The Plague of Cyprian was a terrible event, no question. How terrible is uncertain. But it seems to me that one cannot understand the middle years of the Roman Empire without discussing the Plague of Cyprian and its consequences. It probably killed two Roman Emperors. Yet, chances are good you’ve never heard of it. Lucky […]
Category: Ancient Greece & Rome
Circe Book Review – Is Madeline Miller’s Story Fantastic or a Flop?
This Circe book review describes the Madeline Miller book that appeared in 2020. It is Miller’s retelling of the story of Circe, a Titan witch who appears in a couple of the classics of Greek mythology. We remember Circe best, probably, for the enchantments she places on Odysseus’s men in the Odyssey. So, the first […]
Hanging Gardens of Babylon – Was This Fantastic Wonder Real?
I’ve saved the Hanging Gardens of Babylon for last in my description of the ancient world’s wonders. I have several reasons for doing so. First, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon are anomalous in several ways when compared to the other six wonders I’ve featured on my blog. They are the only wonder located outside the […]
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus – A New Kind of Ancient Tomb?
It’s a little smaller than the pyramids at Giza, granted. But, as far as ancient tombs go, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus takes a back seat to no other monument. In fact, one might even concede that the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus brought its occupant more fame than any pyramid. It is, after all, Mausolus’s name that […]
The Temple of Artemis – Greatest Enigma of the Seven Wonders?
When he visited the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Antipater of Sidon described it as follows. He wrote: “I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the colossus of the Sun, and the […]
The Lighthouse of Alexandria – More Costly Than the Parthenon?
“It can be seen for more than seventy miles, and is of great antiquity. It is most strongly built in all directions and competes with the skies in height. Description of it falls short, the eyes fail to comprehend it, and words are inadequate, so vast is the spectacle.” Thus wrote the Muslim pilgrim Ibn […]