Calvus is 99% of real Roman life.
May 9, 2013 6:56 AM   Subscribe

 
Now if only we had a post about what he used for toilet paper, may day would be complete.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 6:58 AM on May 9, 2013 [3 favorites]


Here you go. Have a lovely day!
posted by h00py at 7:05 AM on May 9, 2013 [3 favorites]


Did he have an imaginary tiger friend named Hobbesius?
posted by briank at 7:13 AM on May 9, 2013 [4 favorites]


He had a wife, you know.
posted by h00py at 7:16 AM on May 9, 2013 [13 favorites]


I would be more confident in this blog if the first page of blog entries didn't appear to be a sