Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians

The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians

by P. J. Heather

The death of the Roman Empire is one of the perennial mysteries of world history. Now, in this groundbreaking book, Peter Heather proposes a stunning new solution: Centuries of imperialism turned the neighbors Rome called barbarians into an enemy capable of dismantling an Empire that had dominated their lives for so long. A leading authority on the late Roman Empire and on the barbarians, Heather relates the... (more)

The Hellenistic Age: A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles)

The Hellenistic Age: A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles)

by Peter Green

The Hellenistic era witnessed the overlap of antiquity’s two great Western civilizations, the Greek and the Roman. This was the epoch of Alexander’s vast expansion of the Greco-Macedonian world, the rise and fall of his successors’ major dynasties in Egypt and Asia, and, ultimately, the establishment of Rome as the first Mediterranean superpower. The Hellenistic Age chronicles the years 336 to 30 BCE, from the... (more)

The Complete Pompeii

by Joanne Berry

A gloriously illustrated and comprehensive survey of the most famous ancient site in the world. The dramatic story of Pompeii's destruction has been handed down to us by Roman writers, its paintings and mosaics have astonished visitors since their discovery in the eighteenth century, and its houses and public buildings to this day present a vivid picture of life, disaster, and death in a Roman town. Pompeii is... (more)

The Roman Way

by Edith Hamilton

In this informal history of Roman civilization, Edith Hamilton vividly depicts the Roman life and spirit as they are revealed in the greatest writers of the time. Among these literary guides are Cicero, who left an incomparable collection of letters; Catullus, the quintessential poet of love; Horace, the chronicler of a cruel and materialistic Rome; and the Romantics Virgil, Livy, and Seneca. The story... (more)

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now

by John Dominic Crossan

At the heart of the Bible is a moral and ethical call to fight unjust superpowers, whether they are Babylon, Rome, or even America. From the divine punishment and promise found in Genesis through the revolutionary messages of Jesus and Paul, John Dominic Crossan reveals what the Bible has to say about land and economy, violence and retribution, justice and peace, and, ultimately, redemption. In contrast to the... (more)

Etruscan Art (World of Art)

by Nigel Jonathan Spivey

The Etruscans were the most powerful force in central Italy until Roman unification of the peninsula. Vestiges of their art, architecture, and unique language have long intrigued scholars, and the search for this mysterious civilization continues to fire the imagination. Despite a history of pillage, rich archaeological evidence survives: thousands of tombs, many of them frescoed and filled with vases, sculpture,... (more)

The Greek Way

by Edith Hamilton

The aim of this work is not a history of events but an account of the achievement and spirit of Greece. "Five hundred years before Christ in a little town on the far western border of the settled and civilizaed world, a strange new power was at work. . . . Athens had entered upon her brief and magnificent flowering of genius which so molded the world of mind and of spirit that our mind and spirit today are... (more)

Arcana Mundi: Magic and the Occult in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Collection of Ancient Texts

Arcana Mundi: Magic and the Occult in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Collection of Ancient Texts

by Professor Georg Luck

Magic, miracles, daemonology, divination, astrology, and alchemy were the arcana mundi, the "secrets of the universe," of the ancient Greeks and Romans. In this path-breaking collection of Greek and Roman writings on magic and the occult, Georg Luck provides a comprehensive sourcebook and introduction to magic as it was practiced by witches and sorcerers, magi and astrologers, in the Greek and Roman worlds. In... (more)

Pompeii

Frozen in time when Mount Vesuvius erupted on August 24, 79 C.E., Pompeii, gradually rediscovered and slowly excavated, has had an enormous impact on the "collective imagination." Editor and contributor Coarelli, an expert on Roman antiquities at the University of Perugia, and his equally impressive contributors, trace Pompeii's profound influence on literature, history, art, music, and film, and examine the major... (more)

The Later Roman Empire (Fontana History of the Ancient World)

The Later Roman Empire (Fontana History of the Ancient World)

by Averil Cameron

Studies of culture, politics and society in the later Roman Empire have become more prolific because of the work of archaeologists, theologians and historical researchers. This book surveys this period in history, detailing recent discoveries and theories proposed.

Echo of Greece

by Edith Hamilton

Edith Hamilton won the National Achievement Award in 1950, received honorary degrees of Doctor of Letters from Yale University, the University of Rochester, and the University of Pennsylvania, and was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1957 she was many an honorary citizen of Athens and was decorated with the Golden Cross of the Order of Benefaction by King Paul of Greece.

