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The study of the Ancients has been increasingly denigrated by a new generation of academics. One professor challenges this new line of thinking. Professor Andre M. Archie makes a passionate defense of the study of classical antiquity. He is an an associate professor of ancient Greek philosophy at Colorado State University. He is also an African American: https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/02/what-makes-the-classics-worth-studying/ Of course, I would also remind Mr. Peralta that there were no Anglo-Saxon emperors. Three emperors were Hispanic: Trajan, Hadrian, and Theodosius. Septimius Severus was born in modern-day Libya. (His sons were Geta and Caracalla). Three other emperors were born also born in North Africa: Clodius Decimus Albinus (modern Tunisia), Macrinus (modern Algeria), and Aemilianus (modern Djerba, an island off Tunisia). Elagabalus and Alexander Severus were of Syrian origin. Phillip the Arab was .... I guess I would be more sympathetic to Mr. Peralta if he desired to also study other ancient cultures (the Americas, Asia, and, Africa, etc.) without denigrating the study of ancient "Western" societies. Unfortunately, he is obsessed with "whiteness" and fails to see the universality of the ancient Romans and Greeks. guy also known as gaius

An informative guide to the architecture of modern American buildings. (Thanks to Laphams' Quarterly Fall 2020 for bringing this to my attention.)

Another place to visit on my next trip to Rome, the nearly opened mausoleum of Augustus: https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/travel/rome-mausoleum-augustus-reopens-march-890342 Summary: When the world reopens, I expect the crowds to be overwhelming. Hopefully, I would find time in my trip to Rome to see this site finally opened to the public after years of neglect. guy also known as gaius

Another interesting find in Pompeii: Experts believe the vehicle is a pilentum - a four-wheeled ceremonial chariot. It was found close to the remains of horses, including one still in its harness https://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-pompeii-idUSKBN2AR0E1 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56222992 Summary: Just another exciting find in the Pompeii area. if Italian Culture Minister Franceschini is correct, there are more than 20 hectares (almost 50 acres) of area to still uncover. That's equivalent to more than 20 football fields in land to investigate. I am looking forward to future finds. guy also known as gaius

Work continues on Pompeii even during this COVID-19 lockdown: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2021/2/26/Pompeii-House-of-the-Ceii-restoration-.html https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/pompeii-fresco-restoration-intl-scli-scn/index.html Videos in Italian: For English translation, click settings ----->subtitles ----> autotranslate -----> English Summary: Good to see work continue despite this pandemic. guy also known as gaius

Here's a an old episode of the British series Time Team that was recently uploaded. The theory was that the Romans under the Emperor Claudius in 43 AD would have first landed his invasion force at Rutupiae (Richborough on the coast of Kent, England). A local archaeologist found Claudian pottery nearby at Syndale, Kent. His belief was that an early Roman fort could be found at the site. It was a very entertaining show. 112 5 "The Roman Fort That Wasn't There" Syndale, Kent Roman 51.313727°N 0.860548°E 1 February 2004 Nobody knows what happened immediately after the Romans arrived in 43 AD, because no Roman fort has been discovered in this part of South East England. Time Team are on a mission to find the missing link. Local archaeologist Paul Wilkinson believes he has already found a military ditch, which would surround such a fort.[6] It's a prime site, right next to Watling Street. However geophysics cannot find any evidence for a ditch. So begins one of their most frustrating digs, directed by Neil Holbrook. Phil enlists in the Ermine Street Guard for a day. They are joined by Roman expert Tony Wilmott and pottery specialist Malcolm Lyne.[7] Kent, England. Watling Street Summary: This was a great episode using numismatic and pottery evidence to reach a conclusion about the site. guy also known as gaius

(Thank you "An Italian Archaeologist in Scotland" for bringing this to our attention) Here's a delightful rendition of Ovid's Tristia 3.1 in Latin (with English subtitles). The background on Ovid's Tristia is very poignant: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tristia Ovid's final lament in Book 3 during his permanent exile is truly unforgetable: https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/OvidTristiaBkThree.php Summary: This is an entertaining rendition of a portion of the more obscure but delightful poem "Tristia" by Ovid. Thanks, again, Italian Archaeologist in Scotland for bringing this to our attention. guy also known as gaius

