Primus Pilus

Fixed the original link... I failed to actually include the link. Oops!

Either the ancient Greeks loved grape juice, or they were making wine nearly 6,500 years ago, according to a new study that describes what could be the world

I too enjoyed this episode much more. I can still do without all the sex and I still cringe every time I see Atia still breathing, but it is what it is. The entire Egyptian spectacle was marvelous and Cleopatra delightfully dislike-able. Regardless, it seems finally confirmed that the next episode is indeed the very last. It is being touted as the series finale, not the season finale. My guess is that either Pullo, Vorenus or both end up dead. I just hope that Pullo doesn't end up rescuing Caesarion and going off to live in harmony somewhere in Nubia.

The Spartys are giving your boys a good run Virgil. Good game so far anyway.

Someone emailed an obscure request, it's as follows... Does anyone have any familiarity?

Thank you to everyone for showing interest and participating. We hope to make this a semi-regular feature here. In total we received a respectable 11 entries. The early indications are very encouraging! I have personally refrained from reading any until all entries were made (other than skimming for basic rule compliance), so I am quite intrigued. We will make no promises as to the time frame for final judgment (Pertinax is currently on holiday and I value his input), and we want to be sure to deliberate fairly without constraints for deadlines. With that said, I received entries from the following forum members: Aurelius - A Critical Inquiry into the Strengths and Limitations of the Imperial Roman Army Skarr - Collegia Wotwotius - In what ways are barbarians so important to Tacitus

Seriously!? Oh snap... I think I can do this then... *runs off to finish* Yes, seriously. Check the rules via the 'Home' page. Indeed, because of the unintentional confusion over the term "midnight", essays will be accepted throughout March the 15th.

True, Pertinax had the potential to be another Nerva, but the machinations of the praetorians put an end to that possibility. Severus punished them for it of course, but we know how his own authoritative dynastic approach worked out. (Despite having at least temporarily stabilized the political environment)

A thin beam of X-rays scans the writings of the legendary Greek scientist and mathematician Archimedes, a hidden text that may be the most important ancient scientific document discovered since the Renaissance. As faint lines emerge on a large computer monitor at Stanford's Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, I can just barely make out the ghostly image of the Greek letter lambda. As a Webcast producer for the Exploratorium science museum in San Francisco, I have been documenting this experimental use of one of the most sophisticated tools of modern science, to decipher a 1,000-year-old book made of goatskin. Known as the Archimedes Palimpsest, dubbed Archie for short, it looks terribly fragile. The edges of most of the book's 174 pages are burned, and tears, holes and spots of purple mold dot their surface. The parchment is smaller than I thought it would be, not much larger than a hardback novel... Smithsonian Magazine

A hardy band of Welshmen in red, who took on the might of the Italians 2,000 years ago, could prove inspirational for tomorrow's Welsh Six Nations warriors. A leading historian has documented the exploits of the ancient Silures tribe, who fought a long campaign against the Romans two millennia ago. Dr Ray Howell from the University of Wales, Newport, even says our penchant for wearing red may spring from the tribe's favourite battle colour... Wales.co.uk

Another review by Ursus... Psychotic leaders. Conflict and conquest. Back stabbing and intrigue. Extremities of wealth and power. The rise and collapse of empires. Are we talking about Ancient Rome? No, just another day in the life of a large corporation. Any Romanophile who is also a creature of corporate culture may enjoy Stanley Bing

There are many quality works and historians, but I am particularly fond of Michael Grant's works as introductory materials. His style is engaging and is generally well received by both scholars and laymen. Grant won't reveal some ground breaking thesis, but that's not his objective, and it's generally perfect for someone trying to get their feet wet. History of Rome

It's an honorary title, selected to imply your elder status as a Pater of our community and also to express your sometimes mysterious method of communication. Meant only as a term of endearment from the "staff". Very few have established a specific and personal title here that is not based entirely on post count.

That scene was impressive at least. If nothing else, Pullo is an entertaining character.

