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Military of ancient Rome (portal)
800 BC – AD 476
Structural history
Roman army (unit types and ranks,
legions, auxiliaries, generals)
Roman navy (fleets, admirals)
Campaign history
Lists of wars and battles
Decorations and punishments
Technological history
Military engineering (castra,
siege engines, arches, roads)
Personal equipment
Political history
Strategy and tactics
Infantry tactics
Frontiers and fortifications (limes,
Hadrian's Wall)
Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19th Century portrait. No contemporary depiction of Pliny has survived.
Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19th Century portrait. Commonwealth English! -->The military of ancient Rome relates to the combined military forces of Ancient Rome from the founding of the city The structural history of the Roman military describes the major chronological transformations in the organization and constitution of Ancient Rome 's armed forces, The Roman army was a set of military forces employed by the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and later Roman Empire as part of the Roman military This is a list of both unit types and ranks of the Roman army from the Roman Republic to the fall of This is a list of Roman legions, including key facts about each legion primarily focusing on Principate (early Empire 30BC - 284AD legions for which there exists Auxiliaries (from Latin: auxilia = "supports" formed the standing non-citizen corps of the Roman army of the Principate (30 BC&ndash284 AD A Manius Acilius Glabrio -- Manius Acilius Glabrio (consul 191 BC -- Manius Acilius Glabrio (consul 91 -- Titus The Roman Navy ( Latin: Classis, lit "fleet" comprised the naval forces of the Roman state The Roman Navy ( Latin: Classis, lit "fleet" comprised the naval forces of the Roman state From its origin as a city-state in Italy in 9th century BC the rise as an empire covering much of Eurasia and North The following is a List of Roman wars fought by the ancient Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and Roman Empire, organized by date The following is a list of Roman Battles fought by the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic, the Roman Empire, and sometimes the Byzantine Empire As with most other military forces the Roman military adopted a "carrot and stick" approach to military with an extensive list of decorations for military gallantry The technology history of the Roman military covers the development of and application of technologies for use in the armies and navies of Rome from the Roman Republic to the fall The military engineering of Ancient Rome 's armed forces was of a scale and frequency far beyond that of any of its contemporaries The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military Roman Siege engines were for the most part adapted from Hellenistic Siege Technology. List of ancient Roman Triumphal arches (By modern country France Carpentras Triumphal Arch The Roman Roads were essential for the growth of the Roman Empire, by enabling the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate news Roman military personal equipment was produced in large numbers to established patterns and used in an established way Rome's military was always tightly keyed to its political system The strategy of the Roman Military encompasses its Grand strategy (the arrangements made by the state to implement its political goals through a selection of military goals Roman infantry tactics refers to the theoretical and historical deployment formation and maneuvers of the Roman infantry from the start of the Roman Republic to the fall Roman military borders and fortifications were part of a Grand strategy of territorial defense in the Roman Empire. A limes (or the Limes Romanus) was a Border defense or delimiting system of Ancient Rome. Hadrian's Wall ( Latin: perhaps Vallum Aelium, "the Aelian wall" is a stone and turf Fortification built by the Roman No contemporary depiction of Pliny has survived.
City and Lago of Como, painted by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, 1834.
City and Lago of Como, painted by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, 1834. Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot ( July 17, 1796 &ndash February 22, 1875) was a French landscape painter and Printmaker

Gaius or Caius Plinius Secundus, (AD 23 – August 24, AD 79), better known as Pliny the Elder, was an ancient author, naturalist or natural philosopher and naval and military commander of some importance who wrote Naturalis Historia. This article is about the year AD 23 For other uses see 23 (number, 23 (numerology, or 23 (disambiguation. Events 49 BC - Julius Caesar 's General Gaius Scribonius Curio is defeated in the Second Battle of the Bagradas River Year 79 was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created Natural history is the Scientific research of Plants or Animals leaning more towards the Observational than Experimental methods For the current in the 19th century German idealism see Naturphilosophie Natural philosophy or the philosophy of nature (from Naturalis Historia ( Latin for "Natural History" is an Encyclopedia written Circa AD 77 by Pliny the Elder. He is known for his saying "True glory consists in doing what deserves to be written; in writing what deserves to be read".

