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Curiosities of ancient Rome

The world of ancient Romans abounded in a number of amazing curiosities and information. The source of knowledge about the life of the Romans are mainly works left to us by ancient writers or discoveries. The Romans left behind a lot of strange information and facts that are sometimes hard to believe.

Romans decided whether to accept infants

In ancient Rome, the very birth of a child was a solemn event for the household. When the boy was born, the door of the house was decorated with olive branches. When the girl was born – woollen ribbons. Shortly after birth, the infant was placed at the father’s feet – as the master of the house and family, who was to decide his future.

Roman child bust

Frogs in world of ancient Greeks and Romans

Ancient Greeks and Romans identified frogs with harmony, fertility or debauchery and the goddess Aphrodite (Venus). Ancient writers devoted numerous texts to frogs, including “Batrachomyomachia”, which tells about the war of mice with frogs and is heroicomic. The authorship of this work is unknown, but Homer is considered the creator.

Roman terracotta frog

Example of racism in antiquity?

In ancient Rome, at the beginning of the day, there was faith in divination, good and bad omen announcing future events and superstitions. Such faith did not always end pleasantly for everyone, especially if a man was considered to be the evil sign that heralded the misfortune that would come.

Roman legionnaire from the 1st century CE

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