Rome | Alison Morton's Thrillers

Ancient Rome – Did size matter?

(Public domain, Wikipedia)

Size always matters, and the Romans knew it. A quick look at land, coins and a load of old rubbish…

The Roman Empire once included all, or part of, nearly 50 countries

At the empire’s greatest extent in AD 117 under Trajan, Roman territory stretched from northern Britain to southern […]

Debunking the 'Roman salute'

Oath of the Horatii (Jean-Louis David, 1784)

Recently, a prominent social media personality thrust his arm in the air in a straight arm salute that caused an earthquake of reaction, mostly shuddering. For many, it recalled fascists, Nazis and ultra nationalism of every kind. According to legend, this fascist gesture was based on […]

Roman emperors – The good, the bad and ugly

Hadrian is bearded – powerful in the spirit of the Greek god Hercules. Constantine the Great is clean shaven – a strong military leader. Vespasian is just Vespasian, Septimius Severus styles himself on his favourite god Serapis. (Author photo at the Yorkshire Museum)

At a rough count there were around a hundred Roman […]