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ideasroadshow.bsky.social
A stunning fresco which has something quite modern about it!

#AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺#Frescofriday
partialhistorians.bsky.social The Partial Historians 🏺 @partialhistorians.bsky.social · Aug 15
Let’s celebrate #FrescoFriday with as much verve as this lady who, given she’s riding a dolphin, may well be an incarnation of Venus (who had a penchant for such activities though usually in a greater state of divine undress).

#AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
This fresco is from a bedroom of the Villa of Agrippa Postumus at Boscotrecase near Pompeii and is thought to date to the Augustan era. The fresco shows a female figure dressed in golden robes and with a dark blue swarth of fabric tossed in a velificatio like a halo over her head and shoulders. Hints of a slightly demonic dolphin can be seen beneath the female figure almost camouflaged against the deep blue background. Held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Photo credit Hans Ollermann via Flickr.
August 29, 2025 at 6:32 AM
sistoryhistory.bsky.social
Looking forward to the impending snow-storm and am thoroughly prepared ❄️ 🕯️

#AncientBluesky 🏺
#AncientRome

@emmasouthon.bsky.social
January 2, 2025 at 12:01 PM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Feel the seasons upon you with this mosaic fragment from the Palazzo Chigi in Ariccia.

If you can make it there, it’s well worth the visit with ancient artefacts scattered throughout the Baroque collection.

#AncientRome #MosaicMonday #AncientBluesky🏺
July 27, 2026 at 9:07 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
The bust appears to be quite modern, but the hairstyle is very much in keeping with the Flavian style. Higher and higher the hair rises!

#AncientRome #Flavian #AncientBluesky🏺
July 31, 2026 at 8:33 AM
oz-of-the-ancients.bsky.social
The Amphitheater at the Roman city of Uthina in Tunisia

#RomanSiteSaturday

Built in the reign of Hadrian, it could sit 16,000 people and was built directly into the hillside!

🏺📸 My own

#archaeology #ancientrome #ancientbluesky #photooftheday
A wide shot of a Roman amphitheatre from high up on the steps, with a little in the centre and a grassy hill at the back
April 12, 2025 at 10:52 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Overwhelming from every angle. Standing in the shadow of the Colosseum is a reminder of very gladiatorial combat, every animal hunt, and the way that for many generations the centre of Roman power could feel condensed in this very place.

#AncientRome #Colosseum #AncientBluesky🏺
August 19, 2026 at 9:00 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
We aren't the only ones to mourn pets, the Romans did too! They could be just as sad as anyone alive today when their dog died.

From poetic epitaphs to funerary monuments, beloved dogs were honoured by the Romans who cherished them.

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Statue of a Molossian hound. Roman copy after a Hellenistic bronze original thought to date to the second century BCE; the muzzle and one leg are restorations. The dog sits and gazes up to the sky with its mouth slightly open.
November 16, 2024 at 7:00 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Thanks for joining on our journey as we trace Rome’s history from the founding of the City!

#AncientRome #History #Podcast #AncientBluesky🏺
August 12, 2025 at 10:28 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
🍆It’s #PhallusThursday 🍆

This bronze phallic amulet is bound to have brought it’s owner great fortune! We hope the very glimpse of it also brings Fortune’s favour your way!

#AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Image description: this bronze phallus also has what appears to be the hindquarters of horse. It amulet can be hung from the chain at the top and it also has the benefit of two pendants attached to base. From the Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection, object number A154056.
June 5, 2025 at 10:26 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
This stunning portrait of the god Oceanus is from the Villa Maternus in Carranque, Spain. Fittingly, Oceanus is surrounded by sea creatures and appears to even have some horns in the form of crab-claws as is keeping with his iconography.

#MosaicMonday #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
This mosaic portrait of Oceanus, (one of the Titan) depicts him with a fabulous bread and crab-claw horns. The surrounding sea creatures are all depicted against a white background. Photo by Shutr.
December 2, 2024 at 7:39 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Tune in here: partialhistorians.com/2026/08/13/s...

#AncientRome #Podcast🎙️ #AncientBluesky🏺
Special Episode - Servus: How Slavery Built the Roman Empire with Dr Emma Southon - The Partial Historians - Ancient Roman History with smart ladies
We interview Emma Southon about her book, Servus: How Slavery Made the Roman Empire, discussing the emotional experiences of enslaved people.
partialhistorians.com
August 13, 2026 at 7:52 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
In the Roman republic, Vedius Pollio gained quite a reputation for treating his slaves badly… but it also turns out that Vedius’ dad had been a slave.

Someone get Freud on the line!

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #MosaicMonday #AncientBluesky🏺
Detail of an ancient Roman mosaic showing an eel. What’s that got to do with Vedius Pollio? Well, we recommend our new book ‘Your Cheeky Guide to the Roman Empire’ for all the salacious details!
November 18, 2024 at 6:40 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Phrixus and Helle escape the murderous plot of their stepmother, Ino, with the aid of a flying golden ram. The myth goes that the ram was sent by their mother, Nephele.

#FrescoFriday #AncientRome #History #AncientBluesky🏺
This fresco panel from Pompeii shows Phrixus and Helle trying to escape their stepmother by crossing the sea between Europe and Asia on a flying golden ram. The fresco dates the C1st CE and is now held by the MAN Napoli. Photo credit to Carole Raddato.
July 11, 2025 at 8:50 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Some of the male priests of the goddess Cybele went through self-castration in order to serve her. We only have one word to describe their piety : yeeeeowch.

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Statue of the goddess Cybele. She is seated, wears a crenelated crown. Beside her is a cornucopia and she holds poppies in her right hand by the looks of it. She is accompanied by a lion.
November 27, 2024 at 6:56 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Dido with attendants and a goddess personifying Africa (suggested by the elephant headdress). In the distance there is a ship which suggests this scene depicts the moment Dido realises that Aeneas had unceremoniously dumped her to continue his quest to found Rome.

#AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Detail from a fresco found in the House of Meleager (Pompeii VI.9.2) now held in the MAN Napoli, inv. 8898. First image shows Dido seated with two attendants. One holds a parasol over Dido’s head while the other holds what seems to be a piece of ivory. The second image shows a goddess who seems to be wearing an elephant head as part of her headdress suggesting she’s a representation of Africa.
August 14, 2026 at 10:04 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Throwback to the book launch of our debut book: ‘Rex: The Seven Kings of Rome’. We never imagined that when we started a podcast that one day that would lead us to the chance to also write about ancient Rome!

#AncientRome #Podcast #AncientBluesky🏺
Dr Rad in blue and Dr G in pink sharing the stage to talk about their book: ‘Rex: The Seven Kings of Rome’.
August 18, 2026 at 10:51 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
A belated #FrescoFriday with this beautiful golden hued fragment that depicts Urania, the muse of astronomy. This gorgeous fragment comes from the House of Julia Felix in Pompeii and is now held in Louvre Museum, Paris.

#AncientBluesky🏺 #AncientRome
Against a golden yellow background sits a female figure wearing layers of diaphanous gowns in cream, pale blues, and yellow. She sits and points out details on a dish that seems to represent the sky which has lead to her identification as Urania, the Muse of Astronomy. Photo credit to Carole Raddato
June 7, 2025 at 1:51 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Did you know that the ancient Roman aqueduct in Segovia, Spain built in the first century CE was still in use until 1973?

That's just shy of two thousand years of water supply. Yes, Roman engineering was THAT good!

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #History #AncientBluesky🏺
A view of the aqueduct in Segovia where it still stands strikingly in the cityscape and beyond.
November 3, 2024 at 7:09 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
⭐️Chiron and Achilles⭐️

Statius’ incomplete epic poem the Achilleid explores the paternal and pedagogical relationship between Chiron and Achilles. In this fresco from Herculaneum, we witness Chiron guiding Achilles’ education with the lyre.

#FrescoFriday #AncientRome #History #AncientBluesky🏺
Image description: The centaur Chiron teaching Achilles how to play the lyre. They appear to be in an opulent room with decorative mouldings on the walls and a bright turquoise floor. The fresco is now held in the MAN Napoli.
July 25, 2025 at 8:27 AM
lupusalatus.bsky.social
Amazon is allegedly sending us a physical proof copy of Erictho,Tartarorum Terror (A Witchy Latin Reader). It was a lot of work. I’m tired. Engraving below reads: “The end crowns the work.” #lingualatina #latin #ancientbluesky🏺#ancientrome #latinpoetry
November 30, 2024 at 9:11 PM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
Fancy taking a romantic cruise along the Nile with your main squeeze? Be careful if your lover is the Emperor Hadrian. You might find yourself in an Agatha Christie novel.

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
This bust is known as the ‘Antinous Mondragone’ due to it being held by the Borghese family in the Mondragone villa in Frascati (Italy). The smooth skin and stylised hair which falls in locks over Antinous’ shoulders draw attention to the craftsmanship of this piece.
November 21, 2024 at 6:26 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
When Cleo met Antony… He was already married. Uh-oh!  His wife at the time was a ferocious woman named Fulvia, who actually started a war with Antony' rival, the future emperor Augustus 😮

Fulvia, an original bad-arse of history #CheekyFacts #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Etching by Bartolomeo Pinelli showing Fulvia piercing the tongue of Cicero's severed head. Dated to 1819. Fulvia’s expression suggests someone concentrating hard. Two men stand nearby watching her at this gruesome work looking equally serious.
November 22, 2024 at 8:09 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
🍆 #PhallusThursday has arrived in all its bronze glory 🍆

This phallic creature was most likely a tintinnabulum (wind chime) as we can see the loops on the bottoms of its legs to support chains with bells. As always we wish you great good fortune!

#AncientRome #History #AncientBluesky🏺
This beauty has a phallic head, wings, its own phallus, and you can see a curved phallic tail as well, just for good measure. This example is held by the Museum August Kestner in Hanover, inventory no. 1999.3.
July 31, 2025 at 9:18 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
The Romans loved a good wall. So much so that by the time of Hadrian’s imperial rule (117-138 CE), Rome had constructed over 10,000 kilometres of walls 😮

That’s longer than the distance between New York and Moscow!

#CheekyFacts #AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Photograph of a section of Hadrian’s wall which shows it following a ridge line. There’s a path next to it where visitors can walk along that has been created by many feet walking a similar line.
November 11, 2024 at 8:09 AM
partialhistorians.bsky.social
🍇Dionysus on a panther🍇

May your #MosaicMonday be as exciting as the god Dionysus’ who is enjoying a casual saunter on a panther, who - if not tame - is resisting the urge to bite at this moment.

#AncientRome #AncientBluesky🏺
Image description: Dionysus rides side-saddle on the back of a panther with a ribboned thyrsus (a pine-cone tipped staff) in one hand and a tambourine in the other. Dionysus wears flowing robes and a crown of foliage and flowers. This mosaic can be found in the Archaeological Museum of Delos and was found in the House of Masks on Delos island. The mosaic is thought to date from c. 120–80 BCE.
August 11, 2025 at 8:33 AM