Viggen

Ancient scrolls buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in Italy in AD 79 spent some time in a Richland hospital room on Wednesday. Edward Iuliano helped to bring the scrolls to town. The director of MRI and radiology at Kadlec Medicl Center watched a TV documentary years ago about efforts to read the ancient scrolls and the story stuck with him. The papyrus scrolls were discovered more than 200 years ago in a villa in what was the Roman town of Herculaneum. The town was buried along with the more famous city of Pompeii when Vesuvius erupted. The scrolls make up the only surviving library from antiquity, Iuliano said. Scholars have been able to unfold and read some of them, but others are like charcoal bricks.... full article at Tri City Herald

Macedonian archaeologists say they have discovered a well-preserved statue of the goddess of love in the ruins of an ancient Roman city near Skopje. Archaeologist Marina Oncevska said Thursday that the 5.6-foot-tall marble Venus is a masterpiece of ancient art executed in the late classical Greek tradition. It dates to the second or third century... ...full article (including pictures) at MSNBC

A secretive encounter with a Bedouin in a desert valley led to the discovery of two fragments from a nearly 2,000-year-old parchment scroll - the first such finding in decades, an Israeli archaeologist said today. The finding has given rise to hope that the Judean Desert may yield more treasures, said Professor Chanan Eshel, an archaeologist from Tel Aviv's Bar Ilan University. Archaeologist and Bible scholar Steven Pfann said he had not seen the fragments. If authenticated, they would "in general not be doing more than confirming the character of the material that we have from the southern part of the Judean wilderness up until today." But "what's interesting and exciting is that this is a new discovery," Pfann added. "This is the first time we've seen anything from the south since the 1960s." full article at NZHerald

The Roman wall that Hadrian didn

he Italian government declared a state of emergency at the Pompeii archaeological site on Friday to try to rescue one of the world's most important cultural treasures from decades of neglect. A cabinet statement said it would appoint a special commissioner for Pompeii, the ancient Roman city buried by an eruption of the Vesuvius volcano in AD 79 and now a UNESCO World Heritage site."To call the situation intolerable doesn't go far enough," said Culture Minister Sandro Bondi, who took office in Silvio Berlusconi's new conservative government in May. Archaeologists and art historians have long complained about the poor upkeep of Pompeii, dogged by lack of investment, mismanagement, litter and looting. Bogus tour guides, illegal parking attendants and stray dogs also plague visitors. full article at Yahoo News

Pat Southern feels "no apologies need be made for any amount of books on the Roman army." I personally have not read many books on said topic, mostly due to disinterest, and on the few occasions I have tried I have usually been disappointed. A book that would convey a broad spectrum of information on the Roman army in an accessible format would thus do me a great favor. Fortunately, Southern need not apologize for her own entry in this overcrowded market. Her lucid writing poses a considerable amount of data in a friendly fashion. Never has the Roman army looked so inviting... ...read the full review of The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History by Patricia Southern

One of Britain's very first shopping centres has been unearthed - a high street that was fashionable 1,800 years ago when togas were still in vogue. A row of narrow shop buildings uncovered by archaeologists shows that the Romans in Britain had their very own well-heeled fashionistas. The shop buildings used by the stylish Romans in ancient Britain were uncovered by archaeologists in fields at Monmouthshire, South Wales. The site, now occupied only by the rural village of Caerwent near Newport, was formerly Venta Silurum - one of 15 major towns in Britain at the time. full article at the Daily Mail

A Valparaiso University professor

Now that i got my message out that i will no longer accept the mediocre financial state of mine, i would like to share the how i will do it! First things first! One needs a goal, without a goal nothing will work, let a couple of people run in a circle without a goal or purpose, they will eventually loose interest and stop - draw a line (finish) and everything changes! The moment there is a goal, one can plan! So that was my first piece of work, having a goal. At first i was thinking of 1.000.000 million euro, but soon realized that this was not really something my little mind could grasp. I needed something more visual. So i redefined my goal. I would start treating myself as a company, Viggen Inc. if you like, and my goal is to make it a successfull company. So in order to run a company one needs a budget, so i started one, for the first time, and it was not a pretty picture. I spend way too much money on stuff that is not making Viggen Inc. productive or successful. I could locate several areas were i was spending money without thought. Crap; Basically every evening when i got home late from work, i past by the petrol station that is just a few meters away from my home, and bought sandwiches, snacks, cool drinks, etc... EVERY DAY! I cut those expenses completely, i havent been to the petrol station in over a month! Car; I go to work now with my bicycle, with the bike i only need 5 minutes to work, so please dont ask me why i havent done it before, i dont know... at work; evey day i went to a restaurant in our mall, and every day i was drinking a cool drink with it, most of the time a coffee afterwards, i cut this completely, drive with the bike home and eat at home other stuff; I do the washing, the ironing, the cleaning, myself, i bought a hair clipper to do my hairs myself (guess thats an advantage for men), no more hairdressers, i buy food once a week with a list, i visit my mother every sunday now (she really cookes good, and she is very happy to see me, she always complained i visit her not enough, low and behold the 5 miles she lives away i go by bike and not with the car, even more saving, so the sunday gets me a free meal, good karma with mum and some exercise)... ...as you can see i am not a cheap talker on this issue, i mean it! I do not accept money that could work for me wasted on stuff that gives me short time pleasures at best! ...more to follow your "soon to be" very wealthy viggen

