Blood and Steel

Glossary

The definitions given here are geared to Blood amp; Steel. If a word or phrase has several meanings only that or those relevant to this novel tend to be given.

A Cubiculo: Official in charge of the bedchamber.

A Rationibus: Official in charge of the Emperor’s finances.

Abrenak: Modern Nishapur in northeastern Iran.

Achaea: Roman province of Greece.

Acherusian Peninsula: Place where, in Greek mythology, Hercules is said to have entered the Underworld; Modern Cape Baba on the northeastern coast of Turkey.

Acropolis: Sacred citadel of a Greek city.

Ad Aquas: Resort town on the northeastern coast of Africa Proconsularis; modern Bordj Sebbalat in Tunisia.

Ad Palmam: Oasis on the margin of the Lake of Triton (Chott el Djerid), southwest of Africa Proconsularis.

Ad Pirum: Roman fort in the Julian Alps; sited on the Hrušica plateau in modern Slovenia.

Aedile: Junior magistrates responsible for the upkeep of public buildings and the organization of festivals; expected to contribute their own money to put on lavish spectacles and games.

Aesontius river: The modern Isonzo river, flowing from the Julian Alps into the Adriatic.

Africa Proconsularis: Roman province of central North Africa, roughly modern Tunisia.

Agora: Greek term for a market place and civic centre.

Ahuramazda(also Mazda): ‘The Wise Lord’, the supreme god of Zoroastrianism, chief religion of the Sassanid empire.

Ala: Units of Roman auxiliary cavalry, usually around 500-, sometimes around 1000-strong; literally, a ‘wing’.

Alban Hills: Volcanic region 10 miles southeast of Rome, site of the legionary camp of the Second Parthian Legion.

Alcyonae: Poem on the mythical Alcyone written by Gordian the Elder; a short quotation survives.

Alexandrians: Population of the city of Alexandria in Egypt, notorious for their outspoken and riotous behaviour.

Alpha to Omega: The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.

Alpha, beta, gamma: The first three letters of the Greek alphabet; also used as the symbols for the numbers 1, 2, 3.

Amicitia: Latin, ‘friendship’; the ancient term can be used with politi-cal overtones, suggesting ties of obligation and patronage.

Amicus(plural amici): Latin, ‘friend’.

Ammaedara: Roman town on the eastern border of Tunisia; modern Haïdra.

Amphora(plural amphorae): Large Roman earthenware storage vessels.

Andegan: Territory in southern Iran, probably around modern Fars.

Anna Perenna: Roman goddess of the year’s cycle; her festival was celebrated on the Ides of March.

Antaeus: In Greek mythology, a half-giant who forced all he came across to wrestle; having defeated them, he collected their skulls to build a temple to his father Poseidon.

Antediluvian: In Greek mythology, time before the flood of Deucalion, which swept away the first age of men.

Antioch: Ancient city on the Orontes river in northeastern Syria; second city of the eastern Roman empire.

Antoniniad: Epic poem alleged to have been written by Gordian the Elder on the Emperors Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius; only the title survives.

Aornum: Site of ‘Charon’s Cave’ in northwestern Greece, thought to be an entrance to the underworld.

Apollo: Greek god of music and culture.

Apulia: Modern Puglia, the ‘heel’ of Italy.

Aquileia: Town in northeastern Italy.

Arabia: Roman province covering much of modern Jordan and the Sinai peninsular.

Aramaic: Ancient language spoken in much of the Levant and Mesopotamia.

Arch of Drusus: Arch erected in honour of Drusus, son of the Emperor Tiberius, erected in the vicinity of the Forum.

Arch of Titus: Monumental arch between the Roman Forum and Flavian Amphitheatre, commemorating the re-conquest of Jerusalem in AD70.

Archimea: Town in the southeastern foothills of the Julian Alps.

Arcia: Settlement in the southeastern ranges of the Julian Alps.

Ares: Greek god of war.

Arete: Fictional town on the Euphrates, modelled on Dura-Europus.

Ariminum: Modern Rimini on the northeastern coast of Italy.

Armenia: Ancient buffer kingdom between Rome and Parthia, occupying much of the area south of the Caucasus mountains and west of the Caspian Sea; much larger than the modern state of Armenia.

Arsacid: Dynasty that ruled Parthia 247BC-AD228.

Aryans: Literally ‘nobles’; term used by the Parthians to describe themselves as a people.

Asclepius: Greek god of medicine.

Asia: Roman province of western Turkey.

Athenian: Citizen of the Greek city-state of Athens.

Atlas: In Greek mythology, giant who supports the globe.

Atrium: Open court in a Roman house.

Augustus(plural Augusti): Name of the first Roman emperor, subsequently adopted as one of the titles of the office.

Ausonian: Greek name for the peoples of the Italian peninsular.

Auxiliary: Roman regular soldier serving in a unit other than a legion.

Bacchanalian: From the festival of the god of wine, Bacchus.

Bacchic: Fuelled by wine; from the religious frenzy of the worshippers of the god Bacchus.

Bactria: Ancient region lying north of the Hindu Kush and west of the Himalayas.

Ballistae(singular Ballista): Roman torsion artillery firing a bolt with great force and accuracy.

Ballistarii: Roman artillerymen, named from their weapon, the ballista.

Barbii: The Barbius family.

Basilica Aemilia: Court building on the northeastern side of the Roman Forum, originally built in 179BC and restored on several occasions in antiquity.

Basilica of Neptune: Monumental building adjoining the rear of the Pantheon, facing south.

Basilica: Roman court building and audience chamber.

Baths of Trajan: Large bathing and leisure complex dedicated by the Emperor Trajan in AD109, built on the flank of the Esquiline Hill overshadowing the adjacent Baths of Titus.

Batnae: Town in southeastern Turkey; modern Suruç.

Bay of Naxos: Named from an ancient Greek city on the eastern shore of Sicily.

Belenus: Celtic sun god and patron deity of Aquileia.

Bithynia-Pontus: Roman province along the south shore of the Black Sea.

Bona fides: Latin, literally ‘good faith’.

Bononia: Modern Bologna in northern Italy.