He was the son of a Roman equestrian with the cognomen Celer by one Marcella, some say the daughter of the Senator Gaius or Caius Caecilius of Novum Comum (Como) others of one Titus, which suggests a possible connection with the Titii Pomponii, and being the connection with the Caecilii from Celer, cognomen used by that Gens[1]. Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 The cognomen (plural cognomina) was originally the third name of an Ancient Roman in the Roman naming convention. The Roman Senate was a political institution in Ancient Rome. Como is a City in Lombardy, Italy, north of Milan. Situated at the southern tip of the south-west arm of Lake Como, it He was born in Como, not (as is sometimes supposed) at Verona: it is only as a native of Gallia Transpadana that he calls Catullus of Verona his conterraneus, or fellow-countryman, not his municeps, or fellow-townsman. Como is a City in Lombardy, Italy, north of Milan. Situated at the southern tip of the south-west arm of Lake Como, it Verona is a city and provincial capital in Veneto, Northern Italy. For persons with a Cognomen "Catulus" see Lutatius Gaius Valerius Catullus (ca [2] A statue of Pliny on the facade of the Duomo of Como celebrates him as a native son.

Contents

Life

Student and lawyer

Before AD 35 [3] Pliny's father took him to Rome, where he was educated and did his military service in Germania on his command under his father's friend, the poet and military commander, Publius Pomponius Secundus, who inspired him with a lifelong love of learning. Year 35 was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Germania was the Latin Exonym for Publius Pomponius Secundus was a Roman general and tragic Poet who lived during the reigns of Tiberius, Caligula and Claudius. Two centuries after the death of the Gracchi, Pliny saw some of their autograph writings in his preceptor's library,[4] and he afterwards wrote that preceptor's Life. The Gracchi brothers were a pair of tribunes in 2nd century BC who attempted to pass Land reform legislation in Ancient Rome that would redistribute the major patrician

He mentions the grammarians and rhetoricians, Remmius Palaemon and Arellius Fuscus,[5] and he may have been their student. Grammar is the field of Linguistics that covers the Rules governing the use of any given natural language. Rhetoric has had many definitions no simple definition can do it justice Quintus Remmius Palaemon, Roman Grammarian, a native of Vicentia, lived in the reigns of Tiberius and Claudius. Arellius Fuscus (or Aurelius Fuscus) was an ancient Roman orator In Rome he studied botany in the topiarius (garden) of the aged Antonius Castor,[6] and saw the fine old lotus trees in the grounds that had once belonged to Crassus. Botany, plant science(s, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of Biology and is the scientific study of plant Life Topiary is the art of creating Sculptures in the medium of clipped Trees, Shrubs and Sub-shrubs The word derives from the Latin The lotus tree (Greek lôtos) is a plant that occurs in two stories from Greek mythology: In Homer 's Odyssey, the lotus Marcus Licinius Crassus ( Latin: M·LICINIVS·P·F·P·N·CRASSVS (ca [7] He also viewed the vast structure raised by Caligula,[8] and probably witnessed the triumph of Claudius over Britain in 44. Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (August 31 AD 12 &ndash January 24 AD 41 more commonly known by his nickname Caligula (kəˈlɪɡjʊlə was a Roman Emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus or Claudius I ( August 1, 10 BC &ndash October 13, AD 54 ( Tiberius Claudius Drusus from birth to Roman Britain refers to those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and 410 Year 44 was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. [9] Under the influence of Seneca the Younger he became a keen student of philosophy and rhetoric, and began practicing as an advocate. Lucius Annaeus Seneca (often known simply as Seneca, or Seneca the Younger; Σένεκας in Ancient Greek literature (c Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Rhetoric has had many definitions no simple definition can do it justice An advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another person especially in a legal context

Junior officer

He saw military service under Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo in Germania Inferior in 47, taking part in the Roman conquest of the Chauci and the construction of the canal between the rivers Maas and Rhine. Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo (ca 7 - 67 was a Roman general Life Descent Corbulo was born in Italy into a senatorial family Germania Inferior was a Roman province located on the left bank of the Rhine, in today's southern and western Netherlands, parts of For the Hitman game series see Agent 47. Year 47 was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar The Chauci were a populous Germanic tribe that inhabited the extreme northwestern shore of Germany between Frisia in the west and the Elbe estuary The Rhine (Rhein Rijn Rhin Reno Rain Rhenus is one of the longest and most important Rivers in Europe at 1320 kilometres (820 mi with an average discharge [10] As a young commander of cavalry (praefectus alae) he wrote in his winter-quarters a work on the use of missiles on horseback (De jaculatione equestri), with some account of the points of a good horse. The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on A missile (see also pronunciation differences) is a self-propelled explosive Projectile used as a weapon towards a target The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. [11]

