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A pair of 2,000-year-old Roman scrolls believed to have belonged to the family of Julius Caesar, and were buried and charred during Vesuvius’ eruption, have been virtually “unwrapped” for the first time ever. The scrolls, known as the Herculaneum Scrolls, are too fragile to be handled by hand, so researchers needed to use the X-ray beam at Diamond Light Source, as well as a “virtual unwrapping” software to detect the carbon ink on them. “Texts from the ancient world are rare and precious, and they simply cannot be revealed through any other known process,” University of Kentucky professor Brent Seales,...

This is what most of us know about the death of Julius Caesar, half-remembered from movies and plays: Some soothsayer said, "Beware the Ides of March." A few idealistic Romans decided to win back Rome for the people.Caesar got stabbed by Brutus with a big sword, said "Et tu, Brute?" and died nobly. All of that is wrong.

ACT I SCENE I. Rome. A street. Enter FLAVIUS, MARULLUS, and certain Commoners FLAVIUS Hence! home, you idle creatures get you home: Is this a holiday? what! know you not, Being mechanical, you ought not walk Upon a labouring day without the sign Of your profession? Speak, what trade art thou? First Commoner Why, sir, a carpenter. MARULLUS Where is thy leather apron and thy rule? What dost thou with thy best apparel on? You, sir, what trade are you? Second Commoner Truly, sir, in respect of a fine workman, I am but, as you would say, a cobbler. MARULLUS...

The Great Theater at Apamea in northern Syria vies with the Large Theater at Ephesus, Turkey for the honor of being the largest extant Roman edifice of its type to have survived the ravages of time. Both buildings are estimated to have held audiences of over 20,000 persons, and both may have had their origins in an earlier Greek Hellenistic structure that was overbuilt in the Roman Era. Only one other theater, the Theater of Pompey in Rome, is known to have been larger. However, Pompey's lavish building is buried under the modern streets of the city, and its surviving...

The ancient square, the site where Julius Caesar was murdered, is to get a make-over courtesy of fashion house Bulgari, which plans to spend some €800,000 restoring the ruins to an accessible state. Currently visitors can only admire the square from above. It is closed to all except a colony of stray cats and the human volunteers who operate a sanctuary for them in the south-west corner... Off-limits and overgrown, its archaeological remains stacked into piles, the area needs considerable work to make it accessible to the public, including securing the ruins, installing walkways and building public bathrooms... There have...

Today is the anniversary of the day in 49 B.C. when Julius Caesar - noting, Iacta alea esto ("The die is cast") - crossed the Rubicon River with his legions to march on Rome in defiance of both the Senate and Roman law, which forbade any general from crossing the Rubicon and entering Italy proper with a standing army. To do so was treason. This tiny stream would reveal Caesar's intentions and mark the point of no return. Born around 100 B.C. into one of the oldest patrician families of the republic, Caesar began his political career as a member...

Archaeologists have pinpointed an obscure spot in Kent as the scene of the first encounter between Rome and ancient Britons. Pegwell Bay on the Isle of Thanet is believed to be where Caesar first attempted to land in 55 BC, and later more successfully in 54 BC. Now the site is more than half a mile inland - but at the time it was closer to the coast. The location matches Caesar's own account as it was visible from the sea with a large open bay and was overlooked by higher ground. His army immediately built a fort on the...

Julius Caesar is dead (again). Long live "Julius Caesar." Whether the famous dead Roman is a lookalike for President Donald Trump, with a blond comb-over and a long red tie; a cool black dude in a tailored suit suggesting former President Barack Obama; or a 1930s Orson Welles with a Sam Browne belt resembling Benito Mussolini, the character has captured the imagination of the public and the players since Shakespeare wrote the play more than four centuries ago. The spectacle changes with fresh costumes and new sets to emphasize contemporary issues for specific audiences, but the words continue to plumb...

It's a phrase we hear over and over on Twitter whenever someone criticizes morally troubling anti-leftist tactics used by members of the right. They say: "What are you, some sort of coward? What, are you worried about muh principles?" The phrase is meant to deride the supposed moral preening of those who criticize -- they must think themselves high and mighty, whining about virtue where some good hard-nosed old-fashioned get-in-the-dirt-and-fight-'em tactics would do. Those worries about right and wrong just hamstring the right. "Muh principles" are a liability. Why can't those weaklings just get over their supposed moral purity and...

PROTESTER INTERRUPTS TRUMP ASSASSINATION PLAY IN CENTRAL PARK! SCREAMING “STOP LIBERAL VIOLENCE! — GOEBBELS WOULD BE PROUD! — YOU’RE A NAZI CROWD!!!” The Shakespeare in the Park rendition of Julius Caesar is still scheduled to play this weekend in Central Park after the shooting of GOP Rep. Scalise by a devout Bernie Sanders supporter.The New York Times and CNN’s parent company Time Warner are standing by their sponsorship of a play that depicts the brutal assassination of President Donald Trump, raising the question of whether the news reporting outlets should retain their credentials to cover and have access to President...

