Curiosities of ancient Rome (Unknown facts)

Cicero (106-43 BCE) publicly ridiculed the continued increase in the number of senators in Rome. In the 1st century BCE Senate increased its number many times.

On June 1, 384 BCE the saviour of Rome Marcus Furius Camillus announced the construction of a temple Junons Coins. The building was dedicated in 344 BCE. on the northern hill of the Capitoline Hill, where, according to tradition, the house of Manlius Capitolineus once stood¹, and even earlier probably the castle (arx) of the kings. The nickname Moneta means Warning, Advising, from the Latin word monere.

Wealthy Romans often travelled with the litter. It got to such an extent that the Roman writer and rhetorician Seneca the Younger (c. 4 BCE – 65 CE) complained about the inconvenience of such a means of transport.

Emperor Domitian (51-96 CE) used to say that the prynceps are unhappy because they do not believe reports of the plot until they are murdered.

The censor Lucius Aurelius Cotta did not shy away from wine. During his tenure in 64 BCE Cicero applied for a consulate. A famous Roman orator was once thirsty for a drink of water. As his friends were standing around, he indulged in a joke:

Even though at the beginning of the empire, Roman legionaries were not officially allowed to marry, they not only started a family, but they also did not keep it very secret.

Of the first successors of Octavian Augustus, only Tiberius died a natural death. Caligula was stabbed to death, Claudius was poisoned, and Nero was forced to commit suicide. As it turns out, the emperor’s life was not easy and comfortable.

The tomb of Alexander the Great was already a cult object and a destination for expeditions in antiquity. To this day, it is not entirely clear where he was. Supposedly, in 48 BCE Julius Caesar visited the tomb in which the body of the great Macedonian leader was buried. Following in his footsteps, following the death of Cleopatra, his adopted son, Gaius Octavian followed. The chroniclers mention that he placed a bouquet of flowers on the conqueror’s grave and ordered a golden tiara to be placed over his head.

Publishers of Roman books tried to prevent their private copying by “throwing to the market” multiple copies at once. It wasn’t just about the competition, but more about keeping the text correct.