Borysthenes: Maximinus’s horse, named from the god of the river Dnieper in Greek mythology.

Boule: Council of a Greek city; in the Roman period made up of local men of wealth and influence.

Britannia Inferior: One of two Roman provinces of Britain, located in northern England.

Brundisium: Important port on the southeastern coast of Italy, modern Brindisi.

Bucellarii(singular Bucellarius): Literally ‘biscuit-eater’; in the later Roman Empire, units of troops raised and led by private individuals, usually governors or generals, as their personal guard.

Caecuban: A highly prized sweet white wine grown in the coastal region south of Rome.

Caelestis: Roman virgin goddess of divine balance.

Caelian: One of the seven legendary hills of Rome, lying southeast of the Roman Forum.

Caesar: Name of the adopted family of the first Roman Emperor, subsequently adopted as one of the titles of the office; often used to designate an Emperor’s heir.

Caesaraugusta: Roman town in Hispania Tarraconensis; modern Saragossa in northeastern Spain.

Caledonia: Area of Britain north of the Roman provinces; roughly modern Scotland.

Campania: Fertile region on the western coast of southern Italy much favoured as a holiday destination by the Roman elite.

Campus Martius: Latin, literally, ‘field of Mars’; name of a famous space in Rome; in general, name for a parade ground.

Capax imperii: Expression originally used by Tacitus to designate those men ‘capable of being Emperor’.

Capitoline triad: The three major deities of Roman religion: Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva.

Cappadocia: Roman province north of the Euphrates.

Capri: Island in the Bay of Naples, where the Emperor Tiberius spent his notorious retirement.

Carinae: Literally ‘the Keels’, fashionable quarter of ancient Rome on southern spur at western end of the Esquiline Hill; now S. Pietro in vincoli.

Carpathians: Mountain chain in Central and Eastern Europe, named from the ancient Carpi tribe.

Carrhae: See Historical Afterword.

Carthage: Second city of the western Roman empire; capital of the province of Africa proconsularis.

Carthaginians: Inhabitants of the city of Carthage.

Cataphracts: Heavily armoured Roman cavalry, from the Greek word for mail armour.

Census: Official lists of Roman citizens, ranked according to wealth: the equestrian census was at the top, the proletarii (proletariat) at the bottom.

Centurion: Officer of the Roman army with the seniority to command a company of around eighty to a hundred men.

Cercopes: Mythical twins renowned for cheating, thieving, and lying.

Cilicia: Roman province in the south of Asia Minor.

Cinithii: Berber tribe living in the south of modern Tunisia.

Cirta: Roman town in the province of Numidia; modern Constantine in northeastern Algeria.

Claudii: Members of the Claudius family.

Clementia: Latin, the virtue of mercy. An important slogan in imperial propaganda.

Clibanarii(singular Clibanarius): Heavily armoured cavalry, name possibly derived from the Latin for ‘baking oven’.

Clytemnestra: In Greek mythology, famed for killing her husband Agamemnon and his lover.

Cohors I Ulpia Galatarum: First Ulpian Cohort of Galatians, unit of auxiliary infantry originally recruited by the Emperor Trajan from Galatia (central Turkey), now stationed in Aquileia.

Cohors II Eufratensis: Second Euphrates Cohort, unit of auxiliary infantry raised in Mesopotamia and stationed at Carrhae.

Cohors XV Arabum: Fifteenth Cohort of Arabs, unit of auxiliary infantry stationed at Carrhae.

Cohort: Unit of Roman soldiers, usually about 500 men-strong.

Commagene: Small kingdom in southeastern Turkey first assimilated into the Roman empire in AD17 and intermittently independent until AD72.

Concordia: Deified abstraction of Imperial Accord; worshipped as a goddess and playing an important role in imperial propaganda.

Conscript Fathers: Honorific form of address used before the Senate.

Consilium: Council, body of advisors, of a senior Roman magistrate or an Emperor.

Consul: In the Republic, the highest office in the Roman state; under the Emperors, a largely honorific and ceremonial position.

Corcyra: Greek name for the Island of Corfu.

Corinth: Ancient city in the Peloponnese, notorious for its luxurious living and prostitutes.

Cosmos: The universe as conceived of by the Greeks, an orderly, harmonious system, often thought divine in itself.

Ctesiphon: Capital of the Parthian empire, lying on the eastern bank of the Tigris river, twenty miles south of modern Baghdad in Iraq.

Curator of the Banks of the Tiber and the Sewers of the City: Senatorial office tasked with the prevention of flooding in Rome; often little more than a sinecure.

Curator of the Roads: Senatorial position tasked with the care of the roads around Rome.

Curia: The meeting house of the Senate in Rome (and of town councils in the Latin-speaking provinces); the building erected after a fire in the later third century is still standing.

Cursus Publicus: Imperial Roman postal service, whereby those with official passes could get remounts and a room for the night.

Curule Chairs: Ivory folding stool, the mark of office of important Roman officials.

Custos: Latin, literally ‘a guardian’; a male attendant would accompany an upper-class woman, in addition to her maids, when she went out in public.

Cynic: The counter-cultural philosophy founded by Diogenes of Sinope in the fourth century BC; its adherents were popularly associated with dogs (the name itself is from the Greek for ‘dog’) for their barking and snapping at contemporary morality and social customs.

Cyrenaica: Roman province of eastern Libya and the Island of Crete.

Cyrene: City originally founded by Greek settlers near modern Shahhat on the northeastern coast of Libya.

Dacia: Roman province north of the Danube, in the region around modern Romania.

Daemon: Supernatural being; could be applied to many different types: good/bad, individual/collective, internal/external, and ghosts.

Dalmatia: Roman province along the eastern shore of the Adriatic.

Damocles: In Greek mythology, punished in the afterlife by having a sword hung from a thread suspended over his head.

Darics: Ancient system of weighing precious metals based on a standard Persian gold coin, the Daric. Roughly 8.4g.

Decii: Members of the Decius family.

Decurion: A junior Roman cavalry officer in charge of a squadron of around 30 troopers.

Decus et Tutamen: Latin, literally ‘honour and safeguard’.

