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More than 100 dodecahedrons have now been found in northwestern Europe, but archaeologists still don't know what they were used for.Amateur archaeologists in England have unearthed a stunning Roman dodecahedron — a mysterious class of objects that has baffled experts for centuries.The dodecahedron — a 12-sided metal shell about the size of a grapefruit — was found this past summer during a dig in a farmer's field near the Lincolnshire village of Norton Disney, located about 35 miles (56 kilometers) southeast of Sheffield.A previous geophysical survey, which had detected underground areas where the Earth's magnetic field had been disturbed, had...

The skeleton of a man was discovered with a nail through his heel in Fenstanton, Cambridgeshire, in 2017...The reconstruction of the man's face was revealed in a BBC Four programme, which explored details of his life.Prior to the Fenstanton discovery, the only other Roman crucified remains discovered had been in Israel, according to Ms Duhig, an osteologist from the university's Wolfson College.Other injuries were found, suggesting the man had suffered before he died, and his legs had signs of infection or inflammation caused by either a systemic disorder or by being bound or shackled.Analysis of the remains revealed he spent...

The greatest collapse of a mighty state, a large human so­ciety and a fruitful civilization of which we possess a reasonably ac­curate record, has been immortal­ized by Edward Gibbon’s histori­cal classic, The Decline and Fall of The Roman Empire. Henry Adams remarked that Gibbon did not really explain the fall; but this criticism is not altogether just. As the following excerpts from The Decline and Fall show, the philosophic historian offered a number of reflections on the symp­toms and causes of the drama which he set out to describe: "This long peace and the uni­form government of the Romans introduced...

ROME - Computer experts on Monday unveiled a digital reproduction of ancient Rome as it appeared at the peak of its power in A.D. 320 — what they called the largest and most complete simulation of a historic city ever created. Visitors to virtual Rome will be able to do even more than ancient Romans did: They can crawl through the bowels of the Colosseum, filled with lion cages and primitive elevators, and fly up for a detailed look at bas-reliefs and inscriptions atop triumphal arches. "This is the first step in the creation of a virtual time machine, which...

Video A viral social media video shows hundreds of men dressed in black standing in a central street in Rome and performing the Nazi salute several times. The gathering was held in memory of three neo-fascist activists who were killed in 1978. The three were members of the ‘Italian Social Movement’ and two of them were killed, presumably, by left-wing activists, with the third killed by a police officer after a riot broke out in that spot. The video has caused controversy in Italy. Italian authorities have announced they are opening a criminal investigation. The ceremony is held each year...

A letter written by a Roman emperor helped lead a team of archaeologists to an ancient temple that "adds significant insights into the social changes" from pagan beliefs to Christianity in the Roman Empire, experts announced recently. The lead archaeologist on the expedition, Douglas Boin, Ph.D., announced the "monumental discovery" at the annual meeting of the Archaeological Institute of America, according to a news release from St. Louis University, where Boin is a professor of history. Boin said he and his team discovered "three walls of a monumental structure" that appears to have been a Roman temple from the Constantine...

Nobody does political cynicism like the Italians. As a country it hasn't been crucial since the fifth century AD, but it knows more about how politics works – and more importantly how it doesn't work – than any other nation on the planet. After refining Greek democracy into a workable system for a growing empire, Rome set about discovering all the ways government could corrupt itself, then descended into over a millennia of decline and division. The moment – brief, hopeful and doomed – when Italy struggled to reemerge as a national entity again is the setting for this week's...

The Pantheon is the best preserved temple of Ancient Rome, but in this episode we'll explore some huge, structural rooms of the Pantheon (the grottoni) that are rarely accessed. Indeed, most people don't even know they exist! How is this possible? What purpose did they serve? Let's explore!0:00 Introduction1:14 Pantheon's secret rooms (the grottoes- grottoni)- floor plan; grottoni rooms and Basilica of Neptune: engineering necessities of Pantheon4:13 Tour of the grottoni rooms6:42 Pantheon brickstamps and Basilica of Neptune decorations8:09 Grottoni vaultingExplore the secret rooms of the Pantheon | 11:00Darius Arya Digs | 17.6K subscribers | 127,898 views | January 7,...

The ruins of an ancient Roman pagan temple have been uncovered by a team of archaeologists in Spello, a hilltop town in northern Italy. At the site, which is located near a religious sanctuary, researchers identified three walls that are part of a massive structure with four-foot wide foundations. These foundations suggest evidence of a Roman temple dating to the 330s, during reign of Constantine (306–337 CE), the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. These finds further illuminate the transition from pagan to Christian worship within the Roman Empire. The results of excavations conducted this summer were presented by...

Georgia congresswoman has been targeted multiple times by prank calls, has a security detail. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene reported her home was “swatted” Monday on Christmas with a fake emergency call, as she praised police for their professionalism as they responded to the latest in dangerous pranks targeting the Georgia Republican. “I was just swatted. This is like the 8th time. On Christmas with my family here. My local police are the GREATEST and shouldn’t have to deal with this,” she wrote on the X social media platform. A spokesperson for the Rome, Ga., police told The Hill that multiple...

