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The Venus Throw
''The Venus Throw'' is a historical novel by American author Steven Saylor, first published by St. Martin's Press in 1995. It is the fourth book in his Roma Sub Rosa series of mystery novels set in the final decades of the Roman Republic. The main character is the Roman sleuth Gordianus the Finder. Plot summary The year is 56 BC, and Gordianus is visited by his old friend and teacher Dio, a diplomat who leads an embassy on behalf of the citizens of Egypt, who want to make a complaint about their king Ptolemy XII to the senate of Rome. Dio is afraid that he will be murdered by the king's agents, like other envoys before him. When he is poisoned shortly after, Gordianus attempts to find the murderer. His main suspect is the orator Marcus Caelius Rufus, and he also meets the sultry widow Clodia and her admirer, the poet Catullus Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steven Saylor
Steven Saylor (born March 23, 1956) is an American author of historical novels. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied history and classics. Saylor's best-known work is his ''Roma Sub Rosa'' historical mystery series, set in ancient Rome. The novels' hero is a detective named Gordianus the Finder, active during the time of Sulla, Cicero, Julius Caesar, and Cleopatra. Outside this crime novel series, Saylor has also written three epic-length historical novels about the city of Rome, ''Roma'', ''Empire'', and ''Dominus''. His work has been published in 21 languages. Saylor has also written two novels set in Texas. ''A Twist at the End'', featuring O. Henry, is set in Austin in the 1880s and based on real-life serial murders and trials (the case of the so-called Servant Girl Annihilator). ''Have You Seen Dawn?'' is a contemporary thriller set in a fictional Texas town, Amethyst, based on Saylor's hometown, Goldthwaite, Texas. Saylor contributed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establishment of the Roman Empire, Rome's control rapidly expanded during this period—from the city's immediate surroundings to hegemony over the entire Mediterranean world. Roman society under the Republic was primarily a cultural mix of Latin and Etruscan societies, as well as of Sabine, Oscan, and Greek cultural elements, which is especially visible in the Roman Pantheon. Its political organization developed, at around the same time as direct democracy in Ancient Greece, with collective and annual magistracies, overseen by a senate. The top magistrates were the two consuls, who had an extensive range of executive, legislative, judicial, military, and religious powers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catullus
Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His surviving works are still read widely and continue to influence poetry and other forms of art. Catullus's poems were widely appreciated by contemporary poets, significantly influencing Ovid and Virgil, among others. After his rediscovery in the Late Middle Ages, Catullus again found admirers such as Petrarch. The explicit sexual imagery which he uses in some of his poems has shocked many readers. Yet, at many instruction levels, Catullus is considered a resource for teachers of Latin. Catullus's style is highly personal, humorous, and emotional; he frequently uses hyperbole, anaphora, alliteration, and diminutives. In 25 of his poems he mentions his devotion to a woman he refers to as "Lesbia", who is widely believed to have been the Roma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clodia (wife Of Metellus)
Clodia (born Claudia, c. 95 or 94 BC), nicknamed Quadrantaria ("Quarter", from ''quadrantarius'', the price of a visit to the public baths), Nola ("The Unwilling", from the verb ''nolo'', in sarcastic reference to her alleged wantonness), Medea Palatina ("Medea of the Palatine") by Cicero ( see below), and occasionally referred to in scholarship as Clodia MetelliMarilyn B. Skinner, "Clodia Metelli", ''Transactions of the American Philological Association'' 113 (1983), pp. 273–287, ("Metellus's Clodia"), was one of three known daughters of the ancient Roman patrician Appius Claudius Pulcher. Like many other women of the Roman elite, Clodia was very well educated in Greek and Philosophy, with a special talent for writing poetry.Wiseman, T. P.: "Catullus and His World: A Reappraisal".(1987) Her life, which was characterized by perpetual scandal, is immortalized in the writings of Marcus Tullius Cicero and, it is generally believed, in the poems of Gaius Valerius Catullus. Biog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marcus Caelius Rufus
Marcus Caelius Rufus (28 May 82 BC – after 48 BC) was an orator and politician in the late Roman Republic. He was born into a wealthy equestrian family from Interamnia Praetuttiorum (Teramo), on the central east coast of Italy. He is best known for his prosecution of Gaius Antonius Hybrida in 59 BC. He was also known for his trial for public violence (''de vi publica'') in March 56 BC, when Cicero defended him in the extant speech ''Pro Caelio'', and as both recipient and author of some of the best-written letters in the ''ad Familiares'' corpus of Cicero's extant correspondence (Book 8). He may be the Rufus named in the poems of Catullus. Life and career In his twenties Caelius became associated with Crassus and Cicero, while he was also briefly connected to Catiline and his conspiracy. Caelius first achieved fame through his successful prosecution in 59 BC of Gaius Antonius Hybrida for corruption. Antonius Hybrida had served as consul with Cicero for the year 63 BC, and his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ptolemy XII Auletes
Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysus Philopator Philadelphus ( grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος Νέος Διόνυσος Φιλοπάτωρ Φιλάδελφος, Ptolemaios Neos Dionysos Philopatōr Philadelphos; – 51 BC) was a pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt who ruled from 80 to 58 BC and then again from 55 BC until his death in 51 BC. He was commonly known as Auletes (, "the Flautist"), referring to his love of playing the flute in Dionysian festivals. A member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, he was a descendant of its founder Ptolemy I Soter, a Macedonian Greek general and companion of Alexander the Great. writes about Ptolemy I Soter: "The Ptolemaic dynasty, of which Cleopatra was the last representative, was founded at the end of the fourth century BC. The Ptolemies were not of Egyptian extraction, but stemmed from Ptolemy Soter, a Macedonian Greek in the entourage of Alexander the Great."For additional sources that describe the Ptolemaic dynasty as " Macedonian Greek", pleas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip of Palestine and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northeast separates Egypt from Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt, while Alexandria, the second-largest city, is an important industrial and tourist hub at the Mediterranean coast. At approximately 100 million inhabitants, Egypt is the 14th-most populated country in the world. Egypt has one of the longest histories of any country, tracing its heritage along the Nile Delta back to the 6th–4th millennia BCE. Considered a cradle of civilisation, Ancient Egypt saw some of the earliest developments of writing, agriculture, ur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dio Of Alexandria
Dio of Alexandria (; el, Δίων) was an Academic skepticism, Academic Skeptic philosopher and a friend of Antiochus of Ascalon who lived in the first century BC. Along with being an Academic Skeptic, Dio was an avid believer in the Greek gods and Titans, specifically worshipping the personification of time, Chronos. He was sent by his fellow citizens as ambassador to Rome, to complain about the conduct of their king, Ptolemy XII Auletes. In Rome he was poisoned by the king's secret agents, and the strongest suspicion of the murder fell upon Marcus Caelius Rufus, Marcus Caelius. The defence of Caelius in April 56 BC, the ''Pro Caelio'', is considered one of Cicero's and indeed Rome's greatest orations. His brother was the wrestler Topsius ( grc, Τόψιος). References Academic philosophers Hellenistic-era philosophers from Africa 1st-century BC Greek people 1st-century BC philosophers Ambassadors to ancient Rome Academic skepticism {{Platonists ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gordianus The Finder
''Roma Sub Rosa'' is a series of historical mystery novels by Steven Saylor set in ancient Rome and therefore populated by famous historic roman citizens. The phrase "Roma Sub Rosa" means, in Latin, "Rome under the rose." If a matter was ''sub rosa'', "under the rose," it meant that such matter was confidential. The detective is known as Gordianus the Finder, and he mixes with non-fictional citizens of the Republic including Sulla, Cicero, Marcus Crassus, Catilina, Catullus , Pompey, Julius Caesar, and Mark Antony. Characters For an ancient Roman, Gordianus has an unconventional family: * Bethesda, his beautiful Egyptian slave purchased from a slave market in Alexandria. Bethesda and Gordianus have a mutually affectionate relationship and are later married after he frees her. * Eco, his oldest adopted son, was a mute boy when he first appeared as a key player in the book Roman Blood. He recovered his speech in Arms of Nemesis. He followed in his father's (meaning Gordianus) foo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Historical Novel
Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other types of narrative, including theatre, opera, cinema, and television, as well as video games and graphic novels. An essential element of historical fiction is that it is set in the past and pays attention to the manners, social conditions and other details of the depicted period. Authors also frequently choose to explore notable historical figures in these settings, allowing readers to better understand how these individuals might have responded to their environments. The historical romance usually seeks to romanticize eras of the past. Some subgenres such as alternate history and historical fantasy insert intentionally ahistorical or speculative elements into a novel. Works of historical fiction are sometimes criticized for lack of authe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine Minor Outlying Islands, and 326 Indian reservations. The United States is also in free association with three Pacific Island sovereign states: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. It is the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With a population of over 333 million, it is the most populous country in the Americas and the third most populous in the world. The national capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. and its most populous city and principal financial center is New York City. Paleo-Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Murder On The Appian Way
''A Murder on the Appian Way'' is a historical novel by American author Steven Saylor, first published by St. Martin's Press in 1996. It is the fifth book in his ''Roma Sub Rosa'' series of mystery novels set in the final decades of the Roman Republic. The main character is the Roman sleuth Gordianus the Finder. Plot summary The year is 52 BC, and Rome is in turmoil as rival gangs fight it out in the streets. When the gang leader and radical politician Publius Clodius Pulcher is found murdered on the Appian Way south of Rome, the main suspect is Clodius' rival gang leader, Titus Annius Milo. Gordianus is hired by Cicero, who is Milo's defender, to find the true murderer. In the shadows lurk powerful men such as Caesar and Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of .... ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
