Curiosities of ancient Rome (Ancient stories)

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Ancient stories are curiosities revealing lesser-known, surprising, or unusual episodes from the world of ancient Rome and antiquity. This category includes short stories about events, people, and situations that don’t always make it into classical works, yet allow for a better understanding of the realities and mentality of the era.

Gases allowed by Claudius

Emperor Claudius once issued a feast on which one of the invited senators, not wanting to offend the ruler, withheld the gases, what led him to death. The ruler felt touched by the senator’s tragic…Więcej

Caesar, queen of Nicomedes

Julius Caesar, according to Suetonius, throughout his life had to deal with unsavoury jokes about himself. These comments were associated with an infamous adventure, which more than twenty-year-old Caesar had at the court of King…Więcej

Geese were holy in Rome

Interestingly, this custom was derived from the story that took place in 390 BCE. At that time, Capitol relied on the invasion of Gauls from the Padus valley. The Gauls decided to conquer the hill…Więcej

Augustus not so weak

The popular opinion is that young Gaius Octavian, the future Roman Emperor, was cowardly and weak. However, we know the message about how Octavian enters the area of a military camp to talk to rebel…Więcej

Faithful wife of Brutus

Porcia, the daughter of Cato the Younger, has gone to history as the second wife of Caesar’s murderer, Marcus Junius Brutus. He trusted his young wife so much that he even betrayed her the plans…Więcej

Duel of playwrights

In 46 BCE, during his triumph, Julius Caesar announced a competition for playwrights for writing. The two most important participants were Decimus Laberius and Publilius Syrus. Ultimately, Syrus won the grand prize – a million…Więcej

How did Cleopatra get Caesar?

After the victory over Pompey, in 48 BCE at Pharsalus and his death, Caesar became the sole master of the Roman world. Cleopatra VII, expelled from Alexandria by her brother Ptolemy XIII, was looking for…Więcej

Caligula joker

Roman emperor Caligula was known for his jokes. Once, during offering the victims, he was given a hammer to stun the animal. The priest standing next to him waited for this moment, then to cut…Więcej

Piso’s justice

Seneca the Younger mentions an interesting story of Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, the Roman governor of Syria and Roman politics (44 BCE – 20 CE) who was to get angry when he heard that only one…Więcej

Herennius Etruscus and father

Herennius Etruscus was the elder son of Emperor Decius and ruled from May to June 251 CE. From the beginning of the reign of Herennius, the gothic tribes (under the so-called Kniva) crossed the Danube…Więcej

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