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.

Elagabalus the joker

Emperor Elagabalus made exceptional jokes to his friends. He locked drunk people in one room with lions, leopards or bears, from which he previously removed fangs and claws (the so-called exarmati). When they woke up…Więcej

Envoy from Laodicea

Once upon a time, an envoy from Laodicea came to Rome. He was to ask Julius Caesar himself for freedom for his country. Before that, however, he met Cicero. He was supposed to say to…Więcej

Livia took care of herself

The wife of Octavian Augustus – Livia – took great care of her body, caring for both its beauty and health. She reportedly had a large number of hairdressers, masseuses, dressmakers, and jewellers among her…Więcej

Well I’ve played my part

Emperor Octavian Augustus (63 BCE – 14 CE), while lying on his death bed, asked his friends if they thought he had played his the drama of life. Finally, he was to say in Greek:…Więcej

Caesar’s drinking was moderate

Suetonius tells us that the famous Roman commander Julius Caesar was known for his moderation in drinking wine. Hence the famous words of Marcus Cato the Younger: “Caesar was the only man who undertook to…Więcej

Good Augustus

One day at Octavian Augustus a citizen of Furnius appeared, who wanted to ask the emperor’s forgiveness for his father, who during the civil war was a supporter of Mark Antony. Octavian agreed and spared…Więcej

Hadrian in literal clash

Emperor Hadrian (76-138 CE) often competed with teachers and philosophers in prose or poetry. On one occasion he rebuked a word used by the Gallic thinker, Favorinus, who had yielded to the emperor. The friends…Więcej

Funny Augustus

It is said that one day the emperor Octavian Augustus ordered a spoiled young man – a man named Herenius – to leave the Roman camp. The latter, wanting to appease him, exclaimed: “How can…Więcej

Liar merchant

According to the Historia Augusta, during the reign of Gallienus (253-268 CE), a Roman merchant who traded in fake jewellery was captured and led to the arena, where he had faced a bloodthirsty lion. As…Więcej

Attempts to reorganize front in Dacia and trick

At the end of the 80s of the 1st century CE, the Romans fought the Dacian kingdom, which, led by Diurpaneus, inflicted two defeats on the Roman legions. The fear of losing Rome’s prestige caused…Więcej

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