Best of
Ancient

1998

Memory and the Mediterranean


Fernand Braudel - 1998
    Moving with ease from Mesopotamia and Egypt to the flowering of Crete and the early Aegean peoples, and culminating in the prodigious achievements of ancient Greece and Rome, Braudel conveys in absorbing detail the geography and climate of the region over the course of millennia while brilliantly explaining the larger forces that gave rise to agriculture, writing, sea travel, trade, and, ultimately, the emergence of empires. Impressive in scope and gracefully written, Memory and the Mediterranean is an endlessly enriching work of history by a legend in the field.

Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide


Amanda Claridge - 1998
    This text consists of an illustrated guide to all the major sites in twelve main areas in central Rome, and four in Greater Rome, including the Capitoline Hill, Roman Forum, Colosseum, Mausoleums of Augustus and Hadrian, the Circus Maximus, Catacombs, Ostia, and Tivoli.

The Kingdom of the Hittites


Trevor Bryce - 1998
    How did they achieve their supremacy? How successful were they in maintaining it? What brought about their collapse and disappearance? This comprehensive history of the Hittite kingdom seeksto answer these questions. It takes account of important recent advances in Hittite scholarship, including some major archaeological discoveries made in the last few years. It also features numerous translations from the original texts, so that on many issues the ancient Hittites are given theopportunity to speak to the modern reader for themselves. The revised edition contains a substantial amount of new material, as well as numerous other revisions to the first edition.

Surpassing Wonder: The Invention of the Bible and the Talmuds


Donald Harman Akenson - 1998
    These works constitute the very core of our cultural consciousness and in every century have been hidden from us -- first by priests, then by fundamentalists, and now by narrow scholars.Here, with biting irreverence for prejudice and pretension, Donald Akenson renews our sense of awe before these sacred works by encountering them head-on, by setting them in their historical and political context -- and by daring to speculate that there was one author-editor of the Hebrew scriptures, and one for the Christian New Testament, and that the inventor of the Hebrew scriptures should be credited with constructing the very foundations of Western culture. He simultaneously restores their spiritual power through a just appreciation of the authors' achievement and provides a brilliant expose of how theologians and biblical scholars abuse historical reasoning and evidence in their treatment of the sacred texts.Using images that range from Winnie-the-Pooh to tractor mechanics, this world-renowned historian creates for us a radical reformation of the sacred texts as he breathes new life into our religions and helps us understand, and revere, the heritage that flows from Jerusalem.

The East Face of Helicon: West Asiatic Elements in Greek Poetry and Myth


M.L. West - 1998
    Martin West's new book far surpasses previous studies in comprehensiveness, demonstrating these links with massive and detailed documentationand showing they are much more fundamental and pervasive than has hitherto been acknowledged. His survey embraces Hesiod, the Homeric epics, the lyric poets, and Aeschylus, and concludes with an illuminating discussion of possible avenues of transmission between the orient and Greece.

The Puzzle of Ancient Man: Advanced Technology in Past Civilizations?


Donald E. Chittick - 1998
    An exploration of technology used by ancient civilizations and the support it provides for certain biblical interpretations.

Mark Antony: A Life


Patricia Southern - 1998
    History has not been kind to Mark Antony, but then he was probably his own worst enemy, fatally flawed, too fond of wine and women, extravagant, impetuous, reckless, always in debt, and attached to all the wrong people. There is some truth in this list of Antony's failings, but the propaganda machine of his enemy, Octavian, ensured that these facets of Antony's character were the only ones to survive. There is no mention of the fact that Caesar, who could not afford to promote incompetent assistants, found in Antony a very able lieutenant. Nor is it acknowledged that immediately after the assassination of Caesar in 44 BC, it was Antony and not Octavian who held the state together, when it could so easily have slipped into chaos. In modern eyes, influenced by Shakespeare, Antony is perhaps the ultimate tragic hero, who gave up everything for the love of a woman, Cleopatra VII, ruler of Egypt. Octavian presented Antony as a weakling, completely dominated by Cleopatra, and therefore a threat to Rome by dint of his association with the unbridled ambitions of the Egyptian Queen to rule the world. While Antony attended to the eastern half of the Roman world, shoring up Octavian whenever he needed troops, ships, and money, Octavian eventually planned to bring him down, embarking on a smear campaign to convince the Roman people that Antony should be eliminated. The result was civil war and the defeat of Antony in the naval battle of Actium. In Alexandria, Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide in 30 BC. Octavian buried them side by side, and took total control of Rome and Egypt.

Doorways to the Soul: 52 Wisdom Tales from Around the World


Elisa Davy Pearmain - 1998
    Designed for meditative reading, the book presents one story per week as guide-post and food for the soul. Questions for reflection complete this valuable tool for Christian educators, parents, clergy, teachers, and speakers.

