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Lapis Niger
The Lapis Niger (Latin, "Black Stone") is an ancient shrine in the Roman Forum. Together with the associated Vulcanal (a sanctuary to Vulcan) it constitutes the only surviving remnants of the old Comitium, an early assembly area that preceded the Forum and is thought to derive from an archaic cult site of the 7th or 8th century BC. The black marble paving (1st century BC) and modern concrete enclosure (early 20th century) of the Lapis Niger overlie an ancient altar and a stone block with one of the earliest known Old Latin inscriptions (c. 570–550 BC). The superstructure monument and shrine may have been built by Julius Caesar during his reorganization of the Forum and Comitium space. Alternatively, this may have been done a generation earlier by Sulla during one of his construction projects around the Curia Hostilia. The site was rediscovered and excavated from 1899 to 1905 by Italian archaeologist Giacomo Boni. Mentioned in many ancient descriptions of the Forum dating b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
14 Regions Of Augustan Rome
In 7 BC, Augustus divided the city of ancient Rome, Rome into 14 administrative regions (Latin , ). These replaced the four —or "quarters"—traditionally attributed to Servius Tullius, sixth king of Rome. They were further divided into official neighborhoods (). Originally designated by number, the regions acquired nicknames from major landmarks or Topography of ancient Rome, topographical features within them. After the reign of Constantine the Great, the imperial city of Constantinople was also divided into fourteen ''regiones'', on the Roman example: the 14 regions of Constantinople. History of Rome's regions Evidence of regions in Rome before Augustus is limited. Writing in the mid-40s BC, Marcus Terentius Varro describes four 'partes urbis', referring to them individually as a ‘regio’ with both names and numbers: I Suburana, II Esquilina, III Collina and IV Palatina. Varro also provides evidence for vici in Republican Rome, deriving the word vicus from via and w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curia Julia
The Curia Julia () is the third named ''curia'', or senate house, in the ancient city of Rome. It was built in 44 BC, when Julius Caesar replaced Faustus Cornelius Sulla's reconstructed Curia Cornelia, which itself had replaced the Curia Hostilia. Caesar did so to redesign both spaces within the Comitium and the Roman Forum. The alterations within the Comitium reduced the prominence of the Senate and cleared the original space. The work, however, was interrupted by Caesar's assassination at the Curia of Pompey of the Theatre of Pompey, where the Senate had been meeting temporarily while the work was completed. The project was eventually finished by Caesar's heir and successor, Augustus Caesar, in 29 BC. The Curia Julia is one of a handful of Roman structures that survive mostly intact. This is due to its conversion into the basilica of Sant'Adriano al Foro in the 7th century and several later restorations. However, the roof, the upper elevations of the side walls and the rear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Praeneste Fibula
The Praeneste fibula (the "brooch of Palestrina") is a golden ''fibula'' or brooch, today housed in the Pigorini National Museum of Prehistory and Ethnography in Rome. The fibula bears an inscription in Old Latin, claiming craftsmanship by one Manios and ownership by one Numazios. At the time of its discovery in the late nineteenth century, it was accepted as the earliest known specimen of the Latin language. The authenticity of the inscription has since been disputed, repeatedly rejected and affirmed, with one assertion of antiquity dating to the first half of the seventh century BC. Discovery The fibula was presented to the public in 1887 by Wolfgang Helbig, an archaeologist. According to some sources, Helbig did not explain how he had come to acquire the artifact at the time, although others state that the fibula "was first made known to the public in three short articles in the for 1887 where it is said to have been purchased in Palestrina by a friend of Helbig in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duenos Inscription
The Duenos inscription is one of the earliest known Old Latin texts, variously dated from the 7th to the 5th century BC. It is inscribed on the sides of a ''kernos'', in this case a trio of small globular vases adjoined by three clay struts. It was found by Heinrich Dressel in 1880 in the valley between Quirinale and Viminale (today Via Nazionale (Rome), Via Nazionale) in Rome. The ''kernos'' is part of the collection of the Staatliche Museen in Berlin (inventory no. 30894,3). The inscription is written Right-to-left script, right to left in three units, without spaces to separate words. It is difficult to translate, as some letters are hard to distinguish, particularly since they cannot always be deduced by context. The absence of spaces causes additional difficulty in assigning the letters to the respective words. Text and translations There have been many proposed translations advanced by scholars since the discovery of the ''kernos''; by 1983, more than 50 different explanat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cippus
A () was a low, round, or rectangular pedestal set up by the Ancient Romans for purposes such as a milestone or a boundary post. They were also used for somewhat differing purposes by the Etruscans and Carthaginians. Roman cippi Roman cippi were made of wood or stone; inscriptions on the stone cippi indicate their function or the area that they surrounded, like sanctuaries and temple areas. In Rome they marked the limits of the after the city's walls were expanded further out, the course of aqueducts, and the . Cippi lined up in rows were also often numbered, often featuring the name of the person placing them or the distance to the nearest other cippus. The inscriptions on some cippi show that they were occasionally used as funeral memorials. Etruscan cippi Between 800–100 BC, cippi were used by the Etruscans as tombstones, which were shaped differently depending on the place and time of origin. Cippi were set up as a stele, column or sculpture in the dromos of an Et ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuff
Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock containing 25% to 75% ash is described as ''tuffaceous'' (for example, ''tuffaceous sandstone''). A pyroclastic rock containing 25–75% volcanic bombs or volcanic blocks is called tuff breccia. Tuff composed of sandy volcanic material can be referred to as volcanic sandstone. Tuff is a relatively soft rock, so it has been used for construction since ancient times. Because it is common in Italy, the Romans used it often for construction. The Rapa Nui people used it to make most of the ''moai'' statues on Easter Island. Tuff can be classified as either igneous or sedimentary rock. It is usually studied in the context of igneous petrology, although it is sometimes described using sedimentological terms. Tuff is often erroneously called t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plutarch
Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', a series of biographies of illustrious Greeks and Romans, and ''Moralia'', a collection of essays and speeches. Upon becoming a Roman citizen, he was possibly named Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus (). Family Plutarch was born to a prominent family in the small town of Chaeronea, about east of Delphi, in the Greek region of Boeotia. His family was long established in the town; his father was named Autobulus and his grandfather was named Lamprias. His brothers, Timon and Lamprias, are frequently mentioned in his essays and dialogues, which speak of Timon in particular in the most affectionate terms. Studies and life Plutarch studied mathematics and philosophy in Athens under Ammonius of Athens, Ammonius from AD 66 to 67. He attended th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dionysius Of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus (, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary style was ''atticistic'' – imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime. He is known for his work ''Rhōmaikē Archaiologia'' (Roman Antiquities), which describes the history of Rome from its beginnings until the outbreak of the First Punic War in 264 BC. Out of twenty books, only the first nine have survived. Dionysius' opinion of the necessity of a promotion of paideia within education, from true knowledge of classical sources, endured for centuries in a form integral to the identity of the Greek elite. Life He was a Halicarnassian. At some time after the end of the civil wars he moved to Rome, and spent twenty-two years studying Latin and literature and preparing materials for his history. During this period, he gave lessons in rhetoric, and enjoyed the society of many distinguished men. The date of his d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Faustulus
In Roman mythology, Faustulus was the shepherd who found the infant Romulus (the future founder of the city of Rome) and his twin brother Remus along the banks of the Tiber River as they were being suckled by the she-wolf, Lupa. According to legend, Faustulus carried the babies back to his sheepfold for his wife Acca Larentia to nurse them. Faustulus and Acca Larentia then raised the boys as their own. Romulus later defeated and killed King Amulius of Alba Longa, with the help of Faustulus, and his brother Pleistinus. Romulus and Remus set out to build their own city, but then had a falling-out. In the ensuing skirmish, Faustulus and Pleistinus were killed. Romulus went on to found Rome. Representation in Livy's ''From the Founding of the City'' The Roman historian Livy details the story of the infants Romulus and Remus in his work '' Ab urbe condita libri'' (From the Founding of the City). According to Livy, after the rape of the Vestal Virgin Rhea Silvia, who later claime ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hostus Hostilius
Hostus Hostilius was a Roman warrior in the time of Romulus, and the grandfather of Tullus Hostilius, the third Roman king. Legend In reprisal for the Rape of the Sabine Women, the Romans were attacked by forces sent by several Sabine towns. The Romans, who had anticipated rash action of this sort, quickly routed the armies of Caenina, Antemnae, and Crustumerium.Livy, i. 11. But Titus Tatius, king of the Sabine city of Cures, was more cautious, and gained access to the Roman citadel through subterfuge, forcing the Romans to fight from a disadvantageous position.Cassius Dio, i. ''fragmenta''. The two armies advanced toward each other along the ground between the Palatine and Capitoline hills, with the Sabine champion, Mettius Curtius, in the lead.Livy, i. 12. Hostus Hostilius, his Roman counterpart, met him in single combat.Livy, i. 12.Dionysius, iii. 1. Although Hostus fought valiantly, Mettius had the advantage of the ground, and slew the Roman champion. Disheartened ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
De Verborum Significatu
''De verborum significatione libri XX'' ('Twenty Books on the Meaning of Words'), also known as the ''Lexicon of Festus'', is an epitome compiled, edited, and annotated by Sextus Pompeius Festus from the Encyclopedia, encyclopedic works of Verrius Flaccus. Festus' epitome is typically dated to the 2nd century, but the work only survives in an incomplete 11th-century manuscript and copies of its own separate epitome. Background Verrius Flaccus was a prominent Ancient Romans, Roman Grammarian (Greco-Roman world), grammarian known for his writings on the Latin language and for tutoring the grandsons of Caesar Augustus during his reign. He is best known for ''De verborum significatu'', the name which Festus later adopted for his epitome, the first major alphabetical Latin dictionary. The 40-volume lexicon is regarded as among the most important such works of classical antiquity, though all but a few fragments of the original have been lost, perhaps in part due to its impractical size ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
