The Roman Emperor Commodus wanted to kill a rhinoceros with a bow and arrow, and he wanted to do it in the Colosseum. For fourteen days near the end of AD 192,

In ancient times, the Roman games—that heady cocktail of mass slaughter, gladiatorial combat, and chariot racing—made strong political, social, and cultural

The social historian, searching for the basis of a culture, often turns to a study of ordinary people. Perhaps one of the most revealing places to find them is

"A comprehensive look at WMD's antecedents, from flamethrowers of the Peloponnesian War to plague-bearing booby traps.... Rich and entertaining." -Newsweek Feat

How Caesar's attack on Bibulus marked the beginning of the end of the Roman free state and the descent of the Republic into violence and civil war. The year 59