Best of
Ancient

2005

Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West


Tom Holland - 2005
    Its success should have been a formality. For seventy years, victory—rapid, spectacular victory—had seemed the birthright of the Persian Empire. In the space of a single generation, they had swept across the Near East, shattering ancient kingdoms, storming famous cities, putting together an empire which stretched from India to the shores of the Aegean. As a result of those conquests, Xerxes ruled as the most powerful man on the planet. Yet somehow, astonishingly, against the largest expeditionary force ever assembled, the Greeks of the mainland managed to hold out. The Persians were turned back. Greece remained free. Had the Greeks been defeated in the epochal naval battle at Salamis, not only would the West have lost its first struggle for independence and survival, but it is unlikely that there would ever have been such an entity as the West at all.Tom Holland’s brilliant new book describes the very first “clash of Empires” between East and West. As he did in the critically praised Rubicon, he has found extraordinary parallels between the ancient world and our own. There is no other popular history that takes in the entire sweep of the Persian Wars, and no other classical historian, academic or popular, who combines scholarly rigor with novelistic depth with a worldly irony in quite the fashion that Tom Holland does.

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


Peter Heather - 2005
    He shows first how the Huns overtuned the existing strategic balance of power on Rome's European frontiers to force the Goths and others to seek refuge inside the empire. This prompted two generations of struggle, during which new barbarian coalitions, formed in response to Roman hostility, brought the Roman west to its knees. The Goths first destroyed a Roman army at the battle of Hadrianople in 378 and went on to sack Rome in 410. The Vandals spread devastation in Gaul and Spain befor conquering North Africa, the breadbasket of the western empire, in 439. We then meet Attila the Hun, whose reign of terror swept from Constantinople to Paris, but whose death in 453 ironically precipitated a final desperate phase of Roman collapse, culminating in the Vandals' defeat of the massive Byzantine Armada, the west's last change for survival.Peter Heather convincingly argues that the Roman Empire was not on the brink of social or moral collapse. What brought it to an end were the barbarians.

A War Like No Other: How the Athenians & Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War


Victor Davis Hanson - 2005
    Now he juxtaposes an ancient conflict with modern concerns to create his most engrossing work to date, A War Like No Other. Over the course of a generation, the Hellenic poleis of Athens & Sparta fought a bloody conflict that resulted in the collapse of Athens & the end of its golden age. Thucydides wrote the standard history of the Peloponnesian War, which has given readers throughout the ages a vivid & authoritative narrative. But Hanson offers something new: a complete chronological account that reflects the political background of the time, the strategic thinking of the combatants, the misery of battle in multifaceted theaters & insight into how these events echo in the present. He compellingly portrays the ways Athens & Sparta fought on land & sea, in city & countryside, & details their employment of the full scope of conventional & nonconventional tactics, from sieges to targeted assassinations, torture & terrorism. He also assesses the crucial roles played by warriors such as Pericles & Lysander, artists, among them Aristophanes, & thinkers including Sophocles & Plato. Hanson’s perceptive analysis of events & personalities raises many thought-provoking questions: Were Athens & Sparta like America & Russia, two superpowers battling to the death? Is the Peloponnesian War echoed in the endless, frustrating conflicts of Vietnam, Northern Ireland & the current Middle East? Or was it more like America’s own Civil War, a brutal rift that rent the fabric of a glorious society, or even this century’s “red state—blue state” schism between liberals & conservatives, a cultural war that manifestly controls military policies? Hanson daringly brings the facts to life & unearths the often surprising ways in which the past informs the present. Brilliantly researched, dynamically written, A War Like No Other is like no other history of this important war.

