Lorarius A slave whose job it was to punish other slaves by flogging; also, in the arena, a person who encouraged reluctant animals or humans with a whip. back
Lorica Armor. back
Lorum A short leather whip, often with two leather strips, thirty inches long, knotted at the ends. back
Magus Sorcerer, magician. back
Malaria The Romans called malaria the "rage of the Dog Star," since the disease was most prevalent during the caniculares dies, the dog days of summer, when Sirius disappeared in the brightness of the sun. back
Medicus A Roman physician. While doctors in the military were surprisingly adept at healing wounds, performing surgery, even using antiseptic techniques, the local physician was typically regarded as a charlatan and a quack. Knowledge of the healing arts was expected of each pater familias, and doctors were not generally trusted. This attitude continued until the advent of Galen of Pergamon, arguably the most famous physician of the second century CE, made the practice of medicine respectable. back
Merda Excrement. back
Ministratore Servant, waiter. back
Mithra (also Mithras) The central god of Mithraism, an ancient Persian cult possibly having its origins in Zoroastrianism, which gained widespread popularity throughout the Roman Empire into the 4th century CE. back
Mundus A round pit, possibly located on the Palatine Hill, which served as an opening to the underworld. (It may also have been were the precious seed-corn for the planting of grain was stored). On three days of the year, August 24, October 5 and November 8, the cover of the mundus was removed and spirits were allowed to roam free about the city. On these days, public business was forbidden, no battles were to be fought and no marriages were to take place. back
Nobiles A mix of old patrician families and wealthy plebs who had amassed most of the power in the Republic, generally applied to those who had served as consul. Their wealth came from land ownership, because commercial enterprise or trade of any kind was beneath a nobile, and sometimes illegal. A man like Crassus, therefore, used intermediaries to manage his vast holdings and business ventures. back
Optimates Conservative, aristocratic senators who wished to limit the power of the popular assemblies in favor of the senate. They were opposed by the populares, of which Julius Caesar was the most famous. Men like Pompeius and Cicero switched back and forth between factions. Marcus Crassus sided with the optimate Sulla until his death, but thereafter, his business interests were better served by being a purported voice of the people. The truth is, most senators backed whichever party could give them more personal wealth and power. The people’s needs had to be met only to the extent that it kept them in power. back
Optio Junior officer, assistant to a centurion. back
Orarium A small, linen handkerchief for wiping the face. back
Ornator Slave who adorned or dressed his master; f. ornatrix (who concentrated more on her hair. back
Otium The Roman concept of leisure, ideally occupied by pursuits of philosophy, art and music in a natural setting. back
Palla Cloak. Usually a rectangular piece of fabric worn for modesty over the stola and/or tunic. back
Palaestra A large central courtyard devoted to exercise and games, usually adjacent to a balnea or thermae, sometimes including a pool. back
Paludamentum The official cloak worn by a Roman commander in the field. back
Paterfamilias Head of the household: the father. back
Peculium Money or property acquired by slaves in the course of conducting business on behalf of their master. While technically any such gains belonged to the slave’s owner, the master might allow these sums to be considered the slave’s property, and might even allow these assets to be used to purchase the slave’s freedom. back
Patria potestas In Roman family law, the male head of the family held absolute power over the lives of his wife and children, even their descendants, as long as he lived. It was even within his right to administer capital punishment, if he saw fit. Under the law, all possessions accrued by his offspring, or given as gifts by the father, were still the legal property of the father. back
Pelargós Greek. A stork. back
Peplos Long sleeveless tunic worn by Roman women. back