The Mummy in Ancient Egypt: Equipping the Dead for Eternity


Salima Ikram - 1998
    It first examines burial rites and tomb development, from the Giza pyramids to the underground chambers in the Valley of the Kings and beyond. Great discoveries are described, from Belzoni's early explorations and the uncovering at Thebes of the royal burial caches to Tutankhamun's magnificent tomb and recent scientific detective-work using X-rays and CAT-scanners. The book then provides the most detailed survey ever of changing burial practices during the pharaonic era. Working from the mummy outwards, Ikram and Dodson reveal the evolution of methods for treating the body, wrapping it, adorning it and sheltering it. In so doing, they give for the first time a comprehensive account of the development of mummy masks, coffins, sarcophagi and canopic equipment. All the latest research is incorporated, some carried out by the authors themselves.

The History of Rome, Books 31-40: The Dawn of the Roman Empire


Livy - 1998
    Flamininus' proclamation of the freedom of Greece at the Isthmian games near Corinth in 196 BC. Half a century later Greece was annexed as a province of the Romans who burned the ancient city of Corinth to the ground. Books 31 to 40 of Livy's history chart Rome's emergence as an imperial nation and the Romans tempestuous involvement with Greece, Macedonia and the near East in the opening decades of the second century BC; they are our most important source for Graeco-Roman relations in that century. Livy's dramatic narrative includes the Roman campaigns in Spain and against the Gallic tribes of Northern Italy; the flight of Hannibal from Carthage and his death in the East; the debate on the Oppian law; and the Bacchanalian Episode. This is the only unabridged English translation of Books 31 to 40. About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

The Ancient City: Life in Classical Athens and Rome


Peter Connolly - 1998
    All the historical and archaelogical evidence has been seamlessly pieced together to reconstruct the architectural wonders of these mighty civilizations. Re creating public buildings, religious temples, shops, and houses, Connolly reveals every aspect of life in glorious detail, from religion and food to drama, games, and the baths. In addition to the great monuments and moments of classical Greece and Rome, readers learn about a typical day in the life of an Athenian and a Roman. They read about and see the houses people inhabited; attend 5 day festivals and go to the theater; fight great battles and witness the birth of Rome's navy; visit temples and spend a day at the chariot races. The spectacular artwork and vivid descriptions provide a window into the fascinating history of these two extraordinary cities and civilizations. The Ancient City is the crowning achievement of Peter Connolly's distinguished career.

The Hippopotamus Marsh


Pauline Gedge - 1998
    His provincial aristocratic family is accustomed to a life of straitened gentility. But when the prince decides to rebel they must risk all, even life itself, to restore Egyptians and their gods to glory. The Hippopotamus Marsh begins a trilogy that brings to vivid life the passions and intrigues that ushered in the great Eighteenth Dynasty.

Triumph Of The Hero: Greek And Roman Myth


Time-Life Custom Publishing - 1998
    A dramatic series that captures, culture by culture, the information that never makes it into the history books: strange stories, mystic rites, angry gods, vision quests.

منشور کورش هخامنشی


Reza Moradi Ghiasabadi - 1998
    this cylinder is the first human rights statement which is the symbol of iranian peace loving nature.

The Logistics of the Roman Army at War, 264 BC-235 AD (Columbia Studies in the Classical Tradition)


Jonathan P. Roth - 1998
    Each chapter is devoted to a different aspect of logistics: supply needs and rations; packs, trains and military servants; foraging and requisition; supply lines; sources of supply; administration; and the impact of logistics on Roman warfare. As a whole the book traces the development of the Roman logistics into a highly sophisticated supply system - a vital element in the success of Roman arms. In addition, it makes a critical study of important technical questions of Roman logistics, such as the size of the soldier's grain ration, the function of military servants, and the changes in logistical management under the Republic and Empire.

Virtues of Authenticity: Essays on Plato and Socrates


Alexander Nehamas - 1998
    The papers are unified in theme by the idea that Plato's central philosophical concern in metaphysics, ethics, and aesthetics was to distinguish the authentic from the fake, the original from its imitations. In approach, the collection displays Nehamas's characteristic combination of analytical rigor and sensitivity to the literary form and dramatic effect of Plato's work. Together, the papers represent Nehamas's distinct and original contributions to scholarship on Plato and Socrates and serve as a comprehensive introduction to the thought of these two philosophers.In the book's opening section, Nehamas discusses Plato's representation of Socrates as a model of authentic human goodness, showing that Plato's Socrates is a more skeptical, troubling, and individualistic thinker than is usually supposed. The papers in the second section form a sustained defense of a new and important understanding of Plato's theory of the forms and the evolution of that theory in Plato's later writings. The third section examines Plato's contention that popular entertainment--by which he meant Greek epic and tragic poetry--misleads its audience into a debased life, an argument Nehamas relates to modern anxieties about television and other forms of popular culture. The collection also includes a discussion of Plato's use of the dialogue form in his representation of Socrates and carefully examines the combination of literary and philosophical elements in his work.Nehamas argues in the book that Plato's specific judgments of what is authentic are often flawed, but that his idea of authenticity as the mark of truth, beauty, and goodness is stronger than many modern scholars have assumed. In drawing together Nehamas's many influential ideas about Plato and Socrates, Virtues of Authenticity is a major contribution to the study of ancient Greek philosophy.

