Ancient

Bust of Marcus Tullius Cicero, first century BC. Bridgeman Images.

Caesar and Cicero’s War of Words

As ancient Rome was divided by civil war Cicero found himself torn. Caesar was his old adversary, but he was also powerful, and it was politically and personally expedient to support him.

Relief from a burial monument showing a teacher and students, Neumagen, Germany, c.AD 180. G. Dagli Orti/NPL - DeA Picture Library/Bridgeman Images.

Educated Slaves in Ancient Rome

A literate slave was a must-have in wealthy ancient Roman households. Keen to capitalise on this taste for learning, masters and slaves alike turned education into profit.

The ceiling of the Tomb of the Diver, Paestum, c.480 BC. Peregrine/Alamy Stock Photo.

‘The Diver of Paestum’ by Tonio Hölscher review

The Diver of Paestum: Youth, Eros and the Sea in Ancient Greece by Tonio Hölscher – and translated by Robert Savage – searches beneath the surface for the meaning behind a beguiling fresco.

Cyrus restores the vessels to the Temple of Jerusalem, by Gustave Doré for the Bible de Tours, 1843. Bridgeman Images.

The Great Destroyer: Cyrus, Babylon, and Jerusalem

The ancient world found him to have achieved greatness and thrust it upon his name, but was the destruction of Babylon Cyrus’ divinely ordained destiny?

Fibulae, French, sixth-seventh century. Luisa Ricciarini/Bridgeman Images

The Merovingians: ‘Do-Nothing Kings’?

The Merovingians have a reputation for long hair and barbarity. Instead, the dynasty, born out of the chaos of civil war, was one of peace, diplomacy, and bureaucracy.

The young Brahmin is committed to the care of a Shastri Brahmin. From The Lives of the Brahmin, an album of 38 watercolour drawings of ceremonies undertaken during the life of a Brahmin, India, c.1820. British Library/Bridgeman Images.

Brahmins: The Origins of India’s Priestly Caste

In the first millennium BC the Brahmin class organised as a community and assumed responsibility for learning the sacred Vedas. What are the origins of India’s priestly caste?

Stone stela of Ashurbanipal inscribed with cuneiform commemorating his building work on the Temple of Marduk in Babylon. Trustees of the British Museum.

The Library of Ashurbanipal

When it was discovered in the 19th century, the Library of Ashurbanipal revealed an ancient Assyrian empire previously known only through myth.

Moses receiving the Ten Commandments, from the Regensburg Pentateuch, c.1300. Israel Museum, Jerusalem/The Ridgefield Foundation, New York, in memory of Henry J. and Erna D. Leir/Bridgeman Images.

‘Who Really Wrote the Bible’ by William M. Schniedewind review

Who Really Wrote the Bible: The Story of the Scribes by William M. Schniedewind asks what authorship meant to the hidden hands behind the Old Testament.

Silver denarius of Cassius Longinus, depicting a citizen casting a ballot, 63 BC. CNG coins.

How to Win an Election in Ancient Rome

Ancient Roman election advice suggested some uncomfortable campaign strategies. Evidence from Pompeii suggests many candidates followed it enthusiastically.