Peristyle A spacious courtyard within a Roman home, open to the sky, framed by a covered colonnade. The picture here was taken by Carlo Brogi in 1896 of a reconstructed peristyle in Pompeii. back
Phalera A sculpted disc worn on the breastplate made from bronze, silver or gold denoting valor or victory in battle back
Pilum Roman throwing spear; plural: pila. back
Plebeians Free, non-citizens of Rome, also called plebs. back
Pomerium The spiritual limits of the city of Rome, marked by cippi, small pedestals used as boundary posts. back
Pontifex Maximus Supreme supervisor of all things religious, and of matters of worship both public and private. Guardian of the ancient customs. The Pontifex was not subject to any court of law or punishment. The pontifex maximus was elected for life. back
Populares Aristocrats, like the optimates, but favoring stronger representation of the people in the popular assemblies and tribunes of the plebs who wielded power to veto senate rulings. back
Praetor Chief law officer and deputy to the consuls. back
Primus Pilus The most senior, decorated and experienced centurion of a legion, given command of the double-strength first century of the first cohort, which would mean 160 legionaries at full strength. back
Pteruges Leather strips protruding from under the cuirass that offered some protection for the shoulders and thighs. back
Pugio Dagger. back
Quaestor An officer in charge of military and civic treasury, as well as record-keeping. back
Quaestorium In the late Republic, a Roman military camp’s supply tent, as well as the quarters of the quaestor. During the Empire, the quaestorium came to be used to store booty and high-ranking prisoners. back
Quintilis The seventh month of the pre-Julian Roman calendar, i.e. July. back
Quinquereme A large Roman warship with five rowers to a side on three levels. back
Raeda 4-wheeled carriage, usually pulled by two, sometimes four horses. back
Rage of the Dog Star See malaria
Rostra The large, raised platform in the Comitium where consuls and other magistrates spoke to the Roman people. back
Sagum Military cloak. back
Salve Good Day! Good Morning! Also used in bidding farewell, as was vale. Ave is a less formal usage and “would seem to be more a morning greeting or a simple expression of goodwill” (http://catholicforum.fisheaters.com/index.php?topic=2667068.0;wap2). back
Salutatio A time-honored tradition of the patron-client relationship. At the start of each day, the patron would don his toga, open the doors to his home and give audience to all the men dependent on him for council, favors and money. In return, the clients might be asked to perform certain services, such as drumming up political support or gathering information. back
Scutum Roman shield. During the late Republic, the shield had evolved into a convex rectangle of several plies of wood, approximately 4 feet tall by 2-1/2 feet wide. The center held an iron boss, used both offensively and defensively. This shield, or some variation of it, was at least as important a part of a legionary’s kit as his weapons (a foot soldier’s armor was far from invulnerable). It weighed anywhere from 12 to 22 pounds. Unless on parade or in battle, the shield was kept dry in a goatskin or leather bag. back
Serapeum It is said that the Royal Library of Alexandria, the greatest collection of books in the known world, was accidentally destroyed by Julius Caesar during his war with Pompey. The surviving scrolls were moved the temple of Serapis, or the Serapeum. back
Sestercius Brass Roman coin worth one quarter of a silver denarius; plural: sesterces. 100 sesterces equaled 1 gold aureus. back
Sherwal Baggy trousers tied at the ankles. The garment originated in Persia
but is still worn today by Kurds and other peoples of the Levant and Middle East. back
Sixth hour The Roman sixth hour of the day was always noon; The sixth hour of the night was always midnight. back
Sol Invictus Latin: another name for Mithra
Somnus Roman god of sleep. back
Stoa Greek. An open, columned, covered portico or walkway, sometimes storied. back
Stola Long sleeveless tunic worn by women over other tunics; a symbol of marriage. back
Strigil In the Roman baths, after oil has been applied, this curved metal tool was used to scrape dirt and sweat from the body. back
Subligaculum Underwear worn by either men or women, usually a wrapped loin cloth. back
Tablinum Room usually between atrium and peristyle where guests were received and records kept. back