Forgive a reply lacking in depth... Would a client-patrol relationship aid both recruiting and ultimate discipline. Surely. Understanding and maintaining an obligation to an 'authoritative' figure is simple enough. When we consider the localized nature of this relationship in comparison to the gap in class structure in the later feudal armies for example, its easy to illustrate the resulting discipline (or lack thereof) as dependent upon the client/patron relationship. When we further compare the tribal (Gauls, Germanics, etc.) and mercenary (Seleucids, Carthaginians, etc.) nature of other contemporary armies it may be reasonable to explain Roman discipline as a result of the client/patron relationship. What becomes more difficult is understanding the nature of this relationship once the army was formed and divided. If an entire recruited clientela remained under the direct authority of a member of their patron family I could understand an extreme impact on loyalty and discipline based on this relationship. However armies were divided amongst the centuries based on class. Centuries of 100 (or 80) could not have been established based entirely on this relationship, since a single patrons clientela would be divided among several classes. I understand that this is a very simplistic reconstruction, but what obligation would a century of mixed clientela have to a single patron? Clearly we can understand that each would attempt to honor their patron through quality service regardless of who may be in their contubernium, but couldn't this be more easily defined as a sense of honor and duty rather than obligation to a patron? Again, I think the relationship obviously influenced Roman discipline, but training and structured military authority seem to carry more weight on the surface. As already mentioned, other societies and cultures maintained discipline without this relationship. Alexander's army might be considered more medieval in nature (regional lords recruited men from their own sphere's of influence in answer to the call from the ultimate monarch), yet his army is traditionally considered disciplined. This discipline was due to the Greek hoplite and military standard/training traditions. As another example, Hannibal's army was equally disciplined despite being made up of Phoenicians and mercenary Iberians, Gauls and what have you. Admittedly, I have selected two great historical armies under the command of extraordinary leaders as counter samples.

Thanks to everyone. I'll enjoy a bottle or three of wine this evening.

Roman Legions either traveled with large numbers of camp followers, slaves, artisans, prostitutes, etc. or such followers would settle near permanent fortifications. Smiths of all types would be regularly available.

Thank you Ilian, that should prove to be quite useful.

That underlines my view that a leather cuirass is a status indicator rather than functional armour. Interesting point about chainmail though. It must have been labour intensive to link together although the component rings weren't exactly difficult to make. Then again, I suppose there were always slaves you put on the job, and I would hazard a guess that since demand was there armourers both military and civil made copious quantities of it for instant sale? I readily admit to being far from expert on Roman armor, but Hamata was certainly a labor intensive and expensive armor to make. However, the thing that seems to off set this cost was it's longevity and versatility. It was easy enough to maintain, and well cared for, a single piece of armor could last for generations.

Despite almost giving up on the series last week, I decided a few more Sunday's wouldn't kill me. Some random observations: With each passing moment I hate the blank stare of the new Octavian with growing vehemence. Like Julia I was disappointed by the introduction of Octavian's sexual deviance. Livia supplying him young treats is one thing, but this sado-masochism is just another example of an ever growing list of soap operish deviations. Suetonius, Life of Augustus I despise the fact that Atia is still alive. Vorenus grows ever more pathetic, though at least his daughter's treachery was finally revealed. The resolution of the entire story line including the near death of "the 3rd man", Vorenus' confrontation of Vorena, the treachery of the collegia 'captains', and Pullo's ultimate victory was gratifying. I still enjoy just about every scene with Antony. He is brilliant.

And just to add, mail (Hamata) is overwhelmingly considered the most common armor form throughout Roman history. While the imperial era included Segmentata, mail continued to be used regionally by legionaries and as standard issue for auxilia throughout the imperial period. It also became standard wear again in the later period. There is little evidence of widespread use of leather beyond the officer's cuirass.

It's a theme that's been done in various forms before so there is plenty of material to work with, however, it may be a bulkier subject than you intend. The nature of Constantine's relationship with Christianity is likely to fill an entire paper before even approaching the subject of the fall of the west. The idea has merit though, despite being difficult to prove. The more difficult issue is that you will have to study and dissect the course of several centuries of events to prove the 'adoption of Christianity' was a catalyst, rather than focusing on the events of Constantine's reign alone.

Frankly, footnotes would be the proper method. Since my pieces are intended only to be introductory, I purposely excluded them. The idea is to give a basic background and hopefully to inspire continued interest.

Archaeologists have found traces of a Roman settlement at a 5,000-year-old landmark man-made hill in Wiltshire. English Heritage believes there was a Roman community at Silbury Hill about 2,000 years ago. The 130ft Neolithic mound near Avebury - one of Europe's largest prehistoric monuments - is thought to have been created some 3,000 years earlier. Experts carrying out a project to stabilise the hill say the site may have been a sacred place of pilgrimage... BBC

By the by... Mods, MCM asked permission to post prior to doing so. I'll probably give it a go myself at some point.