Plato's Republic


David Roochnik - 2005
    It poses one question after another that might well have been drawn from the headlines and debates of our nation's recent history: What sort of person should rule the state? Are all citizens equal before the law? Should everyone have equal access to health care? Plato's greater inquiry, however, was into the question of defining justice itself and the reasons why a person would choose a life aligned with that virtue.These 24 remarkable lectures lead you through the brilliant dialogue Plato crafted both to define and examine the issues with which political philosophy still grapples.Chapter by chapter, Professor Roochnik introduces you to Plato's literary recasting of his own great teacher, Socrates, and the dialogue through which Socrates and the Republic's other characters create the hypothetical ideal city. It is by dissecting life in this presumably just city - the "Republic" of Plato's title - that the nature of justice itself can be examined.Many of Plato's ideas will startle contemporary readers, who may recognize in them the foreshadowing of some of humankind's darkest moments. Indeed, some have called the Republic the "great-great-grandfather of all totalitarian experiments." You'll wrestle with Plato's controversial vision, and you'll be surprised just how contemporary these arguments sound.

Daphnis and Chloe


Marc Chagall - 2005
    

Soldiers and Ghosts: A History of Battle in Classical Antiquity


J.E. Lendon - 2005
    E. Lendon surveys a millennium of warfare to discover how militaries change—and don’t change—and how an army’s greatness depends on its use of the past. Noting this was an age that witnessed few technological advances, J. E. Lendon shows us that the most successful armies were those that made the most effective use of cultural tradition. Ancient combat moved forward by looking backward for inspiration—the Greeks, to Homer; the Romans, to the Greeks and to their own heroic past. The best ancient armies recruited soldiers from societies with strong competitive traditions; and the best ancient leaders, from Alexander to Julius Caesar, called upon those traditions to encourage ferocious competition at every rank.Ranging from the Battle of Champions between Sparta and Argos in 550 B.C. through Julian’s invasion of Persia in A.D. 363, Soldiers and Ghosts brings to life the most decisive military contests of ancient Greece and Rome. Lendon places these battles, and the methods by which they were fought, in a sweeping narrative of ancient military history. On every battlefield, living soldiers fought alongside the ghosts of tradition—ghosts that would inspire greatness for almost a millennium before ultimately coming to stifle it.

Not Built in a Day: Exploring the Architecture of Rome


George H. Sullivan - 2005
    Moving beyond the names, dates, and statistics of ordinary guidebooks, George Sullivan's eye-opening essays celebrate the special character of Rome's buildings, fountains, piazzas, streets, and ruins. From the largest landmark down to the smallest hidden gem, Not Built in a Day explores the city in comprehensive detail, offering detailed visual and historical analyses that enable readers to see and understand exactly what makes the architecture of Rome so important, influential, and fascinating.Not Built in a Day is supported by a companion website (NotBuiltInADay.com) that offers, among other features, detailed illustrative photographs for readers who want to experience the book's walking tours at home and large printable maps for readers using small electronic devices on-site in Rome.

Forgotten Empire: The World of Ancient Persia


John E. Curtis - 2005
    Encompassing a rich diversity of different peoples and cultures, Persia's Achaeminid Empire flourished between 550 and 331 B.C. The empire originated with Cyrus the Great (559-530 B.C.) and expanded under his successors, who ruled from the royal capitals of Susa and Persepolis, until at its peak it stretched from the Indus Valley to Greece and from the Caspian Sea to Egypt. The Achaeminids acted as a bridge between the earlier Near Eastern cultures and the later Classical world of the Mediterranean and had a profound influence on Greece in political, military, economic, and cultural fields. Forgotten Empire was created in association with the British Museum, which is mounting the most comprehensive exhibit ever staged on the Achaeminids. This book opens a window onto the wealth and splendor of Persian society—its rich palaces, exquisite craftsmanship, and sophisticated learning. Showcasing an unprecedented loan of unique material from the National Museum of Tehran—most of which has never before been presented outside of Iran—this beautifully illustrated and produced book demonstrates why the sculpture, glazed panels, gold vessels, and jewelry of the Achaeminids rank among the finest ever produced.Because the palace was central to imperial life, remains from the royal sites of Susa and Persepolis are a major focus. Forgotten Empire is divided into sections such as the expansion of the Persian Empire, arms and warfare, trade and commerce, writing, luxury dinner services, jewelry, religious and burial customs, and the rediscovery of ancient Persia.Copub: British Museum