New York City’s “Shakespeare In The Park” troupe had a very bad day on Monday, in the wake of the premier of its production of “Julius Caesar”, which portrays the assassination of a central figure who looks an awful lot like President Donald Trump. The inevitable controversy over the play has now resulted in several of the troupe’s major sponsors cancelling their support, including Delta Airlines, Bank of America, and later in the day, American Express. Naturally, Time Warner, the parent company of CNN, which has been dog-whistling in favor of assassinating the President since shortly after he announced his...

New York’s Public Theater lost support from two high-profile corporate donors on Sunday, Delta Air Lines and Bank of America, amid intense criticism of its production of Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar,” which depicts the assassination of a Trump-like Roman ruler.(snip) “Their artistic and creative direction crossed the line on the standards of good taste,” the company said. “We have notified them of our decision to end our sponsorship as the official airline of the Public Theater effective immediately.” Bank of America followed hours later, saying it would withdraw financial support from the production of “Julius Caesar” but would not end its...

New York’s Public Theater lost support from two high-profile corporate donors on Sunday, Delta Air Lines and Bank of America, amid intense criticism of its production of Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar,” which depicts the assassination of a Trump-like Roman ruler.

Delta Air Lines Inc. and Bank of America Corp. dropped their sponsorships of New York Public Theater on Sunday over a production of Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” that shows the main character, made to resemble Donald Trump, being assassinated. “No matter what your political stance may be, the graphic staging of Julius Caesar at this summer’s Free Shakespeare in the Park does not reflect Delta Air Lines’ values,” the airline said in a statement Sunday afternoon. “Their artistic and creative direction crossed the line on the standards of good taste.”

“No matter what your political stance may be, the graphic staging of 'Julius Caesar' at this summer’s Free Shakespeare in the Park does not reflect Delta Air Lines’ values," the airline said in a statement. Just hours before the theater world gathered for the annual Tony Awards, Delta Air Lines revoked its four-year-old sponsorship of New York's Public Theater, according to reports. The airline found issue with the summer production of Julius Caesar, featuring the assassination of the title character, who in this staging bears an unmistakable resemblance to Donald Trump. "No matter what your political stance may be, the...

Trump Derangement Syndrome continues to spin out of control within certain segments of society, and offenders seem unable to recognize when a line has been crossed. The Public Theater's rendition of Julius Caesar in New York City is a prime example of the phenomenon. This version of Shakespeare’s tragedy features a Caesar who bears a striking resemblance to President Donald Trump, complete with his trademark orange hair, business suit, and long red (or blue) necktie. True to the original play, the rash populist Caesar ends up being assassinated on the Senate floor by a group of conspirators — including his...

According to Playbill, The Public Theater’s Oskar Eustis directed the Trump-inspired take on the classic political drama, which boasts famed stage actor John Douglas Thompson and House of Cards star Corey Stoll in its cast. The choice of Julius Caesar for the annual program is one dripping with subtext, chosen deliberately for the supposed parallels between the Roman dictator and Trump. A description of the play on The Public Theater’s website states that “Shakespeare’s political masterpiece has never felt more contemporary.” It describes the Roman leader as “Magnetic, populist, irreverent,” and “bent on absolute power.” The description also notes that...

CNN serial plagiarist Fareed Zakaria went to see a production of Julius Cesar in New York’s Central Park, a play that we now know depicts the gruesome assassination of President Trump. Nothing wrong with that. Zakaria might not have known what he was in for. But after it was over, Zakaria so enjoyed the bloody spectacle, was so enthused, he declared the play a “masterpiece” and publicly recommended it to others.

Delta Airlines announced on Sunday that it was withdrawing its sponsorship of New York City’s nonprofit Public Theater over a new Shakespeare in the Park production of “Julius Caesar” featuring a facsimile of Donald Trump in the title role meeting a very bloody end. “No matter what your political stance may be, the graphic staging of Julius Caesar at this summer’s Free Shakespeare in the Park does not reflect Delta Air Lines’ values,” the company said in a statement, ending a four-year-old sponsorship. “Their artistic and creative direction crossed the line on the standards of good taste. We have notified...

In 449 B.C., the Roman government passed the Law of the Twelve Tables, regulating much of commercial, social, and family life. Some of these laws were reasonable and consistent with an economy of contract and commerce; others prescribed gruesome punishments and assigned cruel powers and privileges given to some. Other regulations fixed a maximum rate of interest on loans of approximately 8 percent. The Roman government also had the habit of periodically forgiving all interest owed in the society; that is, it legally freed private debtors from having to pay back interest due to private creditors. The Roman government also...