Search
Search Results
Definition
Pliny the Younger
Pliny the Younger (61-112 CE) was the nephew of Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE), the author of the 37-volume Natural History. He had a remarkable political career and gained a reputation as an excellent lawyer and orator, but he is most famous...
Definition
Agrippina the Younger
Julia Agrippina or Agrippina the Younger (6 November 15 - 19/23 March 59 CE) was a prominent woman during the early Roman Empire, niece to Tiberius (r. 14-37 CE) and Claudius (41-54 CE), whom she married, sister of Caligula (r. 37-41 CE...
Definition
Hans Holbein the Younger
Hans Holbein the Younger (c. 1497-1543 CE) was a German Renaissance painter who is most famous for his portraits. A versatile artist and superb draughtsman, Holbein was accomplished in different mediums from woodcut engravings to murals...
Definition
Cato the Younger
Marcus Porcius Cato (95-46 BCE), better known as Cato the Younger or Cato of Utica, was an influential politician of the Roman Republic. As the great-grandson of Cato the Elder and a dedicated student of Stoicism, he believed in traditional...
Article
Pliny the Younger on Christianity
Pliny the Younger's (61-112 CE) letter (Epistulae X.96) to Roman Emperor Trajan (r. 98-117 CE) is one of our earliest sources on Christianity from an outsider's point of view. It highlights the Christian movement's impact on the old Roman...
Definition
Artaxerxes II
Artaxerxes II (r. 404-358 BCE, also known as Artaxerxes II Mnemon) was the 10th monarch of the Achaemenid Empire (c. 550-330 BCE). He was the son of Darius II (r. 424-404 BCE) and Parysatis (who was Darius II's half-sister) and older brother...
Image
Portrait of Hans Holbein the Younger
A c. 1543 CE self-portrait by the German Renaissance painter Hans Holbein the Younger (c. 1497-1543 CE). (Uffizi Gallery, Florence)
Definition
Cyrenaics
The Cyrenaics were a philosophical school of thought founded c. 4th century BCE by Aristippus of Cyrene (l. c. 435-356 BCE) who taught that sensual pleasure was the highest good and only worthwhile pursuit in life. Known as the first hedonistic...
Definition
Britannicus
Britannicus (41-55 CE) was the second child and only son born to the Roman emperor Claudius (r. 41-54 CE) and Valeria Messalina (c. 20-48 CE). Seen as a threat by Claudius' fourth wife, Agrippina the Younger (15-59 CE), and her son, the future...
Definition
Germanicus
Germanicus (15 BCE - 19 CE) was a commander in the Roman Empire with a glowing reputation in his time under the rule of the Emperor Tiberius. His position in the Roman Empire was a unique and important one. His marriage to Agrippina the Elder...