A Critical History of Early Rome: From Prehistory to the First Punic War


Gary Forsythe - 2005
    In this comprehensive and clearly written account, Gary Forsythe draws extensively from historical, archaeological, linguistic, epigraphic, religious, and legal evidence as he traces Rome's early development within a multicultural environment of Latins, Sabines, Etruscans, Greeks, and Phoenicians. His study charts the development of the classical republican institutions that would eventually enable Rome to create its vast empire, and provides fascinating discussions of topics including Roman prehistory, religion, and language.In addition to its value as an authoritative synthesis of current research, A Critical History of Early Rome offers a revisionist interpretation of Rome's early history through its innovative use of ancient sources. The history of this period is notoriously difficult to uncover because there are no extant written records, and because the later historiography that affords the only narrative accounts of Rome's early days is shaped by the issues, conflicts, and ways of thinking of its own time. This book provides a groundbreaking examination of those surviving ancient sources in light of their underlying biases, thereby reconstructing early Roman history upon a more solid evidentiary foundation.

Charaka Samhita


Charaka - 2005
    Along with the Sushruta Samhita, it is one of the two foundational texts of this field that have survived from ancient India.Early forms are dated to the period of 900 BCE - 600 BCE, while the later editions of Charaka Samhitā are dated to later centuries.The extant text has eight sthāna (sections), totalling 120 chapters. These sections are- Sūtra (General principles) - 30 chapters deal with healthy living, collection of drugs and their uses, remedies, diet and duties of a physician.- Nidāna (Pathology) - 8 chapters discuss the pathology of eight chief diseases.- Vimāna (Specific determination) 8 chapters contain pathology, various tools of diagnostics & medical studies and conduct.- Śārīra (Anatomy) - 8 chapters describe embryology & anatomy of a human body.- Indriya (Sensorial prognosis) - 12 chapters elaborate on diagnosis & prognosis of disease on the basis of senses.- Cikitsā (Therapeutics) - 30 chapters deal with special therapy.Kalpa (Pharmaceutics and toxicology) - 12 chapters describe usage and preparation of medicine.- Siddhi (Success in treatment) - 12 chapters describe general principles of 'Panchkarma'.Seventeen chapters of Cikitsā sthāna and complete Kalpa sthāna and Siddhi sthāna were added later by Dridhabala. The text starts with Sūtra sthāna which deals with fundamentals and basic principles of Ayurveda practice. Unique scientific contributions credited to the Charaka Saṃhitā include:- a rational approach to the causation and cure of disease- introduction of objective methods of clinical examination“Direct observation is the most remarkable feature of Ayurveda (आयुर्वेद), though at times it is mixed up with metaphysics. The Saṃhitā emphasizes that of all types of evidence the most dependable ones are those that are directly observed by the eyes. In Ayurveda successful medical treatment crucially depends on four factors: the physician, substances (drugs or diets), nurse and patient. The qualifications of physician are: clear grasp of the theoretical content of the science, a wide range of experience, practical skill and cleanliness; qualities of drugs or substances are: abundance, applicability, multiple use and richness in efficacy; qualifications of the nursing attendant are: knowledge of nursing techniques, practical skill, attachment for the patient and cleanliness; and the essential qualifications of the patients are: good memory, obedience to the instructions of the doctors, courage and ability to describe the symptoms.”

Luxor and the Valley of the Kings (Rizzoli Art Guide)


Kent R. Weeks - 2005
    The Tomb of Tutankhamun and its contents are featured prominently, as are the temples of Luxor and Karnak, the dromos, the Luxor Museum, the Chapel of Achoris, the Valley of Asasif, the Ramesseum, the Valley of the Queens, and the Colossi of Memnon. Dendera, Esna, Abydos Edfu, and Korn Ombo-all peripheral locations to the major sites-are included because their state of preservation makes them especially interesting for visitors and scholars. Weeks has spent his career documenting the regions and infuses this guide with a level of clarity and detail not previously achieved in a handbook.