Tepidarium The warm bath where Romans soaked after the steam or hot bath, then cleaned themselves before venturing into the frigidarium, or cold pool. It did not always have a pool, but did keep its occupants warm with heated walls and flooring. back
Theater of Pompeius A derivative work of a 3D, Computer generated image of the Theatre of Pompey by the model maker, Lasha Tskhondia. The temple of Venus Victrix is at the lower left, the Portico is at the upper right. Below, an early 19th century lithograph by A. Schill depicting, from the left, the stage building, the stage itself (front curtain removed), the semi-circle of the orchestra, seating and the temple of Venus Victrix. back
Toga praetexta The toga of the curule magistrate, off-white, with a 2- to 3-inch wide purple border along one side. Also worn by boys until the age of sixteen or seventeen, and by men engaged in sacred rites. back
Tonsor Barber. back
Triclinium The dining room in a Roman house, its name derived from the fact that three wide couches, each accommodating up to three diners, comprised the seating. A table in the center held food and the fourth side was left open for servants to move in and out of the dining area. A diagram and pictures may be found on my blog. back
Trierarch Captain of a Trireme. back
Trigon A ball game with three players who stood at the points of a triangle about 20 feet apart. The ball, small and hard, perhaps like our baseball, was thrown to one or the other players (feints were encouraged), and points were scored for left-hand catches, hitting the other player and batting the ball without actually catching it. Slaves were on hand to keep score and fetch lost balls. back
Trireme Originally Greek, then Roman galley. Approximately 120 feet long, they were powered by 170 rowers on three levels. Picture courtesy of Zvezda Models. back
Triumph The crowning achievement of a Roman imperator, or general. City-wide celebration of a great victory awarded to the returning victor. In Republican Rome, only the senate could grant a triumph. As the parade marched through the city, according to Tertullian, a slave would stand behind the general in his chariot, holding a bejeweled wreath over his head and whispering over and over to remember that the imperator was only human. back
Typhoid fever We do not know what the Romans called this disease, but have inferred that it might be named after the red spots that often appear on the victims’ chest and abdomen. back
Urukku steel The first true steel, believed to be manufactured in what is now modern-day India between 500 and 300 BCE. Also known as wootz steel. Pounding heated urukku steel formed what was known by the Middle Ages as Damascus steel (made by this process since about 330 BCE), characterized by its swirling patterns of color, strength and flexibility. Although Romans knew of it, for unknown reasons they never attempted to manufacture it in any quantity. back
Venatio Literally, the hunt, but in reality, a slaughter. Wild beasts were brought into the arena and either killed by the least respected class of gladiators, called bestiarii, or used as a form of execution of criminals. If the ancient historians are correct, by the end of the empire, literally tens of thousands of lions, elephants, panthers, bears, leopards, bulls, hippopotami, crocodiles, giraffes, rhinoceroses and other exotic animals were butchered. back
Virtus The Roman god of military strength and bravery, as embodied in the manly characteristics of valor, courage, toughness and the stoic bearing of adversity. These qualities of virtus defined much of ancient Roman society. When depicting qualities associated more with ancient Greeks than Romans, such as virtuousness and moral fortitude, Virtus is sometimes depicted as female. back
Vulpecula A little fox. back
Zeus Eleutherios Zeus the Liberator. A temple in the form of a stoa was constructed to honor the god at the end of the 5th century BCE. back
***
TIMELINE – all years BCE, Before the Common Era
115 Born: Marcus Licinius Crassus Dives
106 Born: Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, Marcus Tullius Cicero
105 Born: Alexandros of Elateia
100 Born: Gaius Julius Caesar, Tertulla, wife of Marcus Crassus
93 Born: Livia, daughter of Sabina
89-85 First War with Mithridates, King of Pontus