Delphix: From the tripod tables, originally designed in Delphi, that furnished imperial dining rooms.

Demavend: The highest mountain in Parthia, prominent in Persian culture and mythology; located in northern Iran.

Demiurge: In some Greek philosophical systems, the divine figure that fashioned (but did not necessarily create) the Cosmos.

Denarii(singular Denarius): A Roman silver coin; originally a day’s wage for a labourer, though by this period much debased.

Dignitas: Important Roman concept that covers our idea of dignity but goes much further; famously, Julius Caesar claimed that his dignitas meant more to him than life itself.

Dionysus: Greek god of wine.

Diplomata(singular Diploma): From the Greek term for a letter folded in two; in the Roman empire, an official pass given to persons travelling in the provinces.

Diptych: A writing tablet with two leaves; those from the Emperor were often made of costly materials such as ivory and intricately carved on the outside.

Domina: Latin, ‘lady’, ‘mistress, ‘ma’am’; a title of respect.

Domus Rostrata: Home of the Republican general Pompey in the fashionable Carinae quarter; decorated with the ramming beaks (Rostra) of the pirate ships he captured, and from which it took its name.

Drafsh-i-Kavyan: The royal standard of the Sassanid Kings, encrusted with jewels and showing a star on a purple field, claimed to have mythical origins.

Dravus river: The modern Drava, rising in the Alps and flowing eastwards to the Danube.

Dreinos river: The modern Drina, a tributary of the Danube, forming the northern border between Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia.

Druid: Priest of Celtic religion.

Eclogues: Title of a collection of poems by Virgil; from the Greek ekloge, ‘extracts’.

Edessa: Frontier city periodically administered by Rome, Parthia and Armenia in the course of the third century; modern Anhurfa in southern Turkey.

Edessenes: People from Edessa.

Elysian Fields: In Greek mythology, the heaven that awaits the souls of heroes and the virtuous.

Emesa: Modern Homs in Syria.

Emesenes: Inhabitants of the city of Emesa and surrounding area, modern Homs in Syria.

Emona: Modern Ljubljana in Slovenia.

Ephesus: Major city founded by Greek colonists on the western coast of modern Turkey.

Epicureanism: Greek philosophical system, whose followers either denied that the gods existed or held that they were far away and did not intervene in the affairs of mankind.

Epilogue: In ancient rhetoric, the conclusion of a speech; from Greek ‘to say in addition’.

Epiphany: The visual manifestation of a deity; in sun-worship, the dawn is thus an epiphany.

Equestrian: Second rank down in the Roman social pyramid; the elite order just below the senators.

Equirria: Roman chariot or horse racing festival sacred to Mars, celebrated on the day before the Ides of March.

Equites Indigenae Sagittarii: Regular unit of native horse archers, often recruited along the eastern frontiers of the Roman Empire.

Equites Singulares Augusti: Mounted unit protecting the Emperor.

Esquiline: One of the seven hills of Rome, rising east of the Roman Forum.

Esuba: Ancient village in North Africa, location uncertain.

Eternal City: Nickname given to the city of Rome.

Etruria: Region of Italy to the northwest of Rome; roughly modern Tuscany.

Eulogy: In ancient rhetoric, a speech in praise of someone; from the Greek ‘good language’.

Exedra: In ancient architecture, a semi-circular recess.

Exemplum: Latin, ‘example’.

Exordium: In ancient rhetoric, the introduction of a speech.

Factio: Latin, ‘political faction’.

Falernian: Very expensive white wine from northern Campania, particularly prized by the Romans.

Familia: A Roman household; for the well-off, this included slaves and other dependents; that of the Emperor comprised both servants and the imperial bureaucracy; largely staffed by slaves and freedmen.

Fanum Fortunae: Modern Fano, on the northeastern shore of the Italian peninsula.

Fasces: Bundles of rods for beating malefactors tied around an executioner’s axe; symbol of a Roman magistrate’s or Emperor’s authority.

Father of the Country: Honorific title bestowed very rarely in the Roman Republic on outstanding individuals for saving the state; in the imperial period, increasingly became a standard title claimed by Roman Emperors at accession.

Father of the House: The most senior Senator.

Fiscus: Originally the Emperor’s privy purse; took over the functions of the state treasury.

Flaminia: Ancient region of Italy to the northeast of Rome on the Adriatic side of the Apennines.

Flavian Amphitheatre: Giant arena for gladiatorial fights seating 60,000 spectators; now known as the Coliseum, in antiquity known after the Flavian dynasty of Emperors who built and dedicated the structure.

Forum of Augustus: Monumental complex built by the Emperor Augustus to the north of the Forum Romanum, including colonnades decorated with statues of Rome’s heroes and founders, and a temple of Mars.

Forum Romanum: The Roman Forum; oldest and most important public square in Rome, littered with honorific statues and monuments going back to the early Republic. Surrounded by temples, court buildings, arches, and the Curia.

Forum: Central square of a Roman city, site of the market-place, and government, judicial and religious buildings.

Frumentarii(singular Frumentarius): Military unit based on the Caelian Hill in Rome; the Emperor’s secret police; messengers, spies, and assassins.

Gallia Narbonensis: Roman province of southern Gaul, roughly the French region of Provence.

Ganymede: In Greek mythology, the hero Ganymede, the most beautiful man amongst mortals, attracted the erotic desires of Zeus, was abducted by the god and made immortal.

Garamantes: Berber tribe living in southwestern Libya.

Gemellae: Roman garrison town; modern M’lili in northeastern Algeria.

Gemonian Steps: Stairs leading down to the Forum Romanum; in the imperial period, became notorious as a site of execution: prisoners (including disgraced Emperors and Senators) were strangled at the top and their bodies thrown down into the forum.

Genius: The divine part of a man; philosophically, there was ambiguity as to whether the genius was external (like a guardian angel) or internal (like a divine spark).

Germania Superior: More southerly of Rome’s two German provinces.

Germania: The Roman provinces of Germany, but also used of the lands where the German tribes lived, ‘free’ Germany beyond direct Roman control.

Gordian Knot: In the ancient kingdom of Phrygia in western Turkey, a supposedly untieable knot, which, if solved, granted the loosener the throne; Alexander the Great simply cut it apart with his sword.