In Gaul and Hispania he learned the meanings of a number of Celtic words. Gaul (Gallia was the Roman name for the region of Western Europe comprising present day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Hispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Gibraltar The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic" a branch of the greater Indo-European Language family. [12] He took note of sites associated with the Roman invasion of Germany, and, amid the scenes of the victories of Drusus, he had a dream in which the victor enjoined him to transmit his exploits to posterity. [13] The dream prompted Pliny to begin forthwith a history of all the wars between the Romans and the Germans. War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units

He probably accompanied his father's friend Pomponius on an expedition against the Chatti (50), and visited Germany for a third time (50s) as a comrade of the future emperor, Titus Flavius. The Chatti (also Chatthi or Catti) were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser. Year 50 was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. The Roman Emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period (starting at about 27 BC Titus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Titus ( December 30 39 &ndash September 13 81) was a Roman Emperor who [14]

Literary interlude

Marble bust of Nero, Antiquarium of the Palatine.
Marble bust of Nero, Antiquarium of the Palatine.

Under Nero Pliny lived mainly in Rome. Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( December 15, 37 – June 9, 68) born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called He mentions the map of Armenia and the neighbourhood of the Caspian Sea, which was sent to Rome by the staff of Corbulo in 58. The Kingdom of Armenia (or Greater Armenia) was an independent kingdom from 190 BC to AD 387 and a client state of the Roman and Persian empires until The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged Sea. Year 58 was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. [15] He also saw the building of Nero's Domus Aurea or "Golden House" after the fire of 64. The Domus Aurea ( Latin for "Golden House" was a large landscaped portico Villa, designed to take advantage of artificially created landscapes Year 64 was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. [16]

Meanwhile he was completing the twenty books of his History of the German Wars, the only authority expressly quoted in the first six books of the Annals of Tacitus,[17] and probably one of the principal authorities for the Germania. The Annals, or in Latin, Annales, is a history book by Tacitus covering the reign of the four Roman Emperors succeeding Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (ca 56 &ndash ca 117 was a senator and a Historian of the Roman Empire. The Germania ( Latin title De Origine et situ Germanorum, English for the Origin and Situation of the Germans) written by Gaius It was superseded by the writings of Tacitus, and, early in the 5th century, Symmachus had little hope of finding a copy. The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in Anno Domini / Common Era. Quintus Aurelius Symmachus (c 340 &ndash c 402 the cultured and prominent son of a prominent father Lucius Aurelius Avianius Symmachus in the patrician Gens Aurelia [18]

He also devoted much of his time to writing on the comparatively safe subjects of grammar and rhetoric. Grammar is the field of Linguistics that covers the Rules governing the use of any given natural language. A detailed work on rhetoric, entitled Studiosus, was followed by eight books, Dubii sermonis, in 67, which like the books on the German Wars, are now lost works. Year 67 was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. A lost work is a document or literary work produced some time in the past of which no surviving copies are known to exist

Senior officer

Bust of Vespasian, Pushkin Museum, Moscow.
Bust of Vespasian, Pushkin Museum, Moscow. The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (Russian Музей изобразительных искусств им Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of

Under his friend Vespasian he returned to the service of the state, serving as procurator in Gallia Narbonensis (70) and Hispania Tarraconensis (73), and also visiting the province of Gallia Belgica (74). Titus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Vespasian ( November 17 9 &ndash June 23 79) was a Roman Emperor who Gallia Narbonensis ( Narbonese Gaul) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in southern France. Year 70 was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. Hispania Tarraconensis was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania. Year 73 was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. Gallia Belgica was a Roman province located in what is now the southern part of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northeastern Year 74 was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. During his stay in Hispania he became familiar with the agriculture and especially the gold mines of the country, besides paying a visit to Africa. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture "Gold mine" redirects here See Goldmine for other uses of the term [19] His time in Hispania must have included visits to the gold mines in the north, because his descriptions of the various methods of mining bear the hallmark of the eye-witness, as discussed below. Hispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Gibraltar A witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about a Crime or dramatic event through their Senses (e On his return to Italy he accepted office under Vespasian, whom he used to visit before daybreak for instructions before proceeding to his official duties, after the discharge of which he devoted all the rest of his time to study. [20]