Cleopatra's Kidnappers: How Caesar's Sixth Legion Gave Egypt to Rome and Rome to Caesar


Stephen Dando-Collins - 2005
    When, in the wake of his defeat of Pompey at Pharsalus his victorious legions refused to march another step under his command, he pursued his fleeing rival into Egypt with an impossibly small force of Gallic and German cavalry, raw Italian recruits, and nine hundred Spanish prisoners of war-tough veterans of Pompey's Sixth Legion.Cleopatra's Kidnappers tells the epic saga of Caesar's adventures in Egypt through the eyes of these captured, but never defeated, legionaries. In this third volume in his definitive history of the Roman legions, Stephen Dando-Collins reveals how this tiny band of fierce warriors led Caesar's little army to great victories against impossible odds. Bristling with action and packed with insights and newly revealed facts, this eye-opening account introduces you to the extraordinary men who made possible Caesar's famous boast, "I came, I saw, I conquered."Praise for Caesar's Legion"A unique and splendidly researched story, following the trials and triumphs of Julius Caesar's Legio X. . . . More than a mere unit account, it incorporates the history of Rome and the Roman army at the height of their power and gory glory. Many military historians consider Caesar's legions the world's most efficient infantry before the arrival of gunpowder. This book shows why. Written in readable, popular style, Caesar's Legion is a must for military buffs and anyone interested in Roman history at a critical point in European civilization."-T. R. Fehrenbach author of This Kind of War, Lone Star, and Comanches

Hadassah: The Girl Who Became Queen Esther


Tommy Tenney - 2005
    Captured and taken to the palace, Hadassah once again must call on the God of her Jewish heritage to protect her. If she is chosen to be the new queen, what will this mean for her and her fellow Jews living in exile among the Persians? Will she be able to protect her people from those who hate the Jews? Pre-teen and early teen readers will be captivated by this suspenseful retelling of the story of the young girl who became Queen Esther.

Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh


Catharine H. Roehrig - 2005
    First acting as regent for her young nephew/stepson Thutmose III, she in time assumed the title of king and exercised the full powers of the throne as senior co-ruler. In accordance with Egyptian tradition, Hatshepsut was often depicted as a male king. After her death, however, monuments bearing her image were ruthlessly defaced, and her name was erased from historical accounts.Hatshepsut’s rise to power and the nature of her kingship have long been debated by scholars. This fascinating period, one of immense artistic creativity, is illuminated by this volume’s rich presentation of monumental royal sculpture and reliefs, ceremonial objects, exquisite personal items for everyday use, and dazzling jewelry. Essays focus on influences from the neighboring Near East, Nubia, and the Aegean; the innovative architecture built by Hatshepsut; powerful figures in the royal court during her reign; archaeological finds from this period; and mysteries surrounding the destruction of Hatshepsut’s statues and the obliteration of her name.The first in-depth treatment of the subject, From Queen to Pharoah is an important investigation into the impact of Hatshepsut’s reign on the history, culture, and artistic output of Egypt.

Who's Who in the Age of Alexander The Great: Prosopography Of Alexander's Empire


Waldemar Heckel - 2005
    This book contains concise biographies of over 800 individualsknown from the literary and epigraphic sources for the age ofAlexander.Covers significant figures, ranging from leading commanders inAlexander's army to the nobles and regional leaders of the Persianempire whom he encountered on his epic campaignThe only complete collection of its kind in EnglishGives complete and balanced biographies, extending beyond thedeath of Alexander in 323 BC where relevantContains a full index and a concordance giving the variantnames found in the ancient sources

Oxford Latin Desk Dictionary


James Morwood - 2005
    It takes account of the latest research into Latin, and is designed specifically to fit the needs of today's student. It covers over 46,000 words and phrases, including additions from the writings of Plautus and Terence, and from the study of Silver Latin. Common irregular verb parts are given as headwords for greater clarity, and boxed notes provide help with language usage, and with difficult words and constructions.There are detailed appendices on historical, mythological, and geographical names, as well as sections on money, weights and measures, dates, and times, poetic meter, and medieval Latin. With a timeline of important dates, and biographies on Roman writers, this edition is packed with interesting and essential information on Roman history and culture.Also with pronunciation help and a guide to Latin grammar, this compact and affordable dictionary is a necessity for all students and adult-learners of Latin.

