Ursus

I will definitely buy the book on Augustus when it becomes available.

I'm going to pin this topic, assuming our blanagramist will remain an active member of the forum and maintain her interest in this fun endeavor.

The only thing I know of the subject is that I have the dubious distinction of having the infamous Roman nose grace my face. I would like to think it lends me some patrician dignity.

Like Pertinax I suffered from childhood Asthma and hayfever. Aside from that and having my tonsils removed, I can't think of anything. My mother, had she been born a peasant, most likely would have died in childbirth as her frame was almost too small to deliver a large baby.

Praetorian prefect of the late empire. Or something suitably high in the civil service. Power and dignitas without the danger of actually being at the top of the pyramid.

I usually don't go for fiction, but PP's review carries weight with me. How is the writing style? How does it compare to, say, McCullough?

We are allowed to dress up at work. If I could find a cheap Roman themed costume, I would wear one. A purple striped Senatorial toga from the imperial era would be nice.

Not too far from DC is a group that every summer holds "Roman Days" for a weekend. http://www.larp.com/legioxx/romandays/index.htm

This weekend I'll do some research to see if anything Roman themed is happening on the East coast in summer 2007.

Does it have to be a big city? I'd be happy meeting at a Roman reenactment in some quaint suburb.

Thanks for the frank review, Pertinax, et al. I shall hence speedily dismiss my interest in this affair.

It would be during the late spring or early summer. No final date is fixed, which is a topic of discussion in its own right. And I suppose Pennsylvania lends itself to boredom, which is why so many of its citizens turn to the net for amusement.

While our dedicated UK membership (and various associated Europeans) makes plan for a meeting in 2007 under Legatus Pertinax, the time has come for American members to do the same. Unfortunately we have a far larger territory to include than our comrades on their cozy Island home. There has been some talk of this already on the Patrician forum. Those out West feel Las Vegas is a natural meeting point. Those in the East might see New York as a gathering place. I personally feel that to keep travel down, rather than have one meeting point for the entire country, it should be broken down into several regional meet-ups. Of course I may be overruled at this assessment, which is fine. But I can tell you the likelihood of this Pennsylvanian flying to Vegas is remote. There is also the question of exactly what scene wants to have as a backdrop to a meet. New York has museums, Las Vegas has night life. I myself would be happy at a gathering of local Roman reenactors, with an informal gathering at a pub afterwards. The purpose of this thread is simply to get the very basics down of what the American membership wants. Afterwards, more focused discussion can ensue. I feel the main questions right now are: 1) One meeting place for the country, or several for regional meet ups? 2) What exactly does one want to do? 3) What exactly is the level of interest in the first place?

Peter Heather seems to think the Roman Empire was doing just fine until those pesky barbarian super-tribes invaded. He does present some convincing arguments that the internal rot of the Western empire is a bit overplayed. If the reinvigorated Persian Empire is considered a regional superpower in its own right, and the Germanic supertribes created indirectly by Hunnish invasions are considered a regional superpower in their own right, perhaps it's simply a fact the Late Empire was caught between two regional superpowers, something it had no experience in fighting nor the resources to counter? After the floodgate broke the richer and more defensible East was simply the only part of Rome that could survive. I'm trying to think if Rome ever had to fight a war simultaneously with two regional superpowers at once before the late Empire. For instance, Carthage would be considered a regional superpower but its barbarian and Hellenistic allies could barely be considered as superpowers themselves. The conclusion I am drawing is that the Late Empire simply had too many powerful enemies to fight at once.

When is Holland's book on Augustus scheduled to be released?

I have ordered _Diocletian and the Roman Recovery_ which was recommended to me by someone (Publius, I think?) and which received good ratings on Amazon. I have not actually read it though, it is taking forever to ship!

Excellent review. I have just begin the work myself. Thus far I have no special praise or criticism. I do, however, think it is a lucid and interesting enough summary of events to recommend to someone with no prior background on the subject. As Cato said in another thread it is quite long and detailed ....

Possibly, Augusta, but it's all good. Maybe someday someone who has knowledge in the area will start a discussion now that you have expressed an interest.

There were times this past week and weekend when my servor informed me it could not find UNRV. It didn't last more than a few minutes. But these occasions when it happens have been more than infrequent lately. I think it all depends on when you check in. If you check in during a peak time and have a slow connection like I do it times you out.

The review will be up in about 2 weeks if you want to check back. _Aurelian and the Third Century_ by Alaric watson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iconostasis It's basically the distinguishing visual feature of the interior of an Orthodox church. Remember the icon controversy in the Byzantine Empire? Sorry, Honorius, I have no useful information.

If you don't mind, I changed the subtitle of your post. When homosexual is shortened to "homo" it usually carries a pejorative connotation. While this isn't a Gay Awareness forum, I personally don't see the need for such things.

Very lucid piece, Cato. I do hope in the future you can cast aside the ongoing Caesar polemics on the discussion fora to provide us with some more reviews such as this. :-)

The subjects will be administered various tests designed to measure stamina and flexibility. To receive statistically significant scores the same tests shall be administered repeatedly. As this kind of data gathering is a rather grueling afffair, I shall be noble and volunteer to do the dirty work.

I sometimes strongly disagree with him, but Charles Krauthammer is spot on today.