPEII, ROME, GREECE, North AFRICA, Egypt, Turkey and finally back to Ostia and Rome.

   explore the website
   BBC Series

Caroline Lawrence's Roman Mysteries Blog

In 2009, Caroline Lawrence won the Classical Association Prize for her Roman Mysteries series.  The prize, which is worth £5000, is awarded annually for 'a significant contribution to the public understanding of Classics'.  The award was presented on Sunday 5th April 2009, at a ceremony held in Glasgow.

stuff you usually only find on jstor: 'the antiquary's shoebox'

The Antiquary's Shoebox
A Selection of Articles from Various Journals in the Fields of Classics and Archaeology

Courtesy Bill Thayer, who writes:  "The thumbnail I use to indicate this subsite is a colorized version of a drawing that seemed appropriate to me; I found it in Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, on p978, s.v. Pyxis."

Hat tip Adrian Murdoch

latin program: catiline

Vicky sent me this from the Latin Program at Ohio State University:

Catiline  ☞ In Catilinam I Pages

[...]  As this page is under construction, one should expect many changes and (I hope not too many) errors (from the typo to the howler).

'encyclopaedia romana'

Bill Thayer gently chided me in two comments of his that I mistook him for Jim Grout in posts of mine. 
So here are my apologies and Jim's website, which has the same host as Bill Thayer's:

ENCYCLOPÆDIA ROMANA
ROME. THE HOME OF EMPIRE AND ALL PERFECTION

Enjoy the site and the photos!

ostia antica

David Meadows tweeted Berlin-Kent Ostia Excavations, a nice blog, whence I got to this extensive and very active site:

Ostia, Harbour City of Ancient Rome (Ostia antica)

This website is dedicated to Ostia, the harbour city of ancient Rome.  Here you will find information for professional archaeologists and historians, for students of Roman archaeology and history, and for interested lay-people. The site is maintained by the Internet Group Ostia.

There are lots of things to explore, from the introduction with time line, history and maps to ancient texts, an amazing topographical dictionary, computer reconstructions, virtual museum, videos, Yahoo group, and more.

new map: the waters of the city of rome

 Very neat once one has figured out navigation.  (thanks to N.S. Gill)

Aquae Urbis Romae

Aquae Urbis Romae is an interactive cartographic history of the relationships between hydrological and hydraulic systems and their impact on the urban development of Rome, Italy. Our study begins in 753 BC and will ultimately extend to the present day. Aquae Urbis Romae examines the intersections between natural hydrological elements such as springs, rain, streams, marshes, and the Tiber River, and constructed hydraulic elements such as aqueducts, fountains, sewers, bridges, conduits, etc., that together create the water infrastructure system of Rome.

topographia: rome reborn – update (more)

Update 2:  Mary Beard:  What's the matter with Google Earth's Ancient Rome?

2008 Update 1:  It's been upgraded and is now Rome Reborn 2.o  / Gallery.  It can also be viewed on Google Earth 4.3, but I personally find this complicated.  (courtesy N.S. Gill)

---

In my recent review of Ancient Rome on Five Denarii a Day by Philip Matyszak I referred to its illustrations by Altair 4 Multi-Media Roma. That leads to a timely reminder of the new project at the Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia, officially rolled out on June 11:

Rome Reborn 1.0

This initial site version (4th century A.D.) is only the beginning of an undertaking that will span the time from the Bronze Age (c. 1000 B.C.) to A.D. 552.  However, what is there so far, is well worth exploring in depth.  Also, under Resources, there are recommended sites on Roman Topography, from Piranesi to Platner’s Topographical Dictionary (best seen at LacusCurtius’  TOPOGRAPHIA URBIS ROMÆ) to current versions.

Related Smithsonian Magazine Article, July 2007

please welcome our new guest author, heloise

We have a new guest author, Heloise, who kindly has agreed to replace our friend Bingley.

She will soon start blogging and sharing images and videos from her recent trip to Hadrian's Wall.

Welcome, Heloise!

annotated justinian code online

Courtesy Adrian Murdoch:

Annotated Justinian code at the University of Wyoming. (by Fred H. Blume, edited by Timothy Kearley). Mostly as PDF files, except the Novellae Constitutiones or Novels which are scanned images.

Introduction