Hannibal’s War: A Military History of the Second Punic War


John Lazenby - 1998
    But even Hannibal met his match in Scipio, and ultimately Carthage was defeated by the rising power of Rome. In Hannibal’s War, J. F. Lazenby provides the first scholarly account in English since 1886 solely devoted to the Second Punic War, which some have called the first "world war" for mastery of the Mediterranean world. By closely examining the accounts of Livy and Polybius, supplemented with the fruits of modern research, Lazenby provides a detailed military history of the entire war as it was fought in Italy, Spain, Greece, and North Africa. This edition includes a new preface covering recent research on Hannibal’s war against Rome.

Augustus


Patricia Southern - 1998
    Pat Southern chronologically traces the life, works and times of the emperor, presenting ideology and events from his point of view to provide a compelling depiction of an extraordinary man, who was the guiding light in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire.

Warfare & Agriculture in Classical Greece (Biblioteca di studi antichi 40)


Victor Davis Hanson - 1998
    And for much of the Classical period, war was more common than peace. Almost all accounts of ancient history assume that farming and fighting were critical events in the lives of the citizenry. Yet never before have we had a comprehensive modern study of the relationship between agriculture and warfare in the Greek world. In this completely revised edition of Warfare and Agriculture in Classical Greece, Victor Davis Hanson provides a systematic review of Greek agriculture and warfare and describes the relationship between these two important aspects of life in ancient communities. With careful attention to agronomic as well as military details, this well-written, thoroughly researched study reveals the remarkable resilience of those farmland communities.In the past, scholars have assumed that the agricultural infrastructure of ancient society was often ruined by attack, as, for example, Athens was relegated to poverty in the aftermath of the Persian and later Peloponnesian invasions. Hanson's study shows, however, that in reality attacks on agriculture rarely resulted in famines or permanent agrarian depression. Trees and vines are hard to destroy, and grainfields are only briefly vulnerable to torching. In addition, ancient armies were rather inefficient systematic ravagers and instead used other tactics, such as occupying their enemies' farms to incite infantry battle. Warfare and Agriculture in Classical Greece suggests that for all ancient societies, rural depression and desolation came about from more subtle phenomena—taxes, changes in political and social structure, and new cultural values—rather than from destructive warfare.

Politics and Diplomacy in Egypt: The Diaries of Sir Miles Lampson, 1935 - 1937


Miles Lampson Killearn - 1998
    Sir Miles Lampson was British High Commissioner and Ambassador from 1934 to 1945 and his detailed diary provides a unique and comprehensive insider's view of this crucial period in Britain's and the Middle East's history.

Beautiful Bible Stories for Children


Dalmatian Press - 1998
    Cheryl Mendenhall has created a wonderous art style sure to capture the imagination of any child. The bright vivid colors bring new life to time-honored traditional Bible stories. There are four stories featured in this spectacular book to include "God's Creation", Noah's Ark", "Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors" and "David and Goliath."

Xenophon and Arrian on Hunting: With Hounds


Xenophon - 1998
    For both authors hunting was primarily for hares with hounds.

What Do We Deserve?: A Reader on Justice and Desert


Louis P. Pojman - 1998
    Recently a renewed interest in the topic has emerged, and several philosophers have argued that the notionmerits a more central place in political and ethical theory. Some of these philosophers contend that justice exists to the extent that people receive exactly what they deserve, while others argue that desert should replace such considerations as rights, need, and equality as the basis fordistributions. Still others argue that morality involves a fitting match between one's moral character and a degree of happiness. All of these positions have encountered opposition from egalitarians, libertarians, and those who are skeptical about the coherence of the concept of desert. The first anthology of its kind, What Do We Deserve? is a balanced collection of readings that brings sharply opposing positions and arguments together and stimulates debate over the meaning and significance of desert in current thought. The book begins with eight classical readings on desert (byPlato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Smith, Kant, Mill, Sidgwick, and Ross), and later turns to contemporary interpretations of the issue. The selections examine the concept itself, analyze its relationship to the ideas of freedom and responsibility, engage in the debate between John Rawls and his critics onthe merits of desert, and, finally, study the wider role and significance of desert in political and ethical theory.