Tasmanian Devil: A Unique and Threatened Animal


David Owen - 2005
    Far from being a scavenging, ferocious oddity, an image perpetuated by the infamous cartoon character, the Tasmanian Devil is actually a treasured and valuable wildlife species facing extinction. By sharing the surprising, controversial, funny, and tragic history behind the world's largest marsupial carnivore, this new guidebook covers all aspects of the biology and the habitat of the Tasmanian Devil.

The Art of Medicine in Ancient Egypt


James P. Allen - 2005
    Poorly understood in Egyptian society, illness informed much of their art. Featuring works from The Metropolitan Museum’s collection, this fascinating book examines this relatively unexplored and underappreciated aspect of Egyptian art. It includes two introductory essays on Egyptian medicine, descriptions and photographs of sixty-four objects, and the first color reproduction of the Edwin Smith Papyrus in its entirety, accompanied by a full translation. One of the world’s oldest scientific documents, the fifteen-foot-long Smith papyrus (now housed in the New York Academy of Medicine), discusses both practical and magical treatments of wounds and other maladies.

The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Civilizations


John Haywood - 2005
    Informatively written, and ideal for both students and the general reader, it plots the rise and fall of empires, the nature of different societies and the evolution of technology.

The Anti-Donatist Writings


Augustine of Hippo - 2005
    Augustin the Writings Against the Manicheans and Against the Donatists: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church V4, by Saint Augustin . To purchase the entire book, please order ISBN 0766183947.

The Greek Wars: The Failure of Persia


George Cawkwell - 2005
    Cawkwell discusses from a Persian perspective major questions such as why Xerxes' invasion of Greece failed, and howimportant a part the Great King played in Greek affairs in the fourth century. Cawkwell's views are at many points original: in particular, his explanation of how and why the Persian invasion of Greece failed challenges the prevailing orthodoxy, as does his view of the importance of Persia in Greekaffairs for the two decades after the King's Peace. Persia, he concludes, was destroyed by Macedonian military might but moral decline had no part in it; the Macedonians who had subjected Greece were too good an army, but their victory was not easy.

Sandstone Spine: Seeking the Anasazi on the First Traverse of the Comb Ridge


David Roberts - 2005
    The Comb is an upthrust ridge of sandstone-virtually a mini-mountain range-that stretches almost unbroken for a hundred miles from just east of Kayenta, Arizona, to some ten miles west of Blanding, Utah. To hike the Comb is to run a gauntlet of up-and-down severities, with the precipice lurking on one hand, the fiendishly convoluted bedrock slab on the other-always at a sideways, ankle-wrenching pitch. There is not a single mile of established trail in the Comb's hundred-mile reach.The friends were David Roberts, writer, adventurer, famed mountaineer of decades past, at age 61 the graybeard of the bunch; Greg Child, renowned mountaineer and rock climber, age 47; and Vaughn Hadenfeldt, a wilderness guide intimately acquainted with the canyonlands, age 53. They came to the Comb not only for the physical challenge, but to seek out seldom-visited ruins and rock art of the mysterious Anasazi culture. Each brought his own emotions on the journey; the Comb Ridge would test their friendship in ways they had never before experienced.Searching for the stray arrowhead half-smothered in the sand or for the faint markings on a far sandstone boulder that betokened a little-known rock art panel, becomes a competitive sport for the three friends. Along the way, they ponder the mystery, bringing the accounts of early and modern explorers and archaeologists to bear: Who were the vanished Indians who built these inaccessible cliff dwellings and pueblos, often hidden from view? Of whom were they afraid and why? What caused them to suddenly abandon their settlements around 1300 AD? What meaning can be ascribed to their phantasmagoric rock art? What was their relationship to the Navajo, who were convinced the Anasazi had magical powers and could fly?

