James Coverley

As a historian, may I add that it is quite common for the tyrant to avoid responsibility for his crimes, less so for his minions.

He might have immunity from prosecution - they do not. Something they should perhaps ponder.

This quote, a common one attributed to Cicero, is, of course, absolutely not the words of Cicero at all.

Find out more tomorrow when I shall be rummaging about to find out where this quote comes from and what Cicero actually said

"A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known ... openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers ... heard in the very halls of government itself.

This, from 2,000 years ago

“Except for means of transportation, all articles shall be subject to a tax of 2.5%, payable to the tax official. The tax official has the right of search. Undeclared articles shall be confiscated. The person of a matron shall not be searched.”

(Declamations, ccclix)

Thanks! I've always wondered the extent to which it has been 'improved'.

Why is the discovery of Roman carriage fitting in Essex important? A Romana-British metal artwork of a panther is believed to show the severed head of a barbarian.

bbc.com/news/article...

How much of this do you think is original, Dr T?

#ancientbluesky #history

Augurs predicted the future by watching the #birds eating and flying, but what did the haruspices do in #ancientRome?

Includes free #horoscope for every reader!!

jamescoverley.substack.com/p/what-were-...

A bit late for #mosaicmonday, from Italica in Spain, birthplace of Hadrian, we have the mosaic from the House of the #Birds.

My favourite is this particularly jaunty heron fellow

The Abbey Library of St Gall, St Gallen, Switzerland

(pic - tatjana_2010, flickr)

All these fertile plains will be blotted out of sight by a sudden overflowing of the sea, or by the subsiding of the land will sweep them away suddenly into the abyss.”

(Moral Epistles, lxxi.15)

So there’s that to look forward to.

some day men will ask where they were. And they will be swept away by various kinds of destruction: some will be ruined by wars, others will be destroyed by idleness and a peace that ends in sloth, or by luxury, the bane of those of great wealth...

If you’re wondering how all … this … broad gesture … is going to end, Seneca has a thing to say on it:

”The entire human race, both present and future, is condemned to death. All the cities that have ever held dominion or have been the splendid jewels of empires belonging to others ...

Was Hadrian Gay? Wales in the 1980s was at once a magnificent and terrifying place to grow up in.

While you're at it, why not read this? We all assume Hadrian was 'gay', but was he?

open.substack.com/pub/jamescov...

#ancientbluesky #history #Hadrian #rome

Happy Birthday Hadrian, who, had he not died in 138 AD, probably from coronary heart disease (see the article for more!), would have been 1,950 years old today and probably a bit tired, bless him.

More here - shorturl.at/YDU0s

It then immediately says he was a ward of Trajan and Caelius Attianus.

This is also wrong. The man's name was Acilius Attianus.

The whole thing is full of this nonsense. It's magnificently silly. Writing the endnotes for my translation of it will take months!

January 24, 79 AD was the birthday of the Emperor Hadrian.
The Historia Augusta gets off to a cracking start by claiming, in Book One, Chapter One, that he was born in Rome.

He was born in Italica, Spain.

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#ancientbluesky #history #archaeology #Rome

Were there Romans who advocated for the abolition of slavery?
To find out, subscribe at the link - shorturl.at/8Yi0u

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Thanks!

Why Don't Roman Statues Smile More? In Vergil’s version of the siege of Troy from the Aeneid, the Greeks, once they had sailed off, apparently having had enough of all this nonsense, left behind two things.

#ancientbluesky #romanhistory #archaeology #history

Why does everyone in Roman iconography, and medieval art, come to that, look so unemotional, even when lopping heads of dragons or pounding barbarians and stuff?

Find out here! - shorturl.at/X3Wkz

#ancientbluesky #history #romans #archaeology

It being illegal to get married and have children didn't stop Roman soldiers from getting married and having children. After all, there's not much else to do once you've bashed the locals up a bit

Find out how they got around it - shorturl.at/F2KiM

What was a Roman Library Like? Acta Populi - Number XV

#ancientbluesky #history #libraries

Libraries gave us power. But what did they give the Romans? Find out here - shorturl.at/3NtEH

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#ancientbluesky #history #classics #archaeology #rome

Disreputable fellow! Not Denzel Washington, who I assume is a fine chap, but slave traders! Although he is an actor, and they were disreputable fellows, too.

Find out more - shorturl.at/trlcz

Thank you, Andy! I'm delighted that you look forward to them.

#ancientbluesky #archaeology #pompeii #history

Love letters are not unknown in Roman history, nor are ones scrawled on walls, but this amazing piece of graffiti is special because of who wrote it and to whom.

open.substack.com/pub/jamescov...

#ancientbluesky #banking #romanhistory #history

After a hard week smacking trouser-wearing ruffians over the head with something heavy, what did the Romans do with their hard-stolen money?

open.substack.com/pub/jamescov...

Subscribe to read the full article, or, if you wish to drop me a little tip at the link below, PM me and I'll email you a copy.

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#lgbtq #ancientbluesky #history #archaeology

Their attitude towards two chaps enjoying each other's company was famously relaxed, but what did they think about two women doing the same thing?

Let's find out!

open.substack.com/pub/jamescov...