Curiosities of ancient Rome (Unknown facts)

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Unknown Facts are curiosities revealing little-known, surprising, or rarely discussed information from the world of ancient Rome and antiquity. This category includes unusual details, curiosities, and facts that offer a less obvious perspective on the Roman Empire.

Food tester in Rome

Pregustator was a person (usually a slave) who tried to eat or drink before serving. The rulers had a whole host of such testers, afraid to be poisoned.Więcej

Name of month January

Name of the month January comes from the Roman god Janus. The Latin name of the month of January is Ianuarius. He was the god of all origins, and also the guardian of doors, gates,…Więcej

Lack of enemies is threat

Plutarch mentions that most of the people claimed that the destruction of Carthage and the conquest of Greece gave Rome security and a chance of harmonious existence. The Greek historian, however, cites the opinion of…Więcej

Flowers around Colosseum

Flowers from North Africa are still growing around the Colosseum. Their seeds were probably brought to Rome thanks to lions and other exotic animals (eg. in fur), which were brought to the capital for the…Więcej

Wars only in summer

Ancient Romans as farming people wars only fought in the summer between the times of sowing and harvest, and before winter, when military maneuvers were more difficult. For the first time in the winter, Rome…Więcej

Plague in ancient times

When the plague appeared in any ancient city, so many people died that government gave up individual burials for the mass burying of the dead. An example of such a burial is a mass grave…Więcej

Dried manure is medicine?

From the category of alternative methods of treatment. Pliny the Elder states that wounds and bruises are best treated with dried dung of wild boar taken in spring. Such a method is recommended, for example,…Więcej

“Since they do not wish to eat, let them drink!”

In 249 BCE, the great-great-grandson of the famous Appius Claudius (as a censor changed Latin spelling and built in Rome one of the first aqueducts), consul Appius Claudius Pulcher during the First Punic War attacked…Więcej

First colony for legionaries outside of Italy

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…Więcej

Suffocated with pear

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.Więcej

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