The Looting of the Iraq Museum, Baghdad: The Lost Legacy of Ancient Mesopotamia


Milbry Polk - 2005
    Priceless antiquities, spanning ten thousand years of human history, were smashed into pieces or stolen, and one of the most important storehouses of ancient culture was forever compromised. This exquisitely illustrated volume is a reconstruction in book form of one of the world's great museums, and it stands as the definitive single-volume history of the art and archaeology of ancient Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilization. The contributors to this book consist of a cadre of international archaeologists whose excavations helped piece together the rich tapestry of Mesopotamian life from earliest prehistory to the advent of Islam. A portion of the book's royalties will aid in the reconstruction of the museum and in the preservation of Mesopotamia's cultural treasures. Told through the art and artifacts that were lost recently in Iraq, this fascinating history of the civilizations of the Near East is sure to be a timeless and enduring book.

Exile, Ostracism, and Democracy: The Politics of Expulsion in Ancient Greece


Sara Forsdyke - 2005
    In contrast to previous interpretations, Sara Forsdyke argues that ostracism was primarily a symbolic institution whose meaning for the Athenians was determined both by past experiences of exile and by its role as a context for the ongoing negotiation of democratic values.The first part of the book demonstrates the strong connection between exile and political power in archaic Greece. In Athens and elsewhere, elites seized power by expelling their rivals. Violent intra-elite conflict of this sort was a highly unstable form of "politics that was only temporarily checked by various attempts at elite self-regulation. A lasting solution to the problem of exile was found only in the late sixth century during a particularly intense series of violent expulsions. At this time, the Athenian people rose up and seized simultaneously control over decisions of exile and political power. The close connection between political power and the power of expulsion explains why ostracism was a central part of the democratic reforms.Forsdyke shows how ostracism functioned both as a symbol of democratic power and as a key term in the ideological justification of democratic rule. Crucial to the author's interpretation is the recognition that ostracism was both a remarkably mild form of exile and one that was infrequently used. By analyzing the representation of exile in Athenian imperial decrees, in the works of Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, and in tragedy and oratory, Forsdyke shows how exile served as an important term in the debate about the best form of rule.

Majic Eyes Only


Ryan S. Wood - 2005
    The author guides the reader through 74 UFO crash incidents supported by compelling evidence in the form of official documents, eyewitnesses and in some cases physical evidence. Since 1984, multiple sources have leaked, revealed or discovered some 3,500 pages of UFO documents, hundreds classified Top Secret and linked to Majestic-12. These MJ-12 documents, coupled with the Leonard Stringfield data and strong investigations by other case experts, provide a powerful core of UFO crash incidents.

Ice Age Britain


Nicholas Barton - 2005
    New discoveries in disciplines from climatology to anthropology reveal the dramatic story, illustrated in over 150 photos, maps, and diagrams, of how the earliest peoples of Britain and Europe made their way there from Africa. Expert analyses treat the oldest-known human remains, the first stone tools, and animals and plants that provided food and clothing. The spectacular recent discovery of Creswell Crag cave art sheds light on the development of language and culture, including ways human biology, then and now, affects behavior and values.

Rome: A Fold-Out History of the Ancient Civilization


Leigh Grant - 2005
    Standing over a foot tall and more than four feet long, Rome easily unfolds on a tabletop to depict nearly every aspect of Roman life in a series of dramatic and detailed scenes. It’s all here, including the forum with its temples, senate house, and courts of law; the colosseum where gladiators fight for their lives and crowds cheer and jeer them; and the hustle and bustle of the street, including apartments and shops, merchants plying their wares, jugglers and acrobats entertaining the crowd, and two-horse chariots racing over newly–built Roman roads. The book is laid out accordion-style, with six panels on the front folding out into full-color scenes. On the back of each panel, lively, informative text describes the functions of the buildings, the rules of the colosseum, the life of a gladiator, the class structure of Roman society, and much more. The book also includes a complete time line of the important events in the history of ancient Rome.

Roadside Guide to Indian Ruins & Rock Art of the Southwest


Gordon Sullivan - 2005
    With color photographs, maps, and detailed entries, this handsome volume spotlights the most accessible, visitor-friendly sites to explore. Also included are suggested travel routes for those wishing to tour multiple sites.