Gordiani: The Gordianus family; in English, Gordian.

Goth: From the confederation of Germanic tribes.

Gothia: The lands of the Goths, northeast of the Black Sea.

Gracchi: Members of the Gracchus family; famously produced two brothers who were assassinated for attempting to reform the Republic in the late second century BC.

Graeculus: Latin, ‘Little Greek’; Greeks called themselves Hellenes, Romans tended not to extend that courtesy but called them Graeci; with casual contempt, Romans often went further, to Graculi.

Groma: The centre of a Roman army camp, named from the surveyor’s pole by which it was laid out.

Gulf of Utica: Named from the ancient city of Utica, now abandoned; the modern Gulf of Tunis, northern Tunisia.

Hades: Greek underworld.

Hadrumetum: City on the eastern coast of Africa Proconsularis, modern Sousse in Tunisia.

Hatra: Independent city state in northern Iraq, fought over by the Romans, Parthians, and Sassanid Persians in the early third century.

Hatrene: Inhabitant of Hatra.

Hecatomb: In Greco-Roman religion, a sacrifice to the gods of 100 cattle; from the Greek for one hundred.

Hellene: The Greeks’ name for themselves; often used with connotations of cultural superiority.

Hellespont: Ancient name for the Dardanelles strait, linking the Mediterranean and the Sea of Marmara.

Hephaistos: Greek god of the forge.

Hercules: In Greek mythology, mortal famed for his strength who subsequently became a god.

Hermes: Greek messenger god.

Himation: A Greek item of clothing, similar to a toga but less voluminous.

Hippodrome: Greek, literally ‘horse race’; stadium for chariot racing.

Hipposandals: Metal plates secured under the hooves of horses by leather straps; used before the introduction of horse shoes in the fifth century AD.

Hispania Tarraconensis: One of the three provinces into which the Romans divided the Spanish peninsula, the northeast corner.

Hispania: Roman name for the Iberian peninsula, modern Spain and Portugal.

Horrea Caelia: Modern Hergla on the northeastern shore of Tunisia.

Hostes: Latin, ‘enemies’.

House of the Vestals: Home of the Vestal Virgins, priestesses who tended the sacred fire of the goddess Vesta; situated east of the Roman Forum and on the south side of the Sacred Way, opposite the Temple of Venus and Rome.

Hubris: From the Greek hybris, ‘pride’, which expresses itself in the demeaning of others, and taken to excess results in divine punishment.

Iatrosophist: Ancient title for a professor of medicine.

Iazyges: Nomadic Sarmatian tribe living on the steppes of the Great Hungarian plain beyond the Danube.

Iberus: Ancient name for the river Ebro in Spain, which flows along the southern flank of the Pyrenees and into the Mediterranean.

Ides: Thirteenth day of the month in short months, the fifteenth in long months.

Ilerda: Roman town in Hispania Tarraconensis; modern Lerida in northeastern Spain.

Imperator: Originally an epithet bestowed by troops on victorious generals, became a standard title of the Princeps, and thus origin of the English word emperor.

Imperium: Power of the Romans, i.e. the Roman empire, often referred to in full as the imperium Romanorum.

In Absentia: Latin, ‘while absent’.

Infamia: Latin, ‘shame, disgrace’. Prostitutes suffered infamia, and lacked most basic rights and protections in Roman law.

Intempesta: ‘unwholesome, unhealthy’; name given to the dead of night by the Romans.

Iobacchi: Members of secretive drinking clubs dedicated to the worship of Bacchus.

Ionic: From the area of western Turkey bordering the Aegean, settled by Greeks.

Isles of the Blessed: In Greek mythology, the paradise reserved for the shades of heroes.

Iuvenes: Latin, ‘young men’; also voluntary youth associations of Roman cities dedicated to combat sports and socializing.

Ixion: In Greek mythology, murdered his father-in-law and, though pitied by Zeus, king of the gods, tried to seduce his wife Hera; in punishment, he was bound to a fiery wheel for eternity.

Jupiter Optimus Maximus: Roman king of the gods, ‘Jupiter, Greatest and Best’.

Juvenalia: Public games, by this period including chariot races and beast hunts; an elaborate show exhibited by the Emperors on 1st January every year.

Kassiope: Modern Kassiopi on the northeastern coast of Corfu.

Kerman: Town founded by Ardashir I in the southeast of central Iran.

Kottabos: A game played at ancient drinking parties; wine dregs were flung from a cup at a target, with the object of knocking it down.

Labitulosa: Roman town, located close to the modern village of La Puebla de Castro in the southern foothills of the Pyrenees.

Laconia: Ancient territory of Sparta in the southern Peloponnese.

Lake of Curtius: Archaic monument in the middle of the Roman Forum taking the form of a sunken pool with statuary; the Romans themselves told different stories about its history.

Lake Trasimene: Site of a Roman military disaster engineered by Hannibal, modern Lake Trasimeno in the Umbrian region of Italy.

Lambaesis: Fortress of the 3rd Augustan Legion and capital of the Roman province of Numidia; modern Tazoult in northeastern Algeria.

Lararium: Roman household shrine.

Latrunculi: ‘Robbers’, a Roman board game similar to draughts or chess; its exact rules are lost.

Legate: From Latin legatus, a deputy of a high-ranking magistrate or an Emperor, from the latter sense a commander of a legion; drawn from the senatorial classes.

Legio III Augusta Pia Fidelis: The 3rd Augustan Legion, Pious, Faithful; stationed at Lambaesis in the province of Numidia with detachments serving in the neighbouring province of Africa Proconsularis.

Legion: Unit of heavy infantry, usually about 5,000 men-strong; from mythical times, the backbone of the Roman army; the numbers in a legion and the legions’ dominance in the army declined during the third century AD as more and more detachments served away from the parent unit and became more or less independent units.

Legionary: Roman regular soldier serving in a legion.

Leno: Latin, ‘pimp’.

Lethe: In Greek mythology, river flowing through the underworld; drinking its waters made the dead forget their past life.

Libation: Offering of drink to the gods.

