Guardian of lion on Roman mosaic
Roman mosaic showing a man who was probably the guardian of a lion. The mosaic adorned a Roman villa in Nennig, in southwest Germany.
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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.
Anomalies in nature
Ancient Romans were often interested in anomalies in nature. Therefore, Octavian Augustus (63 BCE – 14 CE) received an armless person from India – a boy 60 cm tall. Such persons were held for entertainment (they were also shown in public).
Mark Antony’s legion emissions
They say you need three things to fight a war: money, money, and more money. Regardless of whether or not we accept this sentence as true, money undoubtedly helps in war. Of course, it was no different in ancient times. In ancient Rome, troops were paid primarily with silver denarii, sometimes, in exceptional circumstances, and also with gold coins, i.e. aureus.
Silk and Seres – Romans about Chinese
Chinese were referred to by the ancient Romans as the Seres1. The Romans associated this people far east of the borders of the Empire primarily for the beautiful silk fabric, on which the Chinese held a monopoly. The Middle Kingdom for centuries had enormous profits from the sale of silk, which was very much in demand by the Roman aristocracy.
Roman support system for poorest
Ancient Romans knew that if a society was to be economically viable, it had to be well fed. Therefore, there was a social welfare system that guaranteed the distribution or sale of grain at reduced prices (the so-called frumentationes).
Impressive geographic knowledge of ancient Greeks
The geographical knowledge of the ancient Greeks was truly impressive. Already in antiquity, prominent Greek minds held the theory of the spherical Earth as true. Moreover, numerous expeditions of discovery and information were collected, which led to the development of geography as a science.
Sea expedition of Carthaginian admiral Hanno
Hanno was a high Carthaginian admiral who lived in the 6th or 5th centuries BCE and who commanded a sea expedition that passed through the “Pillars of Heracles” (Strait of Gibraltar) and sailed along the coast of West Africa. We know about the expedition thanks to two copies of periplus1, preserved in Greek.
