BLOG: Social Life in the Roman World

Slavery in the Roman world

Mosaic of slaves preparing for or serving at a banquet I anticipate that many of my readers will be surprised to see the relatively…

Antioch-near-Pisidia

Map of modern Turkey showing the location of Antioch-near-Pisidia The city where much of this story takes place was one of 16 cities in…

An empire of cities

Artist’s rendition of a typical Greek city One of the hardest things for modern readers to comprehend about the ancient world, at least…

To market, to market…

Ruins of the commercial agora in Ephesus, Turkey Did you ever wonder where people in the ancient world bought the things that they needed…

Sickness in the Roman world

Shared public toilets were a common channel for spreading disease in Greek and Roman cities It can be hard for citizens of modern Western…

Ancient Physicians and Health Care

Fresco from Pompeii depicting a physician removing an arrowhead from the leg of Aeneas In today’s world physicians are highly trained,…

Asklepios, Gracious Savior and Healer

Relief of the god Asklepios and his daughter Hygeia treating a sleeping girl (Piraeus, Greece) All of the books in my A Slave’s Story…

Anti-Judaism in the Roman World

Colorized version of a panel from the Arch of Titus in Rome depicting the conquest of the Jews in 70 A.D. (For more on the colorization,…

Roman roads in Asia Minor

Remains of the Via Sebaste, the Roman road where the journey narrated in my novels begins. If you were asked to name ten factors that…

Getting around in Roman Asia Minor

Tomb carving of a Roman carpentum, the kind of carriage used in my novels As I noted in a previous post, the Romans either built or…

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