Liberators: Name given to the assassins of Julius Caesar.

Libertas: Latin term for freedom or liberty; a political slogan throughout much of Roman history, though its meaning changed according to an author’s philosophical principles or the system of government that happened to be in power. Also worshipped in personified form as a deity.

Liburnian: Under the Roman empire, name given to a small warship, possibly rowed on two levels.

Lictor: Attendants assigned to senior Roman magistrates as bodyguards and ushers; often ex-Centurions.

Lucullan: Red-flecked black marble named after Licinus Lucullus, famously wealthy Senator who first imported the stone to Rome in 74BC.

Ludus Magnus: Gladiatorial school located to the east of the Flavian Amphitheatre.

Lupanar: Latin, ‘brothel’; literally, ‘den of she-wolves’.

Lusitanians: From Lusitania, Roman province of the eastern Iberian peninsula, covering much of modern Portugal.

Mamuralia: Festival held on the Ides of March or the day before; possibly an archaic celebration of the new year, which in the old Roman calendar began in March. Ancient authorities were unsure of its significance; commemorated by ritually beating an old man tied in an animal skin.

MappalianWay: Road leading out of Carthage.

MarcomannicWar: War waged c. AD166-180 along the whole of the northeastern frontier of the Roman empire to prevent incursions by Germanic and Sarmatian tribes.

Marius: Poem on the statesman Marius alleged to have been written by Gordian the Elder; only the title survives.

Mars: Roman god of war.

Mauretania Caesariensis: Roman province of eastern Mauretania, roughly corresponding to northern Algeria.

Mazda: See Ahuramazda.

Media: Ancient region of the Sassanid empire, northwestern Iran.

Mediolanum: Modern Milan in northern Italy.

Mercury: Roman god of travellers.

Mesopotamia: The land between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris; the name of a Roman province (sometimes called Osrhoene).

Metubarbis marsh: Wetlands north of the Savus river in Pannonia.

Milites: Latin, ‘soldiers’.

Milvian Bridge: Major bridge over the Tiber to the north of Rome; an original wooden crossing was replaced by stone in 115BC, which still survives.

Misenene: From Misenum.

Misenum: Base of the Roman fleet on the western shore of the Italian peninsular, modern Miseno.

Mithridatium: Prophylactic against poison claimed to have been invented by Mithridates VI of Pontus in the first century BC, who dosed himself with small quantities of harmful substances. Subsequently forced to commit suicide, he tried to poison himself but had to resort to a sword.

Mobad: Persian priests of the Zoroastrian religion.

Modusvivendi: Latin, ‘way of living’.

Moesia Inferior: Roman province south of the Danube, running from Upper Moesia in the west to the Black Sea in the east.

Moesia: Ancient geographical region following the south bank of the Danube river in the Balkans.

Mogontiacum: Roman legionary fortress and capital of Germania Superior; modern Mainz.

Memento mori: From Latin, literally ‘remember to die’.

Moorish: See Moors.

Moors: Belonging to the Mauri tribe that gave its name to Mauretania, western North Africa.

Mos maiorum: ‘The way of the ancestors’; fundamental Roman concept that theoretically governed most aspects of public and private life.

Mount Ida: In Greek mythology, name of two mountains sacred to the mother goddess; this one was located in Phrygia, central Turkey.

Mount Istone: Ancient name for the Pantokrator mountains on the island of Corfu.

Mount Ocra: Ancient name for Triglav, the highest mountain of the Julian Alps, located in modern Slovenia.

Mount Prion: Partly covered by the ancient city of Ephesus; famed in antiquity for its marble quarries.

Mutina: Modern Modena in northern Italy.

Natiso: Ancient name for the Natisone river, flowing between Italy and Slovenia.

Nefastus: An unpropitious day, one on which it was unlucky to conduct public business.

Negotium: Latin, ‘business, both private and public’.

Nikal: Ancient Mesopotamian moon goddess worshipped at Carrhae; wife of Sin.

Nilus: Poem on the personification of the Nile alleged to have been written by Gordian the Elder; only the title survives.

NiseanStallion: Ancient Iranian horse breed, prized in antiquity.

Nisibis: Border town that frequently changed hands between Rome and Persia; modern Nusaybin in southeastern Turkey.

Nobiles(singular Nobilis): Latin, ‘nobleman’; a man from a patrician family or a plebeian family, one of whose ancestors had been consul.

Nones: The ninth day of a month before the Ides, i.e. the fifth day of a short month, the seventh of a long month.

Noricum: Roman province to the northeast of the Alps.

Novus Homo(plural Novi Homines): Latin, literally ‘new man’; someone whose ancestors had not previously held Senatorial rank.

Numidia: Roman province in western North Africa.

Nymph: In Greek and Roman mythology, type of minor female deity associated with a particular place, often streams or woods.

O tempora, o mores: Famous complaint of Cicero, ‘O what times, oh what manners!’.

Odysseus: Legendary Greek warrior and traveller, famed for his guile.

Oligarchy: From the Greek ‘rule by the few’.

Olympus: Mountain in northern Greece; in Greek mythology, the home of the gods.

Optio: Junior officer in the Roman army, ranked below a Centurion.

Oracle of Delphi: Famed source of prophesy in antiquity; the maxim ‘know thyself’ was prominently inscribed on the oracle’s sanctuary in central Greece.

Orator: Latin term for a professional public speaker.

Orpheus: Mythical Greek musician who travelled to the underworld to bring his wife back from the dead; failing to follow divine instructions not to look at her before both had re-entered the world of the living, she returned forever to Hades.

Osrhoene: Roman province in northern Mesopotamia.

Ostia: Ancient port of the city of Rome, located at the mouth of the Tiber.

Ovile: Settlement in the Thracian highlands, named from the Latin for sheepfold.

Palatine Hill: One of the fabled seven hills of Rome, southeast of the Roman Forum. Site of the imperial palaces; the English term is derived from their location.

Palestina: see Syria Palestina.

Pannonia Inferior: Roman province lying along the south bank of the Danube, opposite the Sarmatian Iazyges.

Pannonia: Roman territory to the south of the Danube, split into two provinces.