The Osage Nation won a massive ruling in Tulsa federal court on Wednesday that requires Enel to dismantle a 150-megawatt wind project it built in Osage County despite the tribe’s repeated objections. The tribe’s fight against Rome-based Enel began in 2011 and is the longest-running legal battle over wind energy in American history. As reported by Curtis Killman in the Tulsa World on Thursday, the ruling grants the United States, the Osage Nation, and Osage Minerals Council permanent injunctive relief via “ejectment of the wind turbine farm for continuing trespass.” The decision by U.S. Court of International Trade Judge Jennifer...

The world's only intact Roman shield and body armour that was found in a German field after being buried for more than 2,000 years are set to go on display in a new exhibition at the British Museum.The shield, which is on its maiden transatlantic loan from Yale University in the US, was found in Syria in the 1930s.Although discovered in pieces, it was restored to its former glory by experts and will be seen by the British public for the first time in the Legion: life in the Roman army exhibition, which opens on February 1 next year.The segmental...

When Justinian secured the so-called "Eternal Peace" with the Persians in AD 532 after the Battle of Daras, it is likely that he realized that the peace on his eastern frontier would not actually be perpetual. But he probably thought it would last longer that seven or eight years. In any event, the emperor made the most the respite, gathering his substantial forces from the east which had previously been on station to face down the Persian menace, and readying them for a thrust to the West. His first target was the Vandal Kingdom which had ruled Roman Africa for...

Some wars last longer than others but one of the longest wars in history was formally declared over on February 5, 1985. This was the Third Punic War which officially lasted 2,131 years although there wasn’t much fighting after 146BC as the forces of Rome finally defeated those of Carthage (now part of Tunisia) and the area became the Roman Province of Africa. Carthage destroyed The city was destroyed and for many years no-one was allowed to rebuild or resettle but when the Emperor Augustus came to power, he was aware of a plan by Julius Caesar to rebuild Carthage...

Gladiators fought in rounds, and there were referees to enforce rules. Only rarely were gladiators killed. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Gladiators rarely died in fights, as gladiatorial combat was more about demonstrating physical and mental endurance, martial skill, and athleticism. There were between 20 and 30 different styles of gladiatorial combat. Gladiators would adopt a style based on their body type and the choice of their trainers. Gladiatorial fights had rules, including fighting in rounds. Referees were present to enforce rules, caution fouls, and handle appeals. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One of the most iconic moments in movie history is when Russell Crowe, dressed in...

A series of declassified satellite images from the Cold War era have revealed hundreds of undiscovered Roman forts in Iraq and Syria. A total of 396 new sites have been identified from the images taken in the 1960s and 1970s, with the findings, published in the journal Antiquity, changing the perception of how the region functioned. A previous 1934 aerial survey, conducted by French explorer Antoine Poidebard, recorded 116 Roman forts across the region. They were previously thought to form a defensive line against incursions from Arabia and Persia along the Roman Empire’s eastern flank. The latest findings, however, suggest...

Researchers used artificial intelligence to extract the first word from one of the first texts in a charred scroll from the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum, which has been unreadable since a volcanic eruption in AD 79 — the same one that buried nearby Pompeii...The Vesuvius Challenge, a contest with $1,000,000 (£821K) in prizes for those who can use modern technology to decipher the words of these scrolls, has awarded a 21-year-old undergraduate student at the University of Nebraska $40,000 (£32.8K) for being the first to read a word from one of the ancient Herculaneum scrolls.Luke Farritor, who is at...

Archaeologists from France's National Institute of Preventive Archeology (INRAP) have unearthed an unlooted ancient stone sarcophagus in the vast ancient necropolis on Rue Soussillon in northeastern France...The ancient Durocortorum was the capital of the province of Gaul Belgium and was one of the largest cities in the Roman Empire. The city extended over 600 hectares and was delimited by a powerful wall. It was in the second half of the 19th century, during extension work in Reims, that the contours of this so-called "Augustan" enclosure were highlighted as well as the extra muros necropolises, located around the seven main access...

Authorities announced Monday that two incredibly rare Roman cavalry swords were uncovered in the Cotswolds, England, during a metal detectorist rally.The two Roman cavalry swords were found along with their wooden scabbards and fitments, according to a press release from the Cotswold District Council. There was also a broken copper alloy bowl discovered with the weaponry.Fitments were discovered by Glenn Manning during a metal detectorist rally in the north of the Cotswolds.The swords have been appraised by Professor Simon James from Leicester University who says that these weapons are middle imperial Roman swords, which are often referred to as a...

Víctor Manuel Fernández: "The Pope will not go where his visit can be used (or complicated) for political convenience or where the authorities despise his presence" "The extreme right forgets that there is a commandment even more important than the sixth (because it affects justice and charity) which asks not to bear false testimony or lie" "I have several other texts from years ago that could be considered much more 'dangerous' from a theological point of view and yet you have not even seen them. Maybe I am wrong to mention it, but it is the truth" "There will undoubtedly...