@Ursus indeed! @Nephele hmm, na rather not, i dont want to gamble, if capricious Felicitas really wants me to win in the lottery, she will make me find a winning ticket on the street! @docoflove indeed i will, and i will share all the wisdom i gathered on the way... @Kosmo how true is that, thanks everyone for your comments

Below are the newest releases for July... The Soteriology of Leo the Great Reading Catullus (Greece and Rome Live) Navies of Rome The Life of Saint Augustine Classical Olbia and the Scythian World Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy Roman Historiography Later Roman Empire Today Roman Military Diplomas Augustus: Caesar's Web - Power And Propaganda In Augustan Rome Also, the bestselling page for June has been updated and the clear winner is an old favourite.

The "stylish" lives of the affluent have been unearthed at one of the "best preserved" Roman towns in Britain by a TV archaeology team. A bath house, villa and artefacts including a penknife were found at Caerwent, Monmouthshire by Channel 4's Time Team. What are believed to be shop buildings on a Roman high street were also found during the dig by a team of 50. Presented by Tony Robinson, the episode will be broadcast early next year. full article at the BBC

Antony and Cleopatra: the worlds greatest pair of historic lovers, an evil temptress and a love-struck drunkard doomed to defeat. Or so we think. Our sources on these individuals were written in the wake of their defeat at the hands of an implacable enemy. Shakespeares famous play then ennobled the tale into a literary romance that resonated throughout Western literature. Patricia Southern tries to cut through these centuries of hype and alleged slander by offering, in her view, a more impartial assessment of the Late Republics most infamous lovers... ...read the full review of Antony and Cleopatra by Patricia Southern

I am tired of not beeing filthy rich, honestly i am... I finally realized that if i continuing doing what i do, i will end up with what i already had when i was in my late teens, just enough to make ends meet... I will put an end to this, I wont take no for an answer, i repeat I wont take this szenario of my life as a given fact, because it is not, I will change, Today! You may ask why i want to be filthy rich, and if that is actually a desirable thing to stride for, (apart from the question, what i understand under filthy rich) My reasons why i am going to be filthy rich! (in no particular order) . because i want to read and write on Unrv.com any time of the day . because i want my money to work; while i sleep, while i am cruising the caribbean, while i fly to the moon, where ever i am, whatever i do, i don`t want to work, my money should do that... . because i want one day, pick up the phone, fly first class to London, watching whatever sensational band is playing in the Royal Albert Hall, just because i have the time and the means to do it... . because when i am filthy rich, i can support people in need, which i can`t right now . because it feels right! I changed over night, completely, at work people stare at me, i became over night a freak - and it feels great, because every day is one step closer to my filthy richness... I figured it out, only a few things were missing in my current life, just the small tiny things that is common sense, it is actually so stupidly easy that i wonder what i was thinking the last 30something years... The things i have discovered, that are common sense, but i never did! .make myself to the center of the universe .think big .have a plan .earn more, spend less .give before you receive .surround myself with successfull people .invest any penny wisely .have disziplin sincerely your "soon to be filthy rich" Viggen

In the epic "Odyssey," one of the cornerstones of Western literature, the legendary Greek hero Odysseus returns to his queen Penelope after enduring 10 years of sailing the wine dark sea. Now scientists have pinned down his return to April 16, 1178 B.C., close to noon local time, according to astronomical references in the epic poem that seem to pinpoint the total eclipse of the sun on the day that Odysseus supposedly returned on. The possible solar eclipse comes up in the 20th book of the "Odyssey," as the suitors begin their final lunch. At this point, the goddess of war Athena "confounds their minds," making the suitors laugh uncontrollably and see their food spattered with blood. The seer Theoclymenus then foresees the death of the suitors, ending by saying, "The sun has been obliterated from the sky, and an unlucky darkness invades the world." full article at Live Science

TxSt astronomers come to bury long-accepted date, not to praise it. Julius Caesar landed an invasion fleet on the shores of Britain in 55 B.C., expanding the boundaries of the so-called

