Articles

The Temple of Mars Ultor stands in the Forum of Augustus in Rome and was built to commemorate Augustus' victory in 42 BCE at the Battle of Philippi over the assassins of Julius Caesar. The building became the place where important military...

Trajan's Market is the name given in the early 20th century CE to a complex of buildings in the imperial fora of Rome constructed in 107-110 CE during the reign of Trajan. The complex included a covered market, small shop fronts and a residential...

The theatre of Marcellus was the largest and most important theatre in Rome and completed in the late 1st century BCE during the reign of Augustus. The architecture of the theatre would become a standard feature of theatres across the empire...

The Tizoc Stone is a huge stone cylinder from the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan which depicts a sun-disk on its flat upper surface and carries a frieze around its outer edge showing Aztec warriors and the Aztec king Tizoc, whose reign from...

Travel opportunities within the ancient Greek world largely depended on status and profession; nevertheless, a significant proportion of the population could, and did, travel across the Mediterranean to sell their wares, skills, go on religious...

Was Theodora I, the wife of Emperor Justinian of Byzantium (reigned 527 - 565 CE), a heroine? The historian Treadgold calls her a protectress of women, as she used her influence to help them gain rights. She is also seen in popular legend...

The sport known simply as the Ball Game was played by all the major Mesoamerican civilizations and the impressive stone courts became a feature of many cities. More than just a game, it could have a religious significance and featured in...

Craftsmen of the Minoan civilization centred on the island of Crete produced stone vessels from the early Bronze Age (c. 2500 BCE) using a wide variety of stone types which were laboriously carved out to create vessels of all shapes, sizes...

The interiors of Roman buildings of all description were very frequently sumptuously decorated using bold colours and designs. Wall paintings, fresco and the use of stucco to create relief effects were all commonly used by the 1st century...

The Arch of Janus, erected in the 4th century CE, stands in the forum Boarium of Rome and was most probably set up as a boundary-marker rather than a commemorative triumphal arch. The four-way marble arch stands over the Cloaca Maxima or...