Ancient Rome

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• SOURCE: Smithsonian
  1/10/2023
  

  The Roman Empress Who Willed Herself to Power Amid Chaos

  Galla Placidia was the only member of the imperial family who remained in Rome in 410 AD when the Visigoths approached the city. Her role in what happened next has been misrepresented or ignored by historians for centuries. 

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• 7/3/2022
  

  What Americans Might Learn About Political Collapse from the Classical Greeks and Romans

  by Daniel Noah Moses

  The right traces political turmoil in the US to the supposed abandonment of the classical canon. But reading those works might not teach the lessons they want about hierarchy, authority, and political collapse. 

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• SOURCE: Daily Beast
  6/20/2020
  

  Erasing History? Um, History is Full of Torn-Down Monuments

  According to historian Sarah Bond, the practice goes all the way back to the ancient world.

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• SOURCE: Newsweek
  6/8/2020
  

  Complete Roman City Mapped Using Advanced Ground-Penetrating Radar Technology

  The technology used in this project could "revolutionize" archaeological studies of ancient urban sites.

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• SOURCE: The Conversation
  2/13/19
  

  Immigration: How ancient Rome dealt with the Barbarians at the gate

  by Cavan W. Concannon

  Roman border security was historically effective, not because of massive barriers, but because they knew how to manage the flow of migration.

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• SOURCE: Discovery News
  1-26-14
  

  Ancient Roman Infanticide Didn't Spare Either Sex

  A new look at a cache of baby bones discovered in Britain is altering assumptions about why ancient Romans committed infanticide.

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• SOURCE: Wall Street Journal
  12-3-13
  

  How Ancient Romans Created Social Media

  by Tom Standage

  And there was no better social media manager back in the day than Marcus Tullius Cicero.

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• SOURCE: Scientific American
  12-4-13
  

  "Secret" Labyrinth of Tunnels under Rome Mapped

  To predict and prevent the collapse of streets in Rome, geoscientists mapped high-risk areas of the quarry system.

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• SOURCE: The Guardian
  11-12-13
  

  Archaeologists uncover secrets of Portus, once gateway to Rome

  University of Southampton team finds evidence explaining why opulent Roman empire port was dismantled in 6th century.

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• SOURCE: Phys.org
  10-29-13
  

  Hi-tech aqueduct explorers map Rome's 'final frontier'

  These urban explorers are mapping Rome's subterranean secrets.

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• SOURCE: The Guardian
  10-29-13
  

  Roman eagle found by archaeologists in City of London

  The 1,800-year-old sculpture of the imperial symbol is regarded as one of the best pieces of Romano-British art ever found.

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• SOURCE: National Public Radio
  10-26-13
  

  Fish sauce: An ancient Roman condiment rises again

  That Southeast Asian classic actually has a history in Europe.

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• SOURCE: Los Angeles
  10-27-13
  

  Social Media: It's So First Century BC

  by Tom Standage

  Cicero would have had a Twitter account.

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• SOURCE: Egypt Independent
  9-11-13
  

  Roman-era tombs found in Alexandria

  Cisterns, pottery remains, and a headstone were recovered from the old Roman city.

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• SOURCE: The Telegraph
  8-27-13
  

  Discovering Hadrian's buried treasures

  Spelunkers are increasingly finding ancient Roman artifacts in Italian caves.

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• SOURCE: The Guardian
  8-22-13
  

  Italian archaeologists have grape expectations of their ancient wine

  Archeologists in Italy have set about making red wine exactly as the ancient Romans did, to see what it tastes like.

• SOURCE: NYT
  8-20-13
  

  Rome’s start to architectural hubris

  Granted that Rome was not built in a day, the unresolved question among scholars has been just how long did it take. How early, before Julius Caesar came, saw and conquered, did Romans begin adopting a monumental architecture reflecting the grandeur of their ambitions?Most historians agree that early Rome had nothing to compare to the sublime temples of Greece and was not a particularly splendid city, like Alexandria in Egypt.Any definitive insight into the formative stages of Roman architectural hubris lies irretrievable beneath layers of the city’s repeated renovations through the time of caesars, popes and the Renaissance. The most imposing ruin of the early Roman imperial period is the Colosseum, erected in the first century A.D.

• SOURCE: The Local
  8-9-13
  

  2,000-year-old Roman ship found off Genoa

  The discovery was made by police divers off the coast of Porto Maurizio, Liguria, Il Secolo XIX reported.At least 50 Roman vases were found in the ship, 50 metres below sea level, which remains completely intact.“This is an exceptional discovery,” Lieutenant Colonel Francesco Schilardi told the newspaper.“Now it’s a matter of protecting the ship and keeping the grave...

• SOURCE: Huffington Post
  8-2-13
  

  Nixon slams "All in the Family," ancient Roman rulers for being gay in White House tape

  An audio recording of former U.S. President Richard Nixon spouting off an anti-gay rant has surfaced.CNN published an excerpt from the tape, which was apparently recorded sometime during Nixon's time in the Oval Office from 1969-1974. In the clip, Nixon accuses the popular TV series "All in the Family" (which he initially mistakes for a movie) of "glorifying homosexuality,""The point that I make is that...I do not think that you glorify, on public television, homosexuality," Nixon proclaims. And the president doesn't stop there -- claiming that homosexuality "destroyed the Greeks," he notes, "Aristotle was a homo, we all know that. So was Socrates ... Homosexuality, immorality in general...these are the enemies of strong societies."...

• SOURCE: NYT
  8-1-13
  

  Road through Roman history creates colossal headache

  ROME — Via dei Fori Imperiali, a multilane artery running through the heart of Rome, is typically a frenzy of swerving Vespas, zipping Smart cars and honking Fiat taxis.But Mayor Ignazio Marino is seeking to transform the avenue to something calmer, where Gucci loafers and sensible sneakers would rule.Mr. Marino’s plan to ban private traffic on the roadway, which bisects a vast archaeological site, from the central Piazza Venezia to the Colosseum, has prompted grousing and histrionic debate over a project that conservators say would solidify the world’s largest urban archaeological area.This being Rome, the first high-impact initiative of his seven-week-old administration, which goes into effect on Saturday, has provoked its share of unfavorable comparisons with the overweening ambitions of emperors past. “The mayor’s job is not to pass into history, but to work for his citizens,” said Luciano Canfora, a professor of classics at the University of Bari. “We already had Nero, that’s more than enough.”...