Famous author

He completed a History of His Times in thirty-one books, possibly extending from the reign of Nero to that of Vespasian, and deliberately reserved it for publication after his death. [21] It is quoted by Tacitus,[22] and is one of the authorities followed by Suetonius and Plutarch. Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus ( Greek: Μέστριος Πλούταρχος c However, it is now a lost work, like all of his other books apart from the Naturalis Historia. A lost work is a document or literary work produced some time in the past of which no surviving copies are known to exist

He completed his great work the Naturalis Historia, an encyclopedia into which Pliny collected much of the knowledge of his time. Naturalis Historia ( Latin for "Natural History" is an Encyclopedia written Circa AD 77 by Pliny the Elder. An encyclopedia (or '''encyclopædia''') is a comprehensive written Compendium that contains Information on either all branches of Knowledge The work had been planned under the rule of Nero. The materials collected for this purpose filled rather less than 160 volumes, which Larcius Licinus, the praetorian legate of Hispania Tarraconensis, vainly offered to purchase them for a sum equivalent to more than £3,200 (1911 estimated value) or £200,000 (2002 estimated value). A legatus (often anglicized as legate) was a general in the Roman army, equivalent to a modern general officer Aside from minor finishing touches, the work in 37 books was completed in AD 77. [23] Pliny dedicated the work to the emperor Titus Flavius Vespasianus in 77. Titus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Titus ( December 30 39 &ndash September 13 81) was a Roman Emperor who Year 77 was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar.

The Natural History

Main article: Natural History (Pliny)
Naturalis Historia, 1669 edition, title page.
Naturalis Historia, 1669 edition, title page. Naturalis Historia ( Latin for "Natural History" is an Encyclopedia written Circa AD 77 by Pliny the Elder.

The only extant work of Pliny's is the Natural History; its survival is due to the very nature of the work, covering as it does almost the entire field of ancient knowledge, based on the best authorities. As a result it was used for reference over the following centuries by countless scholars, especially in medicine, plants and plant products (e. g. , wine), agriculture, architecture, sculpture, geology and mineralogy. Ancient Rome played a pivotal role in the history of Wine. The earliest influences of Viticulture on the Italian peninsula

Literature

At the conclusion of his literary labours, as the only Roman besides Lucretius who had ever taken for his theme the whole realm of nature, he prays for the blessing of the universal mother on his completed work. Titus Lucretius Carus (ca 99 BC- ca 55 BC was a Roman Poet and Philosopher.

In literature he assigns the highest place next to Homer, Cicero and Virgil. Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Marcus Tullius Cicero ( Classical Latin ˈkikeroː usually ˈsɪsərəʊ in English January 3, 106 BC &ndash December 7, 43 BC was a Roman Publius Vergilius Maro ( October 15, 70 BCE &ndash September 21, 19 BCE later called Virgilius, and known in English as Virgil or

He takes a keen interest in nature, and in the natural sciences, studying them in a way that was then new in Rome, while the small esteem in which studies of this kind were held does not deter him from endeavouring to be of service to his fellow countrymen. [24]

The scheme of his great work is vast and comprehensive, being nothing short of an encyclopedia of learning and of art so far as they are connected with nature or draw their materials from nature. An encyclopedia (or '''encyclopædia''') is a comprehensive written Compendium that contains Information on either all branches of Knowledge He admits that

My subject is a barren one - the world of nature, or in other words life; and that subject in its least elevated department, and employing either rustic terms or foreign, nay barbarian words that actually have to be introduced with an apology. Moreover, the path is not a beaten highway of authorship, nor one in which the mind is eager to range: there is not one of us who has made the same venture, nor yet one Greek who has tackled single-handed all departments of the subject.

And he admits the problems of writing such a work:

It is a difficult task to give novelty to what is old, authority to what is new, brilliance to the common-place, light to the obscure, attraction to the stale, credibility to the doubtful, but nature to all things and all her properties to nature.

