Portraits of Hadrian: A New Major Volume on Hadrian — Register Your Interest
I’m very pleased to share that I am one of thirteen contributors to the forthcoming volume, Portraits of Hadrian. The book will be a substantial, large-format, full-colour hardcover of around 500...
View ArticleA rare inscription marking a lightning strike discovered at Hadrian’s Villa
A rare marble inscription referring to a fulgur submanium, a nocturnal lightning strike attributed to Summanus, has been discovered at Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli. The find emerged during archaeological...
View ArticleOpramoas of Rhodiapolis – The Man Who Rebuilt Lycia
In the mountains of Lycia, above the small city of Rhodiapolis, an extensive Greek inscription once ran along the walls of a tomb, recording in meticulous detail the generosity of a single man. This...
View ArticleAD 126 – Hadrian spends the year in Rome and dedicates the Templum Divorum...
The year AD 126 opened under the consulships of Marcus Annius Verus and Gaius Eggius Ambibulus, marking the formal beginning of the civic year in Rome. Over the following months, several changes in...
View ArticleFelicem diem natalem, Hadriane! 🎂
Happy 1950th birthday, Hadrian! In keeping with tradition, I baked Hadrian a birthday cake. This year, I chose Cato’s recipe for savillum (a kind of cheesecake), one of my favourite sweet cakes from...
View Article24 January AD 126 – A small Serapeum is consecrated in Thebes to Hadrian on...
On January 24, AD 126, Emperor Hadrian celebrated his 50th birthday. This event was marked by the dedication of a small temple to the god Serapis (Serapeum) in the forecourt of the Luxor Temple (Roman...
View ArticlePlancia Magna and the role of a Roman benefactress in Perge
The ancient city of Perge, located on the coast of southern Asia Minor in the Roman province of Pamphylia, provides a fascinating case study of elite benefaction in the Roman East. In Perge, Roman...
View ArticleLate Spring AD 125 – Hadrian visits Sicily to climb Mount Etna and returns to...
In the late spring of AD 125, after visiting Delphi and possibly spending some time in Dyrrachium (see here), Hadrian set sail to return to Rome, having completed a four-year journey across the western...
View ArticleSpring AD 125 – Hadrian travels to Boeotia and Phocis and visits Delphi...
Four years had passed since Hadrian last saw Rome, and it was time for him to return home. In the spring of AD 125, the Emperor departed from Athens and began his journey northward to the Adriatic port...
View ArticleLate March AD 125 – Hadrian returns to Athens and presides over the Great...
After touring the Peloponnese and visiting all the major cities (read here), Hadrian returned to Athens in late March, in time for the Great Dionysia. He presided over this annual Athenian religious...
View ArticleWinter AD 124/5 – Hadrian tours the Peloponnese (part 2) and visits Sparta...
Hadrian spent much of the winter of 124/125 touring the Peloponnese, visiting all the major cities and providing benefactions to them. The first part of his journey took him to Megara, Athens’ old...
View ArticleWinter AD 124/5 – Hadrian tours the Peloponnese (part 1) and visits Megara,...
After attending the Eleusinian Mysteries (see here), Hadrian embarked on a brief tour of the Peloponnese accompanied by Sabina. His presence in several renowned cities during this period is well...
View ArticleFelicem diem natalem, Hadriane! 🎂
Happy 1949th birthday, Hadrian! In keeping with tradition, I made a birthday cake for Hadrian. This time, I decided to bake a Roman honey cake.. 🎂 Ingredients: 3 eggs 200 grams liquid honey 50 grams...
View ArticleThe Eight Faces of Hadrian in Tivoli
Earlier this year, the Mouseia of Villa Adriana hosted an exhibition dedicated to the portraits of Emperor Hadrian. Titled “Io Sono Una Forza Del Passato: Adriano, i ritratti” (“I Am a Force of the...
View ArticleAutumn AD 124 – Hadrian arrives in Athens and attends the Eleusinian...
Eleven years had passed since Hadrian last visited Athens. During his stay there, while in his mid-thirties, he became an Athenian citizen, enrolled in the tribe Besa and served as archon (IG II² 2024)...
View ArticleSummer AD 124 – Hadrian tours Asia (part 3), visits Smyrna and Ephesus and...
After Pergamon and Sardis (see here), two other great cities of western Asia had their turn to receive Hadrian and his party, Smyrna and Ephesus. Both metropoleis were perennial rivals, competing with...
View ArticleSummer AD 124 – Hadrian tours Asia (part 2) and visits Pergamon and Sardis...
The second part of Hadrian’s journey through the province of Asia in the Summer of 124 took him southward to the great cities of Pergamon, Sardis, Smyrna and Ephesus. From Hadrianotherae, where the...
View ArticleSummer AD 124 – Hadrian tours Asia, visits Cyzicus and Troy and hunts a...
In the late spring of AD 124, Hadrian departed from Thrace (see here) and travelled back to Asia Minor, this time to the Roman province of Asia. He was accompanied by the sophist Antonius Polemo and...
View ArticleSpring AD 124 – Hadrian visits Thrace and founds Hadrianopolis (#Hadrian1900)
After touring the province of Bithynia, where Hadrian may have first encountered Antinous (see here), the Emperor crossed the Sea of Marmara to Thrace. Accompanying him was the renowned sophist and...
View ArticleEarly AD 124 – Hadrian spends the winter in Nicomedia, tours Bithynia and...
After sailing along the southern Black Sea coast, possibly visiting the Pontic towns of Amisus, Sinope and Amastris (see here), Hadrian is thought to have spent the winter of 123/4 in Nicomedia or...
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