Pantheon: Colossal domed temple dedicated to all the gods, located in the Circus Maximus; re-built by the Emperor Hadrian, it is one of the best preserved buildings from ancient Rome.

Parthia: Region of northeastern Iran; seat of the Arcasid dynasty, its name came to be synonymous with their empire.

Patrician: People of the highest social status at Rome; originally descendants of those men who sat in the very first meeting of the free senate after the expulsion of the last of the mythical kings of Rome in 509BC; under the Principate, Emperors awarded new families patrician status.

Pax deorum: Latin, ‘Peace of the gods’; important Roman concept signifying the agreement between mortals and gods, ensured by observance of correct (traditional) rituals.

Pedagogue: Greek term for a teacher borrowed by the Romans; literally ‘leader of a child’.

Persis: Most important region of the Parthian empire, ultimately giving rise to the word Persia; roughly the territory of the modern province of Fars in Iran.

Philanthropia: Greek, love of mankind; underpinned by philosophy, the concept acted as a powerful influence on the perceptions and actions of the Greek and Roman elites.

Phrygian: From Phrygia, an ancient region lying to the west of central Turkey.

Physiognomy: The ancient ‘science’ of studying people’s faces, bodies and deportment to discover their character, and thus both their past and future.

Picenum: Ancient region of Italy to the northeast of Rome along the shore of the Adriatic.

Pila: Roman throwing spear; its head was purposely weakened to bend on impact, preventing it from being reused by the enemy.

Plebs Urbana: Poor of the city of Rome, in literature usually coupled with an adjective labelling them as dirty, superstitious, lazy, distinguished from the plebs rustica, whose rural lifestyle might make them less morally dubious.

Plebs: Technically, all Romans who were not patricians; more usually, the non-elite.

Pluto: Roman god of the underworld.

Poliorcetic: From the Greek, ‘things belonging to sieges’; the science of besieging a city.

Polis: Greek, a city state; focus of Philanthropia and social competition.

Pollinctores: Roman undertakers; employed to wash the corpse and prepare it for cremation.

Pontifex Maximus: Most prestigious priesthood in Roman religion, monopolized by the Emperors.

Portico of Gaius and Lucius Caesar: Colonnade running in front of the Basilica Aemilia on the north side of the Forum Romanum; built by the Emperor Augustus in honour of his two grandsons.

Porticus Vipsania: Large colonnaded square completed by the Emperor Augustus in the Campus Martius.

Poseidon: Greek god of the sea.

Praefectus Annonae: Prefect of the Provisions, title of official in charge of the grain supply of Rome.

Praetor: Roman magistrate in charge of justice, senatorial office second in rank to the Consuls.

Praetorian Camp: Barracks of the Praetorian Guard, encircled by massive brick walls, located in northeastern Rome.

Praetorian Guard: Unit of elite soldiers, organized into ten cohorts, each with 1,000 troops; the Emperor’s personal guard in Rome, though detachments also served alongside the Emperor with the field armies campaigning along the frontiers.

Praetorian Prefect: Commander of the Praetorians, an equestrian; one of the most prestigious and powerful positions in the empire.

Praetorians: Soldiers of the Praetorian Guard, the Emperor’s bodyguard and the most prestigious and highly paid unit in the empire. Unfortunately for the Emperors, their loyalty could be bought with surprising ease.

Prefect of Egypt: Governor of Egypt; because of the strategic importance of the province, this post was never trusted to Senators (who might be inspired to challenge the Emperor) but was always filled by equestrians.

Prefect of Rome: See Prefect of the City.

Prefect of the Camp: Officer in charge of equipment, supply, and billeting.

Prefect of the City: Senior senatorial post in the city of Rome, commander of the Urban Cohorts.

Prefect of the Grain Supply: See Praefectus Annonae.

Prefect of the Imperial Camp: See Prefect of the Camp.

Prefect of the Poor Relief: Senator in charge of a rather haphazard project for alleviating rural poverty in Italy, instituted under the Emperor Nerva (AD96-98).

Prefect of the Vigiles: Equestrian officer in charge of Rome’s watchmen (the Vigiles), a paramilitary force for policing and firefighting.

Prefect of the Watch: Equestrian officer in charge of Rome’s Vigiles.

Prefect: Flexible Latin title for many officials and officers.

Priapus: Roman rustic god; always portrayed with a huge erection.

Primus Pilus: The most senior Centurion in a Roman Legion.

Princeps Peregrinorum: Officer in command of the frumentarii; the Emperor’s spymaster.

Princeps: Latin, leading man; often used as a means of referring to the Emperor, maintaining the polite fiction that he was first among equals, rather than an absolute monarch.

Principia: Headquarters building of a Roman army camp.

Pro-Consul: Title of the senatorial governors of some Roman provinces.

Procurator: Latin title for a range of officials, under the Principate typically appointed by the Emperor to oversee the collection of taxes in the provinces and keep an eye on their senatorial governors.

Providentia: Latin, ‘providence, foresight’; an abstract deity playing an important part in imperial propaganda, guiding the actions of the Emperor for the benefit of his subjects.

Pueri: Latin, ‘boys’; used to refer to adult male slaves, and by soldiers of each other.

Pupput: Modern Hammamet on the northeastern coast of Tunisia.

Quadrantaria: Something costing a small amount, a quarter of a copper as; slang for a cheap whore.

Quaestor: Roman magistrate originally in charge of financial affairs, first of the ‘higher magistracies’, those elected became Senators.

Quantum libet, Imperator: Latin, ‘whatever pleases, Emperor’.

Quirites: Archaic way of referring to the citizens of Rome; sometimes used by those keen to evoke the Republican past.

Ravenna: Base of the Roman fleet on the Adriatic Sea in northeastern Italy.

Res Publica: Latin, ‘the Roman Republic’; under the Emperors, it continued to mean the Roman empire.

Resaina: Town in northern Syria, modern Ra’s al-’Ayn.

Retiarius: Type of lightly armoured gladiator armed with a net and trident.

Rhetor: Greek term for a professional public speaker; equivalent to orator in Latin.