For this work he studied the original authorities on each subject and was most assiduous in making excerpts from their pages. His indices auctorum are, in some cases, the authorities which he has actually consulted (though they are not exhaustive); in other cases, they represent the principal writers on the subject, whose names are borrowed second-hand for his immediate authorities. He frankly acknowledges his obligations to all his predecessors in a phrase that deserves to be proverbial,[25]

"plenum ingenni pudoris fateri per quos profeceris".

or

to own up to those who were the means of one's own achievements

It was his scientific curiosity as to the phenomena of the eruption of Vesuvius that brought his life of continual study to a premature end; and any criticism of his faults of omission is disarmed by the candour of the confession in his preface:

"nec dubitamus multa esse quae et nos praeterierint; homines enim sumus et occupati officiis".

or

Nor do we doubt that many things have escaped us also; for we are but human, and beset with duties

Style

His style betrays the influence of Seneca. Lucius Annaeus Seneca (often known simply as Seneca, or Seneca the Younger; Σένεκας in Ancient Greek literature (c It aims less at clearness and vividness than at epigrammatic point. An epigram is a short Poem, often with a clever twist at the end or a concise and witty statement It abounds not only in antitheses, but also in questions and exclamations, tropes and metaphors, and other mannerisms of the Silver Age. Antithesis ( Greek for "setting opposite" from against + position) is a counter- Propositions and denotes a direct Contrast See also Figure of speech In linguistics trope is a rhetorical Figure of speech that consists of a play on words i Metaphor (from the Greek: μεταφορά - metaphora, meaning "transfer" is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects Mannerism is a period of European art which emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. Classical Latin is the form of the Latin language used by the ancient Romans in what is usually regarded as "classical" Latin literature. The rhythmical and artistic form of the sentence is sacrificed to a passion for emphasis that delights in deferring the point to the close of the period. The structure of the sentence is also apt to be loose and straggling. There is an excessive use of the ablative absolute, and ablative phrases are often appended in a kind of vague "apposition" to express the author's own opinion of an immediately previous statement, e. The grammar of Latin, like that of other ancient Indo-European languages, is highly inflected, which allows for a large degree of flexibility when choosing word order In Linguistics, ablative case ( abbreviated ABL) is a name given to cases in various languages whose common characteristic g.  [26],

"dixit (Apelles) . . . uno se praestare, quod manum de tabula sciret tollere, memorabili praecepto nocere saepe nimiam diligentiam".


Highlights

Spiny dye-murex used to make purple in Pliny's day
Spiny dye-murex used to make purple in Pliny's day

A special interest attaches to his account of the manufacture of the papyrus,[27] and of the different kinds of purple dye,[28] while his description of the notes of the nightingale is an elaborate example of his occasional felicity of phrase. Papyrus (/pəˈpaɪrəs/ (Rhymes -aɪrəs)is a thick paper-like material produced from the Pith of the papyrus plant Cyperus papyrus Purple is a general term for the range of shades of Color occurring between Red and Blue. The Nightingale ( Luscinia megarhynchos) also known as Rufous and Common Nightingale, is a small Passerine Bird that was formerly [29] He also gave eye-witness accounts of gold mining in Hispania, accounts which have been confirmed by the visible remains especially at Las Medulas. "Gold mine" redirects here See Goldmine for other uses of the term Las Médulas, located near the town of Ponferrada in León province, Spain, used to be the most important Gold mine in the Roman

Some of Pliny's wisest and most famous adages include:

Among these things, one thing seems certain - that nothing certain exists and that there is nothing more pitiful or more presumptuous than man.
Because of a curious disease of the human mind, it pleases us to enshrine in history records of bloodshed and slaughter, so that those ignorant of the facts of the world may become acquainted with the crimes of mankind.

Vesuvius

Computer-generated imagery of the eruption of Vesuvius in BBC/Discovery Channel's co-production Pompeii.
Computer-generated imagery of the eruption of Vesuvius in BBC/Discovery Channel's co-production Pompeii. Computer animation Computer-generated imagery (also known as CGI) is the application of the field of Computer graphics or more specifically 3D computer graphics Pompeii The Last Day is a 2003 dramatized documentary that tells of the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius on 24th August 79