Rome (Treasures Ancient Civilization)

by Maria Teresa Guaitoli

From obscure Neolithic pastoral village to capitol of the world, the history of ancient Rome is not merely one of the most incredible adventures of mankind, but constitutes the start of an uninterrupted bridge between the dawn of Italic civilization and the modern West. This meticulously researched volume reconstructs the history of Rome, from its formative years to the crisis of 5th century BC, following the... (more)

Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice

This is an unprecedented collection of nearly seventy Late Antique primary religious texts. These texts--all in new English translation and many appearing in English for the first time--represent every major religious current from the late first century until the rise of Islam. Produced through the efforts of thirty-six leading scholars in the field, they constitute a comprehensive view of religious practice in... (more)

The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World: From the Archaic Age to the Arab Conquests

The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World: From the Archaic Age to the Arab Conquests

by G. E. M. De Ste. Croix

Caesar's Commentaries: On the Gallic War And on the Civil War

Caesar's Commentaries: On the Gallic War And on the Civil War

by Julius Caesar

Between 58 and 50BC Caesar conquered most of the area now covered by France, Belgium and Switzerland, and twice invaded Britain. This is the record of his campaigns. Caesar's narrative offers insights into his military strategy & paints a fascinating picture of his encounters with the inhabitant of Gaul and Britain, as well as offering lively portraits of a number of key characters such as the rebel leaders... (more)

Plutarch on Sparta (Penguin Classics)

by Plutarch

Plutarch’s vivid and engaging portraits of the Spartans and their customs are a major source of our knowledge about the rise and fall of their remarkable Greek city-state between the sixth and third centuries BC. Through his Lives of Sparta’s leaders and his recording of memorable Spartan Sayings , he depicts a people who lived frugally and mastered their emotions in all aspects of life, who disposed of... (more)

Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity

Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity

by Sarah B. Pomeroy

"The first general treatment of women in the ancient world to reflect the critical insights of modern feminism. Though much debated, its position as the basic textbook on women's history in Greece and Rome has hardly been challenged."--Mary Beard, Times Literary Supplement. Illustrations.

These Were the Romans

by Graham Tingay

It is extremely readable, consistently entertaining...No book that tells the reader that the Romans slept in their underwear and debates whether or not they brushed their teeth is without merit"" - New England Classical Newsletter. ""One of the key elements to the usefulness of this book is the presence of direct quotes from noted Roman speakers, writers, and philosphers which are effectively intermingled with... (more)

Roman Life: 100 B.C. to A.D. 200

by John R. Clarke

Roman Life vividly re-creates the lives and experiences of people living in the Roman Empire—not only the super-rich emperors and senators, but also ordinary citizens, merchants, slaves, and freedmen. Lavish, full-color illustrations, many made especially for this volume, invite the reader to explore all aspects of life as seen through Roman eyes, from religion, work, and the military to banqueting, funerals, and... (more)

The Cambridge Ancient History Volume 14: Late Antiquity: Empire and Successors, AD 425-600

The Cambridge Ancient History Volume 14: Late Antiquity: Empire and Successors, AD 425-600

by I. E. S. Edwards

With Volume 13, the new edition of The Cambridge Ancient History moves into fresh territory. The first edition was completed by Volume 12, which closed in AD 324. The editors of the new edition have enlarged the scope of Volume 12 to include the foundation of Constantinople and the death of Constantine, and extended the series with two wholly new volumes taking the History up to AD 600. Volume 13, the first of... (more)

Shelfari Book Activity

Tags: classical history

The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians

by P. J. Heather

The Hellenistic Age: A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles)

by Peter Green

The Complete Pompeii

by Joanne Berry

The Roman Way

by Edith Hamilton

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now

by John Dominic Crossan

Etruscan Art (World of Art)

by Nigel Jonathan Spivey

The Greek Way

by Edith Hamilton

Arcana Mundi: Magic and the Occult in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Collection of Ancient Texts

by Professor Georg Luck

Pompeii

The Later Roman Empire (Fontana History of the Ancient World)

by Averil Cameron

Echo of Greece

by Edith Hamilton

Rome (Treasures Ancient Civilization)

by Maria Teresa Guaitoli

Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice

The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World: From the Archaic Age to the Arab Conquests

by G. E. M. De Ste. Croix

Caesar's Commentaries: On the Gallic War And on the Civil War

by Julius Caesar

Plutarch on Sparta (Penguin Classics)

by Plutarch

Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity

by Sarah B. Pomeroy

These Were the Romans

by Graham Tingay

Roman Life: 100 B.C. to A.D. 200

by John R. Clarke

The Cambridge Ancient History Volume 14: Late Antiquity: Empire and Successors, AD 425-600

by I. E. S. Edwards