88 Sulla marches on Rome to oust Marius and Cinna
87 Crassus' father and brother murdered by Marius supporters
86 Athens sacked by Sulla; Alexandros taken as a slave
86 Born? Cassius Longinus
85 Born? Marcus, Crassus' eldest son (debated)
84 Born? Eran Spahbodh Rustaham Suren-Pahlav; Cinna murdered by his own troops
83-82 Sulla’s 2nd march on Rome; both Pompeius and Crassus fight for Sulla against Marius
83 Born: Marcus Antonius
82 Born: Publius, Crassus' youngest son (debated)
82-81 Lucius Cornelius Sulla dictator of Rome
79 Sulla retires to his estate to write his memoirs
78 Death of Sulla (60)
76 Born: Melyaket puhr Karach
73 Crassus elected praetor
73-31 War of Spartacus, which Crassus wins, but for which Pompeius takes credit
70 Crassus and Pompeius elected as consuls
66 Pompeius given unprecedented authority to defeat the Cilician pirates
66-64 Pompeius participates in the victory of the Third Mithridatic War and makes Pontus a Roman province in 64 BCE
65 Crassus elected censor
63 Born: Octavian, the future Augustus Caesar; Pompeius establishes Roman supremacy over Coele-Syria (including Judea) and Phoenicia; Pompeius defiles, but does not steal gold from temple in Jerusalem; Caesar appointed pontifex maximus
61 Pompeius celebrates his third triumph on his 45th birthday
60 Caesar elected consul
59 Caesar, Pompeius & Crassus form what historians will call the first triumvirate; Caesar marries Calpurnia; Pompeius marries Julia, Caesar’s daughter
58? Publius accompanies Caesar to Gaul
56 The conference at Luca-deal to make Pompeius governor of Spain, Crassus governor of Syria & Caesar commander in Gaul for another 5-year term is struck; Gabinius aborts his invasion of Parthia to re-install Ptolemy on the throne of Egypt
55 Pompeius inaugurates his theater; Pompeius and Crassus serve their second term as consuls; in November, Crassus departs for Syria
49 Caesar crosses the Rubicon, civil war ensues
44 Gaius Julius Caesar assassinated. top
The Arc of the Arrow
Book III of
The Bow of Heaven
It is so dark, ears see better than eyes. I trip and stumble into the men in front of me. They help me up. No one speaks.
There is a place we have to find. We have to get there because something is coming. Fear prickles my skin and dries my tongue.
We trudge up a long slope and at the peak of this mound make our meager defenses from the whispered commands of the centurions.
They are coming. Through our feet, we feel their dread approach. Small stones shake themselves loose and roll down the hill, eager to leave the place of this, our final stand. Soon they are upon us, monsters riding monsters, their teeth impossibly long. After a time,
we think their thirst for our blood has been slaked, for they withdraw and lumber off. Suddenly we are alone.
Above the moaning of the wounded, there comes a rushing of air, but there is no wind. A rain of arrows begins to fall.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Balsdon, J.P.V.D. Life and Leisure in Ancient Rome. McGraw-Hill, 1969.
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Cassius Dio. Roman History, Book XXIX. Loeb Classical Library Edition, 1914.
Carcopino, Jerome, Cicero: The Secrets of His Correspondence, Volume 1. Greenwood Press, 1969, pp. 208-209.
Ferrero, Guglielmo. The Greatness & Decline of Rome, Vol. II, Julius Caesar. G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1907, p. 91, Chapter VI.
Ginzel, E. A. Steel in Ancient Greece and Rome. http://www.tf.uni-kiel.de/matwis/amat/def_en/articles/steel_greece_rome/steel_in_ancient_greece_an.html. 1995.
de Jongh, Brian. The Companion Guide to Greece. Companion Guides, 2000, p.191.
Libanius_Redux, http://libaniusredux.blogspot.com/, Antiochepedia = Musings Upon Ancient Antioch
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Mitchell, Stephen. Blucium and Peium: The Galatian Forts of King Deiotarus, British Institute at Ankara, 1974.
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Plutarch. The Life of Crassus. Loeb Classical Library, 196.
Rawlinson, George, M. A. The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy or the Geography, History and Antiquities of Partha, Dodd, Mead & Company, 1890.
Seager, Robin. Pompey the Great. Wiley-Blackwell, 2002.
Ward, Allen Mason. Marcus Crassus and the Late Roman Republic. University of Missouri Press, 1977.
A Mixture of Madness, Book II of The Bow of Heaven Page 46