Search
Search Results
Image
Roman Torso of Hercules
This torso of Heracles was made in Rome around the 2nd century CE of the finest marble. Heracles' nude figure displays the dazzling truth of a body in the flower of youth and timeless beauty. By contrast with the beauty of the female draped...
Image
Scene from the Shield of Hercules
Zeus separates Athena and Ares while Cycnus (far right) runs away from Hercules who approaches in his chariot (only the horses are visible, far left). Attic black-figured volute-krater, ca 540–510 BCE.
Image
King Eurystheus Hiding from Hercules
A detail of a red-figure vase showing the king of Argos, Eurystheus, hiding from Hercules who, after one of his labours, carries the Erymanthian boar. (Louvre Museum, Paris)
Image
Hercules & Iolaus, Roman Mosaic
A Roman fountain mosaic from Anzio depicting the hero Hercules and his faithful companion Iolaus. (Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Rome)
Article
Ten Ancient LGBTQ Facts You Need to Know
Issues in the modern-day regarding gender identity and civil rights for members of the LGBTQ community are a relatively recent phenomenon as are the terms 'homosexual' and 'heterosexual'. In ancient societies, there was no distinction made...
Article
Herodotus on the Egyptians
II:35. The Egyptians in agreement with their climate, which is unlike any other, and with the river, which shows a nature different from all other rivers, established for themselves manners and customs in a way opposite to other men in almost...
Article
Dogs in the Ancient World
Dogs have been a part of the history of human beings since before the written word. The ancient temple of Gobekli-Tepe in Turkey, dated to at least 12,000 years BCE, has provided archaeologists with evidence of domesticated dogs in the Middle...
Article
The Invention of the First Coinage in Ancient Lydia
Money may take many forms, from the digital code of cryptocurrency to the woodpecker scalps favoured in early California. People have also used cattle, cacao beans, cowrie shells, chewing gum, grain, and giant stones as money. Early cultures...
Article
The Eleusinian Mysteries: The Rites of Demeter
The Rites of Eleusis, or the Eleusinian Mysteries, were the secret rituals of the mystery school of Eleusis and were observed regularly from c. 1600 BCE - 392 CE. Exactly what this mystic ritual was no one knows; but why the ancient Greeks...
Article
The Women of Athena's Cult
In ancient Athens, women had no life outside the home unless they were prostitutes or were engaged in religious activities such as festivals. Every Greek deity in every city-state had their own cult (sect) but the cult of Athena offered women...