# Christopherdstanley ## Posts - [Magdala and International Trade](https://www.aslavesstory.com/magdala-and-international-trade/): The city of Magdala plays a vital role in A Ram for Mars as the final stop on Marcus's quest to find his mother and the place where he and Miriam decide to settle down... - [Galilee of the Gentiles?](https://www.aslavesstory.com/galilee-of-the-gentiles/): Galilee, the northern district of Israel, plays a vital role in A Ram for Mars as both the homeland of Marcus’s ancestors (through his grandmother)... - [A Roman Island in a Jewish Sea](https://www.aslavesstory.com/a-roman-island-in-a-jewish-sea/): Golda Meir, former prime minister of Israel, once quipped, “Let me tell you the one thing I have against Moses... - [The Wild, Wild—East?](https://www.aslavesstory.com/the-wild-wild-east/): Anyone who has heard anything about Jesus knows that he was crucified by Roman soldiers after being condemned by the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate... - [Slavery in the Roman world](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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... - [Marking time with the Romans](https://www.aslavesstory.com/marking-time-with-the-romans/): Since the A Slave's Story series is written from the vantage point of one of the characters in the story, I made a conscious effort to... - [An empire of cities](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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...](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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,... - [The Oldest Known Greek Song](https://www.aslavesstory.com/the-oldest-known-greek-song/): Greek vase painting showing four of the nine Greek muses playing musical instruments Music doesn't play a notable role in my two novels,... - [Asklepios, Gracious Savior and Healer](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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](https://www.aslavesstory.com/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... - [Dining with Greeks and Roman](https://www.aslavesstory.com/dining-with-greeks-and-roman/): Where did Greeks and Romans eat? It depends on where you stood in the social pyramid. A vast gulf existed in Greek and Roman cities... - [Taking care of business, Roman style](https://www.aslavesstory.com/taking-care-of-business-roman-style/): Urine collection pot from the shop of a fuller (launderer) in Pompeii, Italy The first two books of my new historical fiction trilogy, A... - [Women Rule! Mighty Goddesses of Asia Minor](https://www.aslavesstory.com/women-rule-mighty-goddesses-of-asia-minor/): Long before the coming of the Greeks and Romans, the peoples of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) honored powerful earth goddesses as a key... - [What's in a Dream?](https://www.aslavesstory.com/whats-in-a-dream/): Hypnos, Greek god of sleep, holds his wand over Leda as Zeus comes to her at night as a swan Modern science views dreams as a set of... - [What’s So Bad about Christians?](https://www.aslavesstory.com/whats-so-bad-about-christians/): Second-century AD Christian mural showing a communion ceremony led by a woman (left), from the Catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter in Rome.... - [What Saith the Oracle?](https://www.aslavesstory.com/what-saith-the-oracle/): 5th century BCE Greek painting from a drinking bowl showing Aegeus, one of the mythical founders of Athens, consulting the oracle at... - [Welcome to my site!](https://www.aslavesstory.com/welcome-to-my-site/): I'm thrilled to launch this Website in support of my two new historical novels, A Rooster for Asklepios and A Bull for Pluto. If you've... ## Pages - [New Book](https://www.aslavesstory.com/new-book/): Book Title here - [Blog](https://www.aslavesstory.com/blog/): BLOG: Social Life in the Roman World All Posts A Rooster for Asklepios A Bull for Pluto A Ram for Mars - [CONTACT](https://www.aslavesstory.com/contact/): CONTACT THE AUTHOR I’d love to hear from anyone who has questions about anything in these stories or suggestions for future novels.  Use the contact box below or e-mail me at cstanley@sbu.edu.  You can also use this form to be notified when the final book in the trilogy, A Ram for Mars, is published. - [RESOURCES](https://www.aslavesstory.com/resources/): RESOURCES Follow the links below to view images from the various places that Lucius, Marcus, and Miriam visit during the course of their travels. GENERAL Travel Map of Asia Minor with Lucius’s Travel Route Ancient Roman Travel Housing Short Video on Roman Elite Houses (3:29) Short Video Reconstruction of Elite Roman House from Pompeii (6:11.) Religion Video on Roman State and Household Religion (22:34) Images of Roman Lararia (Household Shrines) ANTIOCH-NEAR-PISIDIA (Rooster, Chapters 1-12; Bull, Chapters 9-18) Introduction to the Site Countryside around Antioch Aerial View and Scenes from the Site Map of the Archaeological Site Model of the City […] - [INTERVIEW](https://www.aslavesstory.com/interview/): INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR Why would an academic historian decide to write historical novels? This series began with a question from my wife a dozen or so years ago. A connoisseur of historical fiction, she startled me one day by asking out of the blue, “With all of that historical research that you do, why don’t you write a historical novel?” The idea of writing fiction had never crossed my mind until that moment. My other books and articles are all highly technical works targeted toward academic scholars. Apart from one textbook, I had never written for a popular audience. […] - [AUTHOR](https://www.aslavesstory.com/author/): ABOUT THE AUTHOR CHRISTOPHER D. STANLEY is a social and religious historian who writes about early Christianity and Judaism in the Greco-Roman world. He served for over twenty years as a professor at St. Bonaventure University in western New York, where he holds the title of Professor Emeritus. Dr. Stanley has written or edited ten books and dozens of professional articles on early Christian texts and history and presents papers at academic conferences around the world. The “A Slave’s Story” trilogy, which grew out of his historical research on first-century Asia Minor, is his first foray into fiction. He continues […] - [BOOKS](https://www.aslavesstory.com/books/): ABOUT THE BOOKS What would you do if you discovered you were not who you thought you were—that your family history and identity had been hidden from you since you were born?  What if embracing that identity would make others despise you?  What if you could escape that rejection by moving to the strange and distant homeland of your ancestors?  What if moving there meant getting embroiled in a hopeless rebellion? These are some of the questions explored in the historical fiction trilogy, A Slave’s Story.  The story centers on a Roman slave named Marcus whose master is suffering from […] - [Home](https://www.aslavesstory.com/): Fans of Ken Follett, Conn Iggulden, and Robert Graves will be captivated by this richly immersive and compelling narrative by a Roman social and religious historian. Audiobook Available! See Links Below Click to learn more… Paperback and eBook Links Amazon (Most Countries) Amazon Turkey (Paperback) Barnes & Noble (Paperback) Barnes & Noble (Ebook) smashwords (Ebook) Kobo (Ebook) Apple Books (Ebook) Everand (Ebook) Audiobook Links Audible.com Apple iTunes Audiobook Available! See Links Below Click to learn more… Paperback and eBook Links Amazon (Most Countries) Amazon Turkey (Paperback) Barnes & Noble (Paperback) Barnes & Noble (Ebook) smashwords (Ebook) Kobo (Ebook) Everand (Ebook) […] [comment]: # (Generated by Hostinger Tools Plugin)