I couldn't imagine otherwise. Let's see: alcohol, gambling, possible prostitutes, etc. No, i can't see it being a recipe for problems. LOL A very memorable bar scene from the HBO series Rome:

Interesting find: Traditional Owner Ian Waina inspecting a Naturalistic painting of a kangaroo, determined to be more than 12,000 years old based on the age of overlying mud wasp nests https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9286281/Life-size-drawing-KANGAROO-dating-17-500-years-Australia.html Summary: The interesting feature of this article was the use of wasp nets to determine the age of ancient artwork: guy also known as gaius

I am not an alarmist, but let's not mess with Mother Nature. It's one thing to clone a woolly mammoth back from extinction; it's another, a deadly virus 😯 : Scientists with the carcass of a Malolyakhovsky mammoth, thought to be more than 28,000 years old (Image: Semyon Grigoryev) https://au.news.yahoo.com/zombie-infection-country-unlocks-50000-year-old-viruses-covid-034817008.html https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/russia-unlock-50000-year-old-23514371 Summary: What could possibly go wrong with this? guy also known as gaius

Here's an interesting figurine recently excavated in the East of England, suggesting moustaches and long hair were popular in 1st century Britain: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-56116411 https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/feb/19/when-mullets-rocked-figurine-suggests-ancient-britons-favoured-hairstyle Summary: I am not surprised that the first century ancient Brits may have had moustaches and long hair, also. The famous Dying Gaul sculpture in Rome also shows these features, That sculpture is thought to be an ancient Roman copy of a Hellenistic bronze (223-231 BCE) from Pergamon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dying_Gaul guy also known as gaius

Interesting find: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-56113457 Summary: I guess good luck amulets and symbols come in all types. guy also known as gaius

Here's a fun article discussing many known recipes from ancient Greece and Rome: Cabbage the Athenian way Olive Relish Roast lamb or kid [The pungent-smelling Asafoetida (hing) mentioned in the recipe above is an excellent substitute for onions, by the way. It is frequently used today in Indian food.] Pancakes with Honey and Sesame Seeds These are just a few of the 49 ancient recipes found in this book: https://blog.britishmuseum.org/cook-a-classical-feast-nine-recipes-from-ancient-greece-and-rome/ guy also known as gaius I found this book when reading article about Shrove Tuesday (Marti Gras) in the UK: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9265655/Second-century-pancake-recipe-proves-Romans-similar-sweet-tooth-modern-day.html

Research has probably confirmed the old legend that the stones of Stonehenge came from a distant land. An ancient stone circle in Waun Mawn Circle, Wales could have been dismantled and later rebuilt in Stonehenge, 150 miles away: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-56029203 https://www.heritagedaily.com/2021/02/archaeologists-suggest-early-stonehenge-was-a-rebuilt-stone-circle-from-wales/137102 Summary: This study probably confirms ancient legends about Stonehenge's origins. As of yet, however, there has been no support of the myth that Stonehenge was the work of of King Arthur's wizard friend Merlin. guy also known as gaius

An interesting find in the Cotswolds, an area about 85 miles west of London. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-56041431 Summary: Interesting find. Doesn't look like a modern Cupid to me, but it is an interesting find, nevertheless. guy also known as gaius

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9240253/Archaeology-Room-Roman-emperor-Hadrian-held-power-breakfasts-1-900-years-ago.html Summary: This is another site that I will need to visit next time I'm near Rome. guy also known as gaius Here are two nice videos of Hadrian's Villa.

An interesting find in China: a 2,700 year old ornate bronze jar with an intact white substance thought to be a face cream. The belief is that they were using cosmetics on their face made of animal fat and "cave milk or moonmilk" Chinese noblemen were using cosmetics made from animal fat and cave 'milk' on their faces some 2,700 years ago, a study has reported. Pictured, the ornate jar containing the remains of the face cream dating back to China's so-called 'Spring and Autumn' period (771–476 BC). Experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences excavated a nobleman's tomb — filled with assorted grave goods — at the Liujiawa dig site in northern China. Amid the nobleman's possessions were characteristic bronze funerary weapons and also an ornate bronze jar containing the remains of the ancient face cream, pictured The bronze jar after cleaning: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9236177/Archaeology-Ancient-Chinese-noblemen-used-cosmetics-animal-fat-cave-milk.html Summary: Fortunately the substance inside the bronze underwent chemical analysis. I learned about "moonmilk" from this article. Moonmilk is an unusual soft white creamy or gooey substance found in caves, thought to be a precipitate from limestone that undergoes a bacterial reaction. This chemical reaction from bacteria (probably from bat excrement) prevents the moonmilk from hardening. It was used in the past for cosmetics and gastrointestinal problems. Here's an interesting video on moonmilk. The discussion on moonmilk and its discovery in a cave starts at 3:30: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/arcm.12659

