Gladiators and gods, aqueducts and Augustuses, togas and triumvirates, legions and lions: fifteen centuries after the fall, Rome remains fixed in the popular culture—and for good reason. For five full centuries, from the ascension of Caesar Augustus in 27 BC to the barbarian sack of its capital city in AD 476, Rome was the greatest empire in the world. Its influence is still felt in modern society.
When we think of ancient Rome, we think first of the gladiators. These professional fighters delighted frenzied crowds in the Colosseum, doing battle with wild animals, with condemned criminals, and...
Bronze coin issued by Constantine's sons shows a bust of their late father wearing a shroud. On the reverse, Constantine the Great rides a chariot drawn by four horses, as the Hand of God reaches...
When we think of ancient Rome, we think first of the gladiators. These professional fighters delighted frenzied crowds in the Colosseum, doing battle with wild animals, with condemned criminals, and...