He received from Vespasian the appointment of praefect of the Roman Navy. Prefect (from the Latin praefectus, perfect participle of praeficere: "make in front" i The Roman Navy ( Latin: Classis, lit "fleet" comprised the naval forces of the Roman state On August 24, 79 A. Events 49 BC - Julius Caesar 's General Gaius Scribonius Curio is defeated in the Second Battle of the Bagradas River Year 79 was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. D. , he was stationed at Misenum, at the time of the great eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which overwhelmed Pompeii and Herculaneum. Misenum is the site of an ancient port in Campania, in southern Italy. Mount Vesuvius (in Italian Monte Vesuvio and in Latin Mons Vesuvius) is an active Stratovolcano east of Naples Pompeii is a ruined and partially buried Roman town-city near modern Naples and Caserta in the Italian region of Campania, in Herculaneum (in modern Italian Ercolano) is an ancient Roman town located in the territory of the current commune of Ercolano. A desire to observe the phenomenon directly, and also to rescue some of his friends from their perilous position on the shore of the Bay of Naples, led to the launching of his galleys and crossing the bay to Stabiae (near the modern town of Castellammare di Stabia). The Gulf of Naples is located in the south western coast of Italy ( Province of Naples, Campania region Stabiae was an ancient Roman town located close to the modern town of Castellammare di Stabia approximately 4 Castellammare di Stabia is a Comune in the Province of Naples, Campania region southern Italy. His nephew, whom he had adopted, Pliny the Younger, provided an account of his death, and suggested that he collapsed and died through inhaling poisonous gases emitted from the volcano. Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo (61/63 - ca His body was found interred under the ashes of the Vesuvium with no apparent injuries on 26 August, after the plume had dispersed, tending to confirm asphyxiation or poisoning. Events 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert.

The story of his last hours is told in an interesting letter addressed twenty-seven years afterwards to Tacitus by the Elder Pliny's nephew and heir, Pliny the Younger,[30] who also sent to another correspondent an account of his uncle's writings and his manner of life:[31]

Pliny is still remembered in volcanology where the term Plinian (or Plinean) refers to a very violent eruption of a volcano marked by columns of smoke and ash extending high into the stratosphere. Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo (61/63 - ca Volcanology (also spelled vulcanology) is the study of Volcanoes, Lava, Magma, and related geological and Geophysical phenomena Plinian eruptions are Volcanic eruptions marked by their similarity to the eruption of Mt The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI was devised by Chris Newhall of the U The term ultra-Plinian is reserved for the most violent type of Plinian eruption such as the 1883 destruction of Krakatoa. Year 1883 ( MDCCCLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Krakatoa ( Indonesian: Krakatau) also spelled Krakatao or Krakatowa, is a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait

Research after 1500

A carnelian inscribed with the letters C. Carnelian, sometimes spelled cornelian, is a red or reddish-brown variant of Chalcedony.  PLIN. has been reproduced by Cades (v. 211) from the original in the Vannutelli collection. It represents an ancient Roman with an almost completely bald forehead and a double chin; and is almost certainly a portrait, not of Pliny the Elder, but of Pompey the Great. Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, commonly known as Pompey /'pɑmpi/ Pompey the Great or Pompey the Triumvir ( Classical Latin abbreviation Seated statues of both the Plinies, clad in the garb of scholars of the year 1500, may be seen in the niches on either side of the main entrance to the cathedral church of Como. This article is about the history and organisation of the cathedral

The elder Pliny's anecdotes of Greek artists supplied Vasari with the subjects of the frescoes which still adorn the interior of his former home at Arezzo. Giorgio Vasari ( 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian painter and Architect, who is today famous Fresco (plural either frescos or frescoes) is any of several related Painting types done on Plaster on walls or Arezzo ( Latin Arretium) is a city in central Italy, capital of the province of the same name, located in

Modern research

Pliny's description of gold mining methods (book xxxiii, chapter 21) has been confirmed by field work and archaeology, especially the use of water power in sluicing alluvial gold ores, both in Britain at Dolaucothi in South Wales, at Las Medulas and many other mines in northern Spain. "Gold mine" redirects here See Goldmine for other uses of the term Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Alluvium (from the Latin, alluvius, from alluere, "to wash against" is Soil or Sediments deposited by a river or other running Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 The Dolaucothi Gold Mines ( also known as the Ogofau Gold Mine, are Roman surface and deep mines located in the valley of the River Cothi, South Wales (De Cymru is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south and Mid Wales and West Wales Las Médulas, located near the town of Ponferrada in León province, Spain, used to be the most important Gold mine in the Roman Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. His description of construction of the aqueducts needed to prospect for gold-bearing ore by removing overburden and work the alluvial deposits bears the hall marks of the eye-witness, and he served as Procurator in northern Hispania when the region in 73 AD was experiencing a gold rush. An aqueduct is an artificial channel that is constructed to convey water from one location to another A witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about a Crime or dramatic event through their Senses (e A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers into the area of a dramatic discovery of commercial quantities of Gold. The memory must thus have been fresh in his mind when he wrote Book xxxiii. As the mines grew, more water was supplied simply by building new aqueducts along the line of the original, and the remains of such multiple systems are still visible at Dolaucothi and Las Medulas. The Dolaucothi Gold Mines ( also known as the Ogofau Gold Mine, are Roman surface and deep mines located in the valley of the River Cothi, Las Médulas, located near the town of Ponferrada in León province, Spain, used to be the most important Gold mine in the Roman

Panoramic view of Las Médulas in northern Spain
Panoramic view of Las Médulas in northern Spain

Such methods of hydraulic mining were used widely during the gold rushes of California and Australia in the Victorian period. Hydraulic mining, or hydraulicking, is a form of Mining that employs Water to dislodge rock material or move sediment A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers into the area of a dramatic discovery of commercial quantities of Gold. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Culture The Victorian fascination with novelty resulted in a deep interest in the relationship between modernity and cultural continuities By contrast with aqueducts providing potable water for towns and cities, those used in mining had a higher gradient so as to provide a faster stream top speed operations, and consequently a shorter life. It seems clear that the methods of hydraulic mining such as hushing were a Roman innovation, nothing comparable being known in previous times. Hydraulic mining, or hydraulicking, is a form of Mining that employs Water to dislodge rock material or move sediment Hushing is an ancient Mining method using a flood or torrent of water to reveal mineral veins No doubt their skills at aqueduct building promoted their less well-known use in large-scale mining, as attested by Pliny.

The research at Dolaucothi has shown how aqueducts could be used not just for prospection, but also for removing waste rock. The Dolaucothi Gold Mines ( also known as the Ogofau Gold Mine, are Roman surface and deep mines located in the valley of the River Cothi, A large tank would be built at the end of the aqueduct, and once a vein found, it was attacked using fire-setting (building a fire against the rock, then dousing with water) and the precious ore-bearing minerals extracted by hand. The waste or barren rock surrounding the vein was then washed away, again by using the wave of water from a full tank to scour the waste away. Pliny actually recommends a particular size of tank (200 by 200 feet, and 10 feet deep), but those found on the ground at Dolaucothi vary greatly in size, and are smaller than he says. The same water supply was then used as a gentle stream to wash the crushed ore, the gold particles being collected in riffle boxes. At least two of the tanks used at the gold mine still hold water, a tribute to their builders nearly 2000 years ago.

“ Gangadia or quartzite is considered the hardest of all things—except for the greed for gold, which is even more stubborn. Quartzite (from German Quarzit) not to be confused with the Mineral Quartz, is a hard Metamorphic rock which was originally Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 ”

—Pliny was famously scathing about the search for precious metals and gemstones

Trivia

Notes

  1. ^ Manuel Dejante Pinto de Magalhães Arnao Metello and João Carlos Metello de Nápoles, "Metellos de Portugal, Brasil e Roma", Torres Novas, 1998
  2. ^ Praef. §1
  3. ^ N.H. xxxvii.81
  4. ^ xiii.83
  5. ^ xiv.4; xxxiii.152
  6. ^ xxv.9
  7. ^ xvii.5
  8. ^ xxxvi.111
  9. ^ iii.119
  10. ^ xvi. 2 and 5
  11. ^ viii.162
  12. ^ xxx.40
  13. ^ Plin. Epp. iii. 5, 4
  14. ^ Praef. §3
  15. ^ vi.40
  16. ^ xxxvi.111
  17. ^ 1. 69
  18. ^ Epp. xiv. 8
  19. ^ vii.37
  20. ^ Plin. Epp. iii. 5, 9
  21. ^ N. H., Praef. 20
  22. ^ Ann. xiii. 20, xv. 53; Hist. iii. 29
  23. ^ The New Encyclopædia Britannica 15th Edition (1977), Vol. 14, p. 572a
  24. ^ xxii.15
  25. ^ Praef. 21
  26. ^ xxxv.80
  27. ^ xiii.68 seq.
  28. ^ ix.130
  29. ^ xxix.81 seq.
  30. ^ Epp. vi. 16
  31. ^ iii. 5

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