The Roman Conquest of Scotland: The Battle of Mons Graupius AD 84


James E. Fraser - 2005
    At a place called Mount Graupius, Agricola won a decisive victory over a large Caledonian host, and it appeared at the time that the Roman military conquest of Britain had finally been completed. Agricola had already begun thinking about a new challenge, but was recalled from Britain by the emperor, resulting in Rome's failure to assume control over northern Britain. James Fraser is the first historian to identify the true site of this legendary battle, and presents a totally new interpretation of why the Romans invaded Scotland.

Lady of the Two Lands


Elizabeth Delisi - 2005
    Tuthmosis, the heir to the throne, hates her; the High Priest of Amun and the commander of the army want to kill her and Tuthmosis; and the best bathroom facilities in the country are the equivalent of a cat-box.To make matters more difficult, she's falling helplessly in love with Senemut, and soon, she's not sure she even wants to return home. To protect Tuthmosis from assassination, the lovers arrange to put Hattie on the throne. But, what should she do when she suddenly finds herself, an obscure artist from Chicago, crowned ruler of all Egypt?

Jewish Slavery in Antiquity


Catherine Hezser - 2005
    Against the traditional opinion that after the Babylonian Exile Jews refrained from employing slaves, Catherine Hezser shows that slavery remained a significant phenomenon ofancient Jewish everyday life and generated a discourse which resembled Graeco-Roman and early Christian views while at the same time preserving specifically Jewish nuances. Hezser examines the impact of domestic slavery on the ancient Jewish household and on family relationships. She discusses theperceived advantages of slaves over other types of labor and evaluates their role within the ancient Jewish economy. The ancient Jewish experience of slavery seems to have been so pervasive that slave images also entered theological discourse. Like their Graeco-Roman and Christian counterparts, ancient Jewish intellectuals did not advocate the abolition of slavery, but they used the biblical tradition and their own judgements to ameliorate the status quo.

From Jewish Magic To Gnosticism


Attilio Mastrocinque - 2005
    Both Christian Gnostics and other heirs to Hellenistic Jewish Gnosis were committed to the study of astrology and what were known as magic arts and doctrines. Heretical Jews in Egypt envisaged the creator god as a snake producing the Nile flood and destroying the giants; in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC the Jews of the Leontopolite temple believed in the manifestation of God as a divine lion-headed man, a young god, a Son of God, whose name was Jaldabaoth. In the 2nd cent. CE the Christians condemned these two heretical figures and developed new forms of Gnosis, which were described and again condemned by orthodox Christian heresiologists. The orthodox Christian Church came to identify the religion of the Gnostics with magic, and even now our concept of magic is strongly influenced by ancient Christian ideology concerning Gnosis.

The Eye of Apollo


Blake Miller - 2005
    A PERILOUS PATH…DARE YOU EMBARK? Some treasures are buried, some are lost, and some are sitting right before our eyes. But there is one treasure that, legend says, has been hidden away because it is not safe in the hands of mankind -- the almighty Eye of Apollo. James Marolain, a translator of ancient texts with a haunting past, is one of the few people familiar with the fabled Eye of Apollo and its extraordinary legend. He knows it is rumored to be a pure red diamond of exquisite shape, staggering value, and capable of, perhaps, uncanny powers. Most of all, he knows it is purely mythical. But everything James knows changes when he receives an unearthed manuscript versed in Ancient Greek and over 2500 years old, which not only validates the Eye of Apollo's existence, but even provides riddling clues to finding the storied stone. James casts all cautions and warnings aside as he embarks on a perilous quest for the legendary diamond -- a quest he hopes will lift the shadows of his past as it sends him racing across the globe to Delphi, Greece, facing danger, deep-seeded deception, murder, and a long-lost love. But nothing in his wildest imaginings will prepare him for the earth-shattering truth that stirs behind the legend!

A Companion to Pragmatism


John R. Shook - 2005
    Unique in depth and coverage of classical figures and their philosophies as well as pragmatism as a living force in philosophy.Chapters include discussions on philosophers such as John Dewey, Jurgen Habermas and Hilary Putnam.