It's 150 years since Darwin made one of the the most significant breakthroughs in scientific history - the theory of natural selection. But if it hadn't been for a young ornithologist on the other side of the world, his seminal work might never have appeared. Robin McKie tells the extraordinary story behind The Origin of Species... full article at the Guardian

The discovery of an ancient city buried beneath the sands of modern-day Syria has provided evidence for a Hellenistic settlement that existed for more than six centuries extending into the time of the Roman Empire. The site provides a unique insight into the structures of a pre-Roman Hellenistic settlement. The project, funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, sheds new light on city life in the Hellenistic period... ...full article at FWF

One can approach poetry in two ways. A scholarly and objective treatment would analyze poetry in terms of its form, style and social relevance. I cannot claim to be a scholar, nor can I even claim poetry as a forte. I prefer instead to taste poetry - to sample its enticing, delectable sumptuousness. I offer here a purely subjective review of one author's own subjective treatment of the great Roman poets. What interests me is not so much genre and form, but the fashioning of a witty phrase. What intrigues me is perhaps not so much the historical and literary context, but the at times raw lasciviousness conveyed. Therefore if you want to know more about Roman poetry as Roman poetry, I cannot really help you, nor will I claim to do so. But what I will do is share with you an overview of an author's translation of several works. If you find them, as I did, to be on the whole inviting and entertaining, then consider yourself quite free to explore the topic further by consulting relevant sources, scholarly or otherwise... ...read the full review of Roman Poetry by Dorothea Wender

Two wine presses found in Egypt were likely part of the area's earliest winery, producing holy wine for export to Christians abroad, archaeologists say. Egyptian archaeologists discovered the two presses with large crosses carved across them near St. Catherine's Monastery, a sixth-century A.D. complex near Mount Sinai on the Sinai Peninsula. Several gold coins picturing the Roman Emperor Valens, who ruled from A.D. 364 to 378, were also found near the presses. The wine presses could date to the same period, archaeologists say. full article at National Geographic

Alex Salmond dropped a cultural bombshell yesterday when he claimed that the Stone of Destiny, one of Scotland's most famous relics, was a medieval fake. Scottish, English and British monarchs have been crowned on the ancient coronation stone since the ninth century. It spent 700 years under the chair in Westminster Abbey after it was seized in 1296 by King Edward I, and was finally returned to Scotland 12 years ago. It has since been viewed at Edinburgh Castle by tens of thousands of people, and is regarded as a symbol of Scottish independence. According to legend, Jacob used the ancient stone as a pillow when he dreamt of a ladder to heaven. But Scotland's First Minister is convinced that it may be no more than a worthless lump of Perthshire sandstone. He believes it was passed off as the real coronation stone when Edward stormed Scone Abbey in 1296. Mr Salmond said: "If you're the abbot of Scone and the strongest and most ruthless king in Christendom is charging toward you in 1296 to steal Scotland's most sacred object and probably put you and half of your cohorts to death, do you do nothing and wait until he arrives or do you hide yourself and the stone somewhere convenient in the Perthshire hillside? I think the second myself." ...full article at the Telegraph

oh well, we didnt make it, but we have a very very young team, and many say this Euro came 2 years too early, now that half of the team got contract with foreign leagues, things will hopefully improve (especially scoring !!!). I might say we didnt play a bad tournament for the Nr. 92 of the world... and the atmosphere in the country was just awesome, i am very proud of us austrians that we manage to co-host such a big event with style and friendliness! cheers viggen

Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus was born around that fateful year of 69 CE. It was then that the Julio-Claudian dynasty finally collapsed without a direct heir. Senatorial commanders of provincial armies took to the battlefields to decide the issue of succession. Suetonius' own father, a military tribune, had fought at the battle of Betriacum in the Year of the Four Emperors. When it was all over, the Flavian dynasty stood victorious as the new masters of Rome, and the empire of the Caesars crawled out from under its cradle into a maturing adolescence. Perhaps it was for personal reasons - a sense of having one's own fate entwined with larger events - that Suetonius decided to write a history of the empire and the personalities who presided over its birth. Whatever his motivations, Suetonius became the leading witness for Rome's early empire. ...read the full review of Twelve Caesar's by Suetonius

jesus christ, after 30 minutes into the austria/poland game i thought we going to win with 5 goals, lol, yeah right then the polish scored out of nowhere and a brutal clear offside goal it was, after that nothing was working anymore on our site, and then as i though oh well thats it, we get in the 93rd minute a penalty, thanks Ivo Vastic, the oldest player in theis tournament (38 years), ultra cool as always, thanks, now we have a true final last round, were all 4 teams can still advance! cheers (exhausted) viggen