The emperor Caligula lavished attention on his favourite horse Incitatus, holding parties for friends in the steed’s grand stables. But did he make his horse a consul?
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Articles on Ancient history
Displaying 61 - 80 of 101 articles
Roman decadence reached its peak with the vomitorium: a room where feasting elites threw up to make room for more food. Or so the story goes …
For the first time in recent memory the possibility of imprisoning political rivals has entered the political discourse of a modern western election. But ostracism is an ancient democratic tradition that offers an alternative approach.
One swashbuckling charioteer earned the equivalent of US$15 billion.
A thousand years of historical sources make it clear that migraine is more than just a headache.
Films set in the ancient world can no longer adequately live up to the demands of the ‘epic’. Instead, we should look to films set in space.
Cicero asked: ‘how to become famous?’ Nero sought to know the timing of his death. The Oracle at Delphi offered pronouncements on all manner of topics - yet as with Google today, the question posed was as important as the answer.
Space lasers developed in the 1970s are being put to a brand new use.
It’s lunacy to believe you own the moon, so why is cultural heritage any different? The Parthenon sculptures at least belong together.
A classics professor writes that Trump’s raucous campaign style is nothing new. He introduces us to a chariot-racing statesman from ancient Athens who may have given Trump a run for his money.
Modern techniques such as CT scanning and ancient DNA analysis have allowed scientists to discover a great deal about a mummy found in a shallow grave in Botswana.
Many “modern” inventions actually have precedents dating back over 1000 years.
Turns out the Egyptians weren’t the only ones who mummified their dead.
Like many great challenges of the 21st century, the science identifying the problems with sugar seems clear. What’s lacking is the will to address them.
Our past is under threat from “nighthawks” - illegal metal detectorists who go out at night to seek their fortune from protected ancient monuments. A Bristol archaeologist investigates.
Plants mentioned in ancient Chinese books helped inspire the latest Nobel Prize for Medicine winner, but testing old remedies isn’t as simple as following the recipe.
It can be difficult to imagine that the antiquities in our museums were once a part of vibrant and cosmopolitan cities. Let our expert take you on a tour of three cities to rival today’s global hubs.
Classical epic can seem particularly alien in the instant gratification culture of Instagram and Twitter, yet there’s a surge of interest in them.
Medicine has changed beyond recognition in the last 2,000 years. So why should we still care what the founders of Western medicine thought?
Our current turn towards ancient Greece touches on a fundamental nerve in modern society.
Top contributors
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Honorary Research Associate, University of Sydney
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Professor Emerita, Classical Studies, The Open University
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Professor in Archaeology, University of Bristol
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Lecturer in Classical Studies, The Open University
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Lecturer in Classical Studies, Institute of Classical Studies, University of London; Honorary Fellow, Macquarie University, School of Advanced Study, University of London
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Senior Lecturer in Classical Studies, The Open University
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Lecturer in Ancient History, Cardiff University
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Associate Professor of Classics and Head of the Centre for Classical Studies, Australian National University
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Senior Lecturer in Ancient History, Cardiff University
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Professor, Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Sydney
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Lecturer in Roman Archaeology and Art, Royal Holloway University of London
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Assistant Professor of Classics, University of Cambridge
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Chair in Rock Art Research and Director of the Place, Evolution and Rock Art Heritage Unit (PERAHU), Griffith University
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Professor of Astronomy, Vanderbilt University
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Lecturer in Ancient History, Manchester Metropolitan University