Here's an article from 2019 that I missed. It deals with the probable frustration of a Roman legionary whose entire paycheck was used to buy military essentials (food, clothing and equipment), leaving him no money for his personal use: https://armyofromanpalestine.com/0022 https://taskandpurpose.com/mandatory-fun/roman-soldier-payslip-green-weenie-immortal/ Summary: Soldiers' frustration and discontent with the military bureaucracy is a universal theme, occurring in all times and places. guy also known as gaius

Some interesting new finds at the Santa Rosa Necropolis (also called the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis). This site was only discovered around 2003 during excavations for a parking lot at the Vatican. Although this site has been investigated since then, there continue to be new discoveries. Interestingly, this place included burials for many servants and slaves. The necropolis has been described as a communal or shared cemetery. Excavations have, therefore, shed life on some of the Roman non-elites, including potentially some early Christians. https://www.romawonder.com/necropolis-via-triumphalis-tour-facts-pictures/ Below is a beautiful marble funerary shrine found during earlier excavations this century. It is of the child Tiberius Natronius Venustus,. He was little more than four years old. Wonderful article by Ancient Origins on the new discoveries and insights from the site: https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/vatican-city-necropolis-0014891 This was the original article in The Jerusalem Post that requires accepting cookies to read. https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/archaeologists-discover-friends-of-caesars-inside-vatican-city-657802 (Thank you Ancient Origins for finding the first video:)

Below is a really good review of the origin of the Germanic tribes:

We can never be certain of the interior on the Pantheon during ancient times, but there are few short references: https://digitalworks.union.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1640&context=theses Pliny the Elder (AD 23/24-79) wrote about the pre-Hadrian Pantheon: http://archive1.village.virginia.edu/spw4s/RomanForum/GoogleEarth/AK_GE/AK_HTML/TS-010.html From Bronwen Riley's excellent "The Edge of the Empire: A Journey to Britannia from the Heart of Rome to Hadrian's Wall" comes this imaginary but possibly accurate description (p. 27):

Another version of the story: https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/holy-relics-0014881

Santi Apostoli Church in Rome is famous not only for its beautiful architecture, but also for having some of the relics of two of the original twelve apostles. Tradition holds that the remains of two saints, Phillip and James the Younger, were brought to the church from Constantinople. It also has the relics of later early Christian martyrs. Scientific investigation may cast some doubt on the identity of the remains of the two supposed saints, however. https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-02/uosd-sio020121.php A PIECE OF THE FEMUR, BELIEVED TO BE OF ST JAMES THE YOUNGER, MOUNTED ON A WOODEN PEG AND WITH A GILDED RING Summary: Scientific investigations, once again, help to shed light on ancient history. guy also known as gaius

Lord Elgin, (a Scottish soldier, politician and diplomate), removed marbles from the Parthenon in Athens in the early 1800s and transported them to the British Museum in London, England. This was done with great controversy even after their arrival by Lord Byron. So, the return of the marbles has been the continued subject of great debate since their arrival. Almost tragically, the ship carrying these treasures sunk and were only saved by a salvage mission at the time. The ship containing these treasures is still under the sea and is being investigated two centuries later with impressive discoveries. https://greece.greekreporter.com/2021/02/01/lord-elgins-shipwreck-yields-impressive-discoveries/ guy also known as gaius

An interesting article describing the climate change of Egypt documented by papyri during the third century of the Roman Empire: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210125113133.htm Summary: This may be another piece of evidence that Northern Africa was, in fact, the "bread basket" of ancient Rome. It may be more than a coincidence that the collapse of productivity of Northern Africa (in the third century AD) paralleled the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. guy also known as gaius