Aprilis I, 988 a.u.c. Welcome to the first Acta Diurna of the Regia. We hope that you will enjoy the education and sense of community that we try to portray and represent when it comes to understanding the people of Ancient Rome. This isn't a sense of glory, but a sense of appreciation and respect to all those forgotten people that were never recorded in the history books that worked from dawn to dusk much of their life. We must examine and give a nod to those that gave up their lives doing what they thought was best, be it mid-wives, soldier, highway men, slaves, farmers, or politicians. Each person was born, lived, loved, and suffered yet only a few have been noticed by modern historians. These forgotten people were our ancestors and our teachers. Let us give tribute to the forgotten shades and help them find their home again. What we do in life, echoes in eternity. Everyday Life (Roman undergarments, socks, and stockings) Unlike Greeks, Romans wore underclothes including loincloths (subligar or subligaculum, meaning "little binding underneath"), and Roman women wore breast supports made of linen, cotton or sometimes of soft leather that was a band to support the breasts (strophium or mamillare). There is a very famous mosaic which shows a woman in what resembles a bikini- a loincloth- fitting tightly, and a band around the chest. (Britannica online article, “History of Middle Eastern and Western Dress”). Male laborers wore the subligar when working, but upper-class men may have worn it only when ... tap to continue Other Everyday life posts from the month of Martius... Ancient Soap Nundinae (Market Day) Central Tetrarchy (Latest Stories) Events beyond control Cornelia Tertia Aurea was striding up and down her office in impotent rage, ventilating her feelings by kicking a cushion as she went and letting fly with a string of mixed invective picked up in twenty years of marriage to a man best known for his exploits on the battle field. This rare exhibition of temper had begun just after the courier from Moguntiacum had climbed on his fresh horse to head for Athens. The only physical victim of her mood lay smashed against the wall, a truly ugly vase that had been a gift from some distant family... An Invitation "Arachne." The freedwoman secretary and, frankly, chaperone looked up from her papers and tablets when her employer called her by name. "Yes, Cornelia Tertia?" She had served Cornelia for many years before receiving her freedom and her formal name, Saturnina Arachne, reflected that the General had bought her over twenty years ago to serve his then new wife... Letter home Cornelia was drawing near to the end of a list of good advice she was sending to her stepson, Lucius, on the subject of choosing a wife and in-laws. She chewed on the end of her stylus thoughtfully and sighed, there was no avoiding it, the subject had to be raised. “Of course,” she wrote on, “Even if he values a familial alliance over his daughter’s happiness, I would like to think that any father worthy of the responsibility would at least weigh the likelihood of his daughter’s continuing safety against the value of any proposed alliance. In view of your father’s history you are likely to... Other Central Tetrarchy posts from the month of Martius... Red Mars Awakening III Red Mars Awakening II Economy & Industry (Tegulae mammatae tiles) Tegulae mammatae (Nipple Tiles) were large flat tiles with a raised boss at each corner. the tiles were built against a wall, from which the bosses kept the tiles at a constant distance, forming a cavity for a heating flue in a hypocaust system. Half-box tiles (resembling box tiles cut in two lengthways) were used in a similar manner. An alternative method was to ... tap to continue Other Economy & Industry posts from the month of Martius... Africana I Amphorae Sepulcrum Severi (The Tomb of Severus) The Northern Tetrarchy (Latest Stories) A Legate has an Audience The Severan Palace, Eboracum. Decius leaned back on the throne and templed his fingers as he contemplated the tired, nervous, and attractive Augustan Legate of Further Britain. The Audience Hall was large, and along the sides stood various courtiers, clerks, and guards, but the Vicar's attention remained riveted on the sole other person sitting in the room. "So," he said at last. "That is how things stand, is it? I had wondered." He paused again... Answering a Summons Justina walked into the Severan Palace to anwser the Summons from The Vicar of Britannia. She held her head high and looked aloof and confident. She felt far from it. Her nerves were jangeld... The Throne and the Scroll The Severan Palace, Eboracum. The pale ivory panelling provided a stark contrast to the dark ebony wood that made up the throne itself. The lamps on the wall flickered, illuminating the glint of gold inlaid upon the carved ivory with great care for detail. To one side Jovian Eagles seemed to take flight as the light shifted. Elsewhere Serapis wore a modius - the measuring cup for grain. The throne was fit for an Emperor... Other North Tetrarchy posts from the month of Martius... Dispatch from Maximinus\' son Blue Venus II Military Affairs (~ Gladius Hispaniensis [the Spanish Sword] ~) In the 3rd bce, the Romans fought against the Iberian Celts serving with Hannibal, as his Spanish Auxiliaries and their iron weapons, gaining so much respect for their adversaries' short swords that they adopted the design as their own. This sword had become the classical Roman short sword known as the "Gladius Hispaniensis" (Spanish Sword), and is the best known sword or weapons that was used by the Roman legions. Originally a short stabbing weapon, the Gladius was a double edged blade ideal for both thrusting and... tap to continue Other Military Affairs posts from the month of Martius... Roman Testudo ~ TESTUDINEM FACERE The Roman Legions