• bija

    Does Jesus Have Roots in Iran? Meet Mithras, the Pagan Christ

    It sounds like a plot that Dan Brown might have dreamed up: Christianity has nebulous but symbiotic roots in an underground pagan religion and the figure of Jesus himself was modelled on a pagan god worshipped by the Romans (Find out about what the Romans did in London by watching the Ancient World in London video). The scenario sounds far-fetched and could even be shocking to Christians (if they thought it had any truth in it), but nonetheless, it’s a story that has been given some mileage, particularly among some historians and youtube broadcasters who persist in claiming that Mithras…

  • bija-knowles

    Brittania Superior ‘v’ Brittania Inferior: the Roman Roots of Britain’s North-South Divide

    Recent news reports suggest that Britain’s north-south divide is still alive and as pronounced as ever. Whether you’re talking about heart disease, house prices or teenage pregnancy, statistics show that the invisible line that divides the north of Britain from the south is all too real. Running from the Bristol channel up to somewhere just north of Lincoln (placing Wales and most of the West Midlands in the ‘north’ half of the UK), it’s an insurmountable line that separates the traditionally affluent south and the poorer north (although there are exceptions to the rule on both sides). So how did…

  • nick-gilbert

    Philip Crummy on the Future of the Colchester Roman Circus

    This week a group of archaeologists and volunteers from Colchester Archaeological Trust and Destination Colchester attained their goal to raise 200,000 to buy a plot of land that covers the remains of part of what was once the only known Roman Circus in Britain. The appeal started as recently as December 2009, and was quickly won, with the help of celebrity endorsements and public goodwill. We spoke to Philip Crummy, Director of the Colchester Archaeological Trust about the achievement. HK: Congratulations on raising the 200,000 sum you needed, how do you feel? PC: We feel quite overwhelmed by it all,…

  • sean-williams

    Salve! Colchester’s Roman Circus Reaches Funding Target

    The future of Britain’s only chariot racetrack is looking a lot brighter this week, as the public funding needed to save Colchester’s Roman circus was reached yesterday. The 200,000 raised by Colchester Archaeological Trust and Destination Colchester will join 30,000 from the local council and 550,000 in loans and grants. The total will go towards buying the Sergeant’s Mess, a Victorian building which stands upon the circus’ gates. To see an in-depth blog on the campaign itself, click here. Campaign spokesperson Wendy Bailey tells the BBC this funding is merely one of many obstacles the team faces, if Colchester is…

  • nick-gilbert

    Boudicca – The Battle-axe of Britain

    The warrior Queen, the avenging mother, the woman scorned. Ask any English person who led ‘us’ in the fight against Rome and they will tell you about a woman whose fame outweighs her achievements. Called Boadicea, Boudicca or Boudica, she has a legendary status, like Vercingetorix in Gaul, as one of the leaders of the old world who fought with courage against Rome. Hopelessly outmatched in so many ways, they represented tradition, their religions and some would say freedom against foreign oppressors. The logistical capability and military precision of the Empire meant that resistance to Roman dominance was in the…

  • lyn

    Did Ryszard Kapuściński Follow Herodotus’ Example and Make Things Up?

    Ryszard Kapuciski, one of journalism’s most feted names, is the subject of controversy following the release in Poland of a new biography of his life. In Kapuscinski: Non-fiction, the Polish journalist Artur Domoslawski alleges that some of Kapuscinski’s acclaimed writings were nothing short of lies. Domoslawski argues that Kapuscinski embellished some of the stories he included in his books and, worse, claimed to be present at historic events when he was elsewhere. He is also accused of never having met famous and influential people such as Che Guevara whom he wrote about befriending. The allegations have been met with outrage…

  • owenjarus

    Cock-a-Doodle-doo! Giant Red Rooster Mosaic Finds Home in ROM’s New Byzantine Gallery

    Planners and construction workers are hard at work building new Byzantine and Roman galleries at the Royal Ontario Museum, in Toronto Canada. The galleries will be completed some time in 2011. For now I thought I would show a picture of a key artefact that will be featured in the Byzantine Gallery. Its a mosaic that dates to the time when the city of Constantinople was being founded (AD 325-350). Curator Paul Denis said that its 12 feet by 20 feet and will be a key part of the Byzantine gallery. He added: its got geometric patterns around the border…

  • Ann

    Queen Behenu’s burial chamber discovered at Saqqara

    A French archaeological team digging at Saqqara has discovered the burial chamber of 6th Dynasty Queen Behenu, wife of either Pepi I or Pepi II. The burial chamber was revealed while the team was cleaning the sand from Behenu’s pyramid in the area of el-Shawaf in South Saqqara, west of the pyramid of King Pepi I. The burial chamber uncovered by the French mission is badly damaged, apart from two inner walls which contain engraved Pyramid Texts. Those texts were widely used in royal tombs – carved on walls as well as sarcophagi – during the 5th and 6th Dynasties (circa 2465-2150BC). Pyramid…

  • malcolmj

    First Person Prosecuted in UK for Not Reporting Treasure

    23-year-old Kate Harding from Ludlow, Shropshire last week became the first person prosecuted under the Treasure Act in Britain for not reporting the discovery of a significant historical artefact to the Coroner, reported the Mail Online. The offending find is a 700-year-old silver coin-like item called a piedfort, marking Charles IVs ascension to the French throne in 1322. Thicker than normal coins from the period, piedforts are thought to have been used not as currency but as guides for mint workers or reckoning counters for officials therefore qualifying the object as potential Treasure under the Treasure Act 1996. Only three…

  • sean-williams

    AWiL Video Series – Colchester, Britain’s First Roman City

    Colchester can lay claim to a bevy of titles: some impressive, some not so. For instance, you might not know that it’s the first-ever town in Britain, founded as a Roman soldiers’ outpost shortly after Claudius‘ 43AD landing. You may also be unaware that it’s the home of Mary Whitehouse, Colchester United and Darren Day. A mixed bag, admittedly. But there’s no denying Colchester’s history runs deep, and the wealth of ancient history lurking above ground could put central London to shame. Walls, churches, castles and priories are the lasting evidence of a town which became the capital of England…