Rider God: A provincial deity worshipped in Pannonia, Moesia, and Thrace, based on elements of Roman and local religious traditions.

Roma: Ancient name for Rome; also worshipped in abstraction as the tutelary deity of the city.

Romae Aeternae: ‘To eternal Rome’; a political slogan found on coins of the Gordiani.

Romanitas: Roman-ness; increasingly important concept by the third century, with connotations of culture and civilization.

Rostra: Speaking platform at the western end of the Roman Forum; took its name from the beaks (rostra) of enemy warships with which it was decorated.

Roxolani: Nomadic barbarian tribe living north of the Danube and west of the Black Sea.

Sacramentum: Roman military oath, taken extremely seriously.

Sacred Way: At Rome, a processional route running below the northern flank of the Palatine and passing south of the Temple of Venus and Rome, ending at the Roman Forum to the west; at Ephesus, main road paved with marble passing the Library of Celsus and leading down to the major shrine of the city.

Saldis: A small town in the Salvus valley, located in modern Croatia.

Salus: ‘Health!’; a Roman expression of greeting or farewell.

Salutatio: An important Roman social custom; friends and clients of the wealthy and influential were expected to wait on their patrons at daybreak, being admitted into the atrium to greet them and see if they could be of any service in the day’s business.

Samos: Island in the eastern Aegean; it has retained its ancient name.

Samosata: City on the right bank of the Euphrates in southeastern Turkey protecting an important crossing point; now flooded by the Atatürk Dam.

Santicum: Roman town on the banks of the river Dravus; modern Villach in Austria.

Sarcophagus: From Greek, literally ‘flesh eater’; a stone chest containing a corpse and displayed above ground, often highly decorated.

Sarmatia: Tribal lands of the Sarmatians.

Sarmatians: Nomadic peoples living north of the Danube; see Iazyges and Roxolani.

Sassanid: Name for the Persians, from the dynasty that overthrew the Parthians in the 220sAD and was Rome’s great eastern rival until the seventh century AD.

Satyr: In Greek and Roman mythology, half-goat half-man creatures with excessive sexual appetites.

Satyrion: Ragwort, common ingredient of ancient aphrodisiacs; named from the licentious Satyrs.

Savus: Ancient name for the Sava river, a tributary of the Danube rising in the Julian Alps.

Saxa Rubra: Roman village on the Via Flaminia, some miles north of Rome.

Sciron: In Greek mythology, a divine-born bandit living on the Isthmus of Corinth, who enslaved travellers and disposed of those he tired of by throwing them into the sea. Fittingly, he met his own end in the same manner.

Scythian: Term used by the Greeks and Romans for peoples living to the north and east of the Black Sea.

Securitas: ‘Security’; personified as a tutelary goddess of the Roman state.

Senate House: See Curia.

Senate: The council of Rome, under the Emperors composed of about six hundred men, the vast majority ex-magistrates, with some imperial favourites. The richest and most prestigious group in the empire and once the governing body of the Roman Republic; increasingly side-lined by the Emperors.

Senator: Member of the senate, the council of Rome. The semi-hereditary senatorial order was the richest and most prestigious group in the empire.

Servitium: Roman town whose name literally means servitude, slavery. Modern Gradiška on the northern border of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Sestertius: Roman coin denomination; used as standard in ancient accounts.

Seven Hills: Metonym for Rome, from the seven hills on which the city was said to have been built; ancient lists, however, do not agree on their identity.

Shahba: Village on the border of Syria Phoenice and Arabia; some miles north of the modern town of Bosra on the southern Syrian border.

Sicilia: Ancient name for the island of Sicily.

Sicoris: Ancient name for the Segre river, a tributary of the Ebro in northeastern Spain.

Simulacrum: Latin, ‘imitation’.

Sin: Ancient Assyrian moon god worshipped at Carrhae; husband of Nikal.

Singara: Highly fortified eastern outpost of the Roman empire in northern Iraq; modern Balad Sinjar.

Sirmium: Strategic border town in Pannonia Inferior; modern Sremska Mitrovica in Serbia.

Sistan: Ancient region in eastern Iran and southern Afghanistan.

Sogdia: Ancient region to the north of Bactria, centred around Samarkand in modern Uzbekistan.

Sogdian Rock: A mountain fortress in Sogdia, captured by Alexander the Great in 328/7BC.

Sophist: A high-status teacher, usually of rhetoric; the sophists often travelled from city to city giving instruction and delivering speeches for entertainment.

Spatha: Long Roman sword, primarily designed for cutting; increasingly popular in the third century AD.

Speculatores: Roman army scouts and spies.

Stadium of Domitian: A running track originally intended for Greek-style athletic contests (never popular in Rome), constructed by the Emperor Domitian in the Campus Martius; its outline is preserved in the modern Piazza Navona.

Statii: Members of the Statius family.

Stationarii: Soldiers serving on semi-permanent detachment from their units for local policing and other duties.

Statue of Victory: Statue of the goddess placed at the far end of the Curia; before each meeting of the Senate, rituals were performed at the accompanying altar.

Stoic: Ancient school of philosophy; followers were instructed to believe that everything that does not affect one’s moral purpose is an irrelevance; so poverty, illness, bereavement and death cease to be things to fear and are treated with indifference.

Street of the Sandal-makers: Street in ancient Rome running behind the Forum of Augustus and Temple of Peace.

Stylus: Pointed implement of metal or bone, used for writing in wax.

Styx: River marking the border of Hades in Greek mythology; impassable to the living, the dead were rowed across.

Subura: Poor quarter in the city of Rome.

Succurrite: Latin, ‘help me, save me’.

Suffect Consul: One of the additional Consuls appointed later in the year by the Emperors during the Principate; less prestigious than the pair of Consuls who held office at the start of the year.

Symposium: Greek drinking party, adopted as social gathering of choice by the Roman elite.

Synodiarchs: Greek term for a caravan protector, the unusual group of rich and powerful men historically known in Palmyra and in this novel in the city of Arete.

Syria Coele: Hollow Syria, Roman province.

Syria Palestina: Palestinian Syria, Roman province.

Syria Phoenice: Phoenician Syria, Roman province.

