Curiosities of ancient Rome (Unknown facts)
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Sparsiones – spraying water on audience at Roman shows
Sparsiones referred to the practice of sprinkling water on the audience gathered in Roman amphitheaters and theaters. The water was often flavored, intended both to cool the audience and to enhance the atmosphere. The word literally means “sprinkling” (from the ... Read more
Ostriches according to Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder described in his “Natural History” that ostriches would bury their heads in a bush to hide from danger. This belief has persisted to this day as a popular myth, despite the lack of evidence for this behaviour ... Read more
Hourglass – ancient water clock that measured time
Before watches and modern clocks, the ancient Romans used clepsydras, or water clocks, to measure the passage of time. This device worked by passing water from one container to another, usually through a small hole. As the water level fell ... Read more
Glass brain of Vesuvius
Man’s brain turned to glass in hot ash cloud from Vesuvius. Nearly 2,000 years after a young man died in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, scientists have discovered that his brain was preserved when it turned to glass in an ... Read more
Giant blocks of Baalbek
Baalbek is home to one of the most impressive quarries of antiquity, known primarily for its gigantic stone blocks, such as the “Pregnant Woman Stone” (Hajjar al-Hibla). The largest of these weighs about 1,000 tons and is one of the ... Read more
Corinth Channel – ancient plans for great construction
Corinth Channel, which today connects the Ionian Sea with the Aegean Sea, was a construction dream in ancient times. The Corinth Channel is strategically and economically important because it avoids swimming all of the Peloponnese. Moreover, in ancient times, swimming ... Read more
Lucerna – what was it used for by ancient Romans?
Roman oil lamp (lucerna) is an everyday item that was widely used in ancient Rome to illuminate homes, temples and other spaces. Made of clay, bronze, and sometimes marble, these lamps had a characteristic shape with a spout for the ... Read more
Differences Between a Municipality and a Roman Colony
Although both the municipality and the Roman colony refer to forms of urban organization in ancient Rome, they differed significantly in terms of administrative structure, autonomy, and relations with central authority. Understanding these differences is crucial for a fuller comprehension ... Read more
Did the Romans know the world was a round blue sphere before the rest of the world?
There is strong evidence that the ancient Greeks and Romans knew the world was a round globe before the rest of the world learned of it. The first visual evidence found comes from a wall painting in the ancient Roman ... Read more
Cannibal fish, works of art and church – changing fate of one place
I don’t know about you, but I’m fascinated by discovering the continuity of the fate of the city and its individual parts. From the perspective of a short human existence, the evolution of urban space – its reconstructions, transformations and ... Read more
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