Classical History For Everyone
Main points: Saint Valentine's Day is a unique festival and a commemoration of an important saint, and a celebration of romance all at the same time.The dominant term for the modern celebration is "love," the holiday's origins can be traced back to sex" and Lupercalia.While Valentine's Day is presented as a sweet and sentimental holiday, … Continue reading The origins of Valentines Day – Lupercalia A Sex Mad Festival
The Nerva Antonine dynasty is known for the 5 Good Emperors: Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus AureliusThe five good Emperors rules over a period of time that saw the expansion of the empire. The empire become unified with defenses, system of Government, language and civilisation. The Senate became more of a peerage, and less … Continue reading The Nerva–Antonine dynasty
Thomas Couture, The Romans and their Decadence, 1847. Wikimedia An angry man stands at the crossroads and rails against the moral cesspit around him, teeming with sexual deviants and jumped-up immigrants. This is the image which the Roman poet Juvenal paints of the satirist castigating the vices of contemporary Rome. Juvenal’s Satires provide a fascinating … Continue reading Guide to the Classics: Juvenal, the true satirist of Rome
While sex work was taxed and regulated sex workers in society were treated as outcasts. Those who worked the streets of Pompeii and served clients in the brothels lived hard lives, yet many of the murals that survive depict the women as erotic and exotic — the male gaze is ancient.
In a memorable scene from the classic BBC TV series I, Claudius (1976), three frightened senators are summoned to the palace in the dead of night by the emperor Caligula. Rather than being executed, they are treated to a command performance by Caligula himself, who dances before them dressed in a shimmering gold bikini. Caligula’s … Continue reading Guide to the Classics: Suetonius’s The Twelve Caesars explores vice and virtue in ancient Rome
We all know that the Romans loved sex — who doesn’t? For the Romans, sex was about action, status, age, power. They would be bemused, confused, and shocked by our modern understanding (practice) around orientation and behaviour from across the world. They would wonder why we would tolerate what they deemed illegal and we make … Continue reading (NSFW) Randy Romans – A Very Roman Sex Life
You will find here a list of questions that are frequently asked on why this site and out Facebook page does or says certain things. FAQ No. 1: Many have asked or commented "why are they blonde hair and blue eyes?" The simple answer is, some were. We know this because of the historical sources. … Continue reading FAQ: Why doesn’t this match up with what I think I know…
“Food glorious food” ... the Romans loved food and the loved drink. Historians are very fortunate to know what the Romans ate. They left it behind in their sewers in Pompeii and Herculaneum. The interesting thing is that they ate pretty much the same as Italians today (minus the tomatoes 🍅 😆). The (most rich) … Continue reading Roman Cuisine
Boy meets girl, girl and boy fall in love, boy and girl marry - how romantic. This wasn’t the case for the Romans. Marriage wasn’t about romance or love. It wasn’t even about sexual attraction. Marriage was about business and producing children. Love if there was any, came after - a long time after. First … Continue reading Marriage – Roman Style
Image reconstruction by ©️Aaron Watson ( The first Roman imperial dynasty, consisting of the first five emperors—Augustus (TL), Tiberius (TR), Caligula (BL), Claudius (BC), and Nero (BR). They ruled the Roman Empire from its formation under Augustus in 27 BC until AD 68, when the last of the line, Nero, committed suicide. Tiberius was the … Continue reading The Julio-Claudian dynasty:
Greek and Roman History 