"In her international bestseller SPQR, Mary Beard told the thousand-year story of ancient Rome, from its slightly shabby Iron Age origins to its reign as the undisputed hegemon of the Mediterranean. Now, drawing on more than thirty years of teaching and writing about Roman history, Beard turns to the emperors who ruled the Roman Empire, beginning with Julius Caesar (assassinated 44 BCE) and taking us through the nearly three centuries―and some thirty...

"An intellectual history of the late Roman Republic-and the senators who fought both scholarly debates and a civil war. In The Roman Republic of Letters, Katharina Volk explores a fascinating chapter of intellectual history, focusing on the literary senators of the mid-first century BCE who came to blows over the future of Rome even as they debated philosophy, history, political theory, linguistics, science, and religion. It was a period of intense...

The fascinating story of how the fossils of dinosaurs, mammoths, and other extinct animals influenced some of the most spectacular creatures of classical mythology.

"The Roman Republic was a major world power for years. However, it eventually fell and was replaced by the Roman Empire, which then endured for another few centuries. In this volume, readers learn about the history of ancient Rome, with a focus on the main factors that contributed to the Roman Republic's collapse: income inequality, civil wars, and corrupt politicians. The engaging main text is augmented by an in-depth timeline, and full-color photographs...

"A biography of Vergil, Rome's greatest poet, by the acclaimed translator of the Aeneid The Aeneid stands as a towering work of Classical Roman literature and a gripping dramatization of the best and worst of human nature. In the process of creating this epic poem, Vergil (70-19 BCE) became the world's first media celebrity, a living legend. But the real Vergil is a shadowy figure; we know that he was born into a modest rural family, that he led a...

"So who exactly were the gladiators? It turns out they were many different types of people. The combatants in the coliseums features slaves, willing fighters and even people looking for free food and shelter. Gladiators used different weapons and acted in different roles depending on their specific situation. Now you can learn all about them with our helpful guides, Annie and Nico. Uncover the Romans' historic entertainment in this pocket-sized graphic...

"The Spartacus War is the extraordinary story of the most famous slave rebellion in the ancient world, the true story behind a legend that has been the inspiration for novelists, filmmakers, and revolutionaries for 2,000 years. Starting with only seventy-four men and growing to an army of 60,000, the gladiator Spartacus incited a rebellion that threatened Rome itself. A charismatic leader, Spartacus excelled in combat. He defeated nine Roman armies...

"The first biography of one of the most fascinating yet long-neglected rulers of the ancient world: Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Antony and Cleopatra. Years ago, archaeologists excavating near Pompeii unearthed a hoard of Roman treasures, among them a bowl depicting a woman with thick, curly hair and sporting an elephant-scalp headdress. For decades, theories circulated about her identity-until, at last, she was ascertained to be Cleopatra Selene,...

"In the middle of the second century AD, Rome was at its prosperous and powerful apex. The emperor Marcus Aurelius reigned over a vast territory that stretched from Britain to Egypt. The Roman-made peace, or Pax Romana, seemed to be permanent. Then, apparently out of nowhere, a sudden sickness struck the legions and laid waste to cities, including Rome itself. This fast-spreading disease, now known as the Antonine plague, may have been history’s...

The fullest biography of Mark Antony in English, A Noble Ruin provides a fresh account of Antony's personal life and especially his public career, including his administration of the Roman east and his military campaigns.