On 13 August 29 B.C.E., Augustus began his three-day triumph as victor over Marc Antony and Cleopatra. The date chosen had three- fold significance for Augustus. It was associated with Hercules Invictus, the earliest Hercules cult in Rome, celebrated at the Ara Maxima in the Forum Boarium. It was equally associated with Evander to whom legend attributed the establishment of that cult. Finally, it was also associated with Venus Victrix to whom Pompey dedicated a theatre on that day to celebrate his triumph. Venus was held to be the mother of Aeneas, ancestor of the gens Iulia. How were the three figures of Hercules, Evander and Aeneas brought together to symbolise the advent of a new golden age, the Age of Augustus ?

Perhaps the most-repeated anecdote concerning Hannibal is his crossing the Alps from Gaul into Italy with thirty-seven elephants. That feat made a profound impression on ancient writers such as Livy and Polybius. Ultimately, however, the famous general of Carthage had a relationship with these animals that resulted in tragedy rather than triumph. Why ?

In 70 C.E. Titus Flavius Vespasianus captured the beseiged city of Jerusalem, putting an end to four years of Jewish revolt. That uprising was one of a series of conflicts of Jews between themselves and with the Greek- and Latin-speaking worlds. One of the longest conflicts began after the reign of Seleukos IV Philopator (187 - 175 B.C.E.) and is narrated from the point of view of strict, pious Jews in the Jewish Bible (2nd Maccabees 3.1 - 4.6). Though relations between Seleukos IV and his subjects in Judaea had been excellent at the start of his rule, inter-Jewish rivalry and a desperate financial situation disrupted their entente. A recent archaeological discovery sheds further light on the genesis of the souring relationship.

From the Society of Labourers of the Hortus Reatinus. Like a domus, gardens have their own characters and atmospheres. Some are instantly familiar, such as the haphazard abundance of Cicero’s gardens in Baiae, others are more formal such as those of Pompey’s Portico in Rome. It is not enough to know what kind of plants you like. Below are a few guidelines to help create a unique style, a personalised garden.

The saga of Cadmos up to the founding of Thebes.

The saga of Cadmos up to the founding of Thebes.

The saga of Cadmos before the founding of Thebes.