The period from the late fourth to the sixth century C.E. saw the collapse of the Roman empire in the West, and the emergence of the Eastern or “Byzantine” empire, with a distinctive culture that ...

A new book joins meticulous historical analysis with more than 150 lush, full-color illustrations of these magnificent books and their elaborate bindings. Back cover of the Lindau Gospels. Salzburg ...

A mysterious new illness arrived from the East, killing young and the old. The rich fled cramped cities as doctors desperately tried new but ultimately useless remedies. The economy faltered. But ...

On March 15, 44 B.C., Julius Caesar lay dead from 23 knife wounds inflicted by his assassins. The next day, the question on every Roman citizen’s mind was: Who will rule Rome now? Getting to the ...

The lives of the rulers of ancient Rome are still vivid in modern heads. According to a conversation that has gone viral on TikTok, some men say they think about the Roman Empire “every day”. The ...

Bust of roman emperor Domitian in the Louvre Museum in Paris (Wikimedia Commons). As much historiography as it is history, Mary Beard’s Emperor of Rome is monumental: intricately detailed, ...

In June of the year 68, the emperor Nero, on learning that the Roman Senate had declared him a public enemy, plunged a dagger into his throat (with the loyal assistance of his private secretary). A ...

Being a Roman emperor was a risky job. It wasn't unusual for emperors to be killed by usurpers wanting to remove them from power. They also faced many health challenges, such as death from epidemics ...