Sumerian hymns to Bel, Sin, Adad and Tammuz, given in transliteration and translation with a commentary on every line and the cuneiform signs at the back. Vanderburgh worked from the tablets in the British Museum and published this in 1908, when the language was still being reconstructed. It is a working scholar's notebook, and the hymns come through it unmistakably. Sixty plates of painting, from Memling to Alma-Tadema, trace the ancient world these hymns inhabit through Panini's ruins an...

The gods honored in the hymns treated in the following Thesis are Bêl, Sin (Nannar), Adad (Ramman) and Tammuz, all deities of the old Babylonian pantheon, representing different phases of personality and force, conceived of as incorporated in nature and as affecting the destinies of men. These gods are severally designated in the hymns as follows:in Tablet 13963, Rev. 1, “O Bêl of the mountains;”in Tablet 13930, Obv. 2, “O father Nannar;”in Tablet 29631, Obv. 10, “O Ramman, king of ...

This is the story of a plain silver chalice from the first century AD that now rests in the heart of England. From its momentous beginnings as the cup used by Christ at the Last Supper, and as the vessel used to catch His blood at the Crucifixion, to its unrecognised discovery in the late nineteenth century, the chalice has passed through the hands of saints, crusaders, kings, queens, Templar knights and 'Guardians.' This account revisits the beginnings of the Knights Temp...

This accessible, authoritative guide to Egyptian mythology explores how the ancient Nile-dwellers explained the world around them. It delves into the origins of life, the creation and evolution of the world, and the reigns of the gods on earth, before introducing us to Egypt's deities in the natural environment; the inventive ways in which the Egyptians dealt with the invisible forces all around them; and the trials and tribulations of the life hereafter. This is the perfect introduction f...

For thousands of years the myths of Ancient Greece and Rome have fascinated people and inspired great writers, thinkers, artists and culture. This book explains myths and retells them in this comprehensive and useful tales, myths and characters in over 1000 cross-references.

That the people who inhabited the country at the time of the Spanish conquest had a multiplicity of gods there can be no doubt. The primitive form of worship, with time and by the effect of invasions from outside, had disappeared, and been replaced by that of their great men and women, who were deified and had temples raised to their memory, as we see, for example, in the case of Moo, wife and sister of Chaacmol, whose shrine was built on the high mound on the north side of the large squar...

From the stories suggested by the great cave paintings of the Paleolithic period to the thought experiments of modern scientists, From Olympus to Camelot provides a sweeping history of the development of the rich and varied European mythological tradition. David Leeming, an authority on world mythology, begins with a general introduction to mythology and mythological terms, and then turns to the stories themselves. Discussing well-known figures such as Zeus, Aphrodite, Thor, and C...

In Truly Beyond Wonders Alexia Petsalis-Diomidis investigates texts and material evidence associated with healing pilgrimage in the Roman empire during the second century AD. Her focus is upon one particular pilgrim, the famous orator Aelius Aristides, whose Sacred Tales, his fascinating account of dream visions, gruelling physical treatments, and sacred journeys, has been largely misunderstood and marginalized. Petsalis-Diomidis rehabilitates this text by placing it with...

This book explains the lasting events of the Roman Republic influenced everything that followed, and how the Romans lasting legacy, and wars, have influenced life today.

Ancient Greece A History examines Greek art, literature and philosophy, with a focus on tragedy, art, philosophy, sculpture and the glorious architecture of classical Greece. In this history, the author wished to show the inner life of Ancient Greece, and captures the spirit of the country and its achievements. Cotterill leads the reader through the enduring achievements of Ancient Greece with great enthusiasm and clarity.

Enslaved persons were ubiquitous in the first- and second-century CE Roman Empire, and early Christian texts reflect this fact. Yet the implications of enslaved presence in religious practices are under-examined in early Christian and Roman history. Enslaved Leadership in Early Christianity argues that enslaved persons' roles in civic and religious activities were contested in many religious groups throughout ancient cities, including communities connected with Paul's legacy. This...

This is the first book-length treatment of supplication, an important social practice in ancient Mediterranean civilizations. Despite the importance of supplication, it has received little attention, and no previous study has explored so many aspects of the practice. Naiden investigates the varied gestures made by the supplicants, the types of requests they make, the arguments used in defense of their requests, and the role of the supplicandus, who evaluates and decides whether to fulfill ...