Syriac: Semitic language spoken in much of ancient Syria and Mesopotamia.

Syrtes: In antiquity, notoriously dangerous shoals off the coast of modern Libya.

Taenarus: The modern Cape Matapan on the southern shore of the Peloponnese; site of a cave believed to be an entrance to Hades.

Tantalus: In Greek mythology, punished eternally for stealing the food and drink of the gods by being forced to stand in a pool below a fruit tree, but unable to eat or drink.

Tarraco: Capital of the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis; modern Tarragona in northeastern Spain.

Tarpeian Rock: Cliff overlooking the Forum Romanum in Rome, from which prisoners were thrown to their deaths.

Telamon: Modern Talamone on the northwestern shore of Italy.

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina: Temple dedicated to the deified Emperor Antoninus Pius and his wife Faustina, at the northeastern corner of the Forum Romanum; much of the ancient building survives as the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda.

Temple of Peace: Monumental building with planted courtyard north- east of the Roman Forum.

Temple of Veiovis: The ancients were unsure whether this deity represented a youthful or ‘bad’ Jupiter; the temple, originally built by Romulus, overlooked the Forum Romanum from high ground to the west.

Temple of Venus and Rome: Temple designed by the Emperor Hadrian with back-to-back shrines for Venus, Roman goddess of love, and Rome, a deified personification of the city. In Latin, Roma (Rome) spelled backwards is amor, love. Situated east of the Roman Forum on the north side of the Sacred Way.

Tempus fugit: Latin, ‘time flies’.

Tervingi: Gothic tribe living between the Danube and Dnieper rivers.

Testudo: Latin, literally ‘tortoise’; by analogy, a Roman infantry formation with overlapping shields, giving overhead protection.

Thamugadi: Or Timgad, Roman city in northeastern Algeria; abandoned after antiquity.

Cyclades: Island group in the Aegean sea, named from the Greek for circle, because they form a group around the island of Delos, sacred in antiquity.

Thesprotis: Ancient region of northwestern Greece.

Thessalian persuasion: Ancient proverb of obscure origins.

Theveste: Town in northwestern Africa Proconsularis; modern Tébessa in Tunisia.

Thrace: Roman province to the northeast of Greece.

Thracians: People from the ancient geographical region of Thrace, the southeastern corner of the Balkans.

Thugga: Or Dougga, major Roman city in Africa Proconsularis; abandoned after antiquity.

Thysdrus: Town in central Africa Proconsularis; modern El Djem in Tunisia.

Tibur: Ancient town northeast of Rome popular as a hill resort; modern Tivoli.

Toga Virilis: Garment given to mark a Roman’s coming of age; usually at about fourteen.

Toga: Voluminous garment, reserved for Roman citizens, worn on formal occasions.

Tresviri Monetales: Literally, ‘Three men of the mint’ board of junior magistrates responsible for the coinage.

Tribune: Title of a junior senatorial post at Rome and of various military officers; some commanded auxiliary units, while others were mid-ranking officers in the Legions.

Triumvirate: ‘Three men’; term made notorious by two pacts to share control of the Roman government between three leading citizens that precipitated the end of the Roman Republic and ushered in the Principate.

Tullianum: Ancient prison just off the northwestern corner of the Forum Romanum; prisoners were either strangled on site or housed for a short time before execution elsewhere; the Romans did not use imprisonment per se as a punishment.

Tutor: Guardian legally necessary for a child, imbecile or woman.

Umbro: Ancient name of the river Ombrone in northwestern Italy.

Urban Cohorts: Military unit stationed in major cities to act as a police force; at Rome, they were commanded by the Prefect of the City, and acted as a counterbalance to the Praetorian Guard.

Urbs Victrix: ‘The victorious city’; modern Huesca in northeastern Spain.

Utica: Coastal town of Africa Proconsularis northwest of Carthage.

Uxorius: Poem concerned with happiness in marriage alleged to have been written by Gordian the Elder; only the title survives.

Venus Cloacina: Venus the purifier; patron goddess of the Roman sewers; her circular shrine stood in front of the Basilica Aemilia in the Forum Romanum.

Venus: Roman goddess of love.

Verona: Important Roman town in northern Italy; its ancient name remains unchanged.

Via Annia: Road running along the northeastern coast of Italy.

Via Aurelia: Road running along the Italian coast northwest of Rome.

Via Decumana: Ancient name given to the road leading to the centre of a Roman army camp from the rear gate.

Via Flaminia: Road leading north from Rome, crossing the Apennines, and terminating on the Adriatic coast.

Via Gemina: Ancient road linking Aquileia and Emona.

Via Labicana: Road leading southeast from the centre of Rome.

Via Postumia: Road running north — south across the Apennines, linking Rome with the Po valley and northern Italy.

Via Praenestina: Road running east out of the centre of Rome.

Via Principalis: Ancient name for the road leading from the front gate to the centre of a Roman army camp.

Victoria: Roman goddess of victory.

Vicus Sandaliarius: Street of the sandal-makers in Rome.

Vigiles: Paramilitary unit stationed at Rome for police and firefighting duties.

Villa of Sextus: Country seat used by the governors of Africa Proconsularis, situated outside Carthage.

Villa Praenestina: Lavish country residence of the Gordiani, situated on the Via Praenestina three miles outside the city of Rome.

Villa Publica: Monumental complex in the Campus Martius at Rome.

Viminacium: Provincial capital of Upper Moesia; modern Kostolac in eastern Serbia.

Virtus Exercituum: Roughly ‘Virtue of the Armies’; see also Virtus.

Virtus: Latin, ‘courage’, ‘manliness’, and/or ‘virtue’; far stronger and with a more active sense than English ‘virtue’.

Virunum: Roman town in Noricum; modern Maria Saal in southern Austria.

Voleterrae: Ancient name for Volterra, a town northwest of Rome.

XXviri ex Senatus Consulta Rei Publicae Curandae: Twenty men from the decree of the Senate (selected) for the care of the State.

Zakynthos: Or Zante, an island off the western coast of Greece.

Zerebas: Stockades of thorn bushes built by African tribesmen.

Zeus: Greek king of the gods.