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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.
In 206 BCE African Scipio created a war veterans colony in Spain, the first located outside the Apennine Peninsula. The colony named Italica was to promote Roman culture to the neighboring Iberian tribes, in the hope that they will adopt Roman way of life.
Claudius Drusus, son of emperor Claudius (10 BCE – 54 CE) and Plautia Urgulanillia, suffocated when he tossed a pear for fun and this one fell his open mouth.
Roman curse tablet found in London. Dated back to I-IV century CE.
Probably the oldest inscription with the words ROMA, preserved on the sword, which is dated back to IV century BCE. The “San Vittore Sword” was discovered in 2003 by Dante Sacco. The clue to making the assessment of sword’s origin was the style of engraving Macedonian stars on the sword. The inscription itself says:
Roman fresco of the centaur Chiron instructing the young Achilles in the playing of the lyre. Object found in Herculaneum. Dated back to I century CE; located in Naples Archeological Museum.
Herma was an architectural decorative element in the form of a square pole tapering downwards, and at the top ended with a bust or a sculpture of the head. Initially (up to the 5th century BCE) the form used in Greece only for the representation of Hermes, the god of the journey. On herma also was placed the image of the phallus, which in ancient times was a symbol of happiness. Later, other gods and heroes were presented in this way.
A marble sculpture depicting a Satyre annoying the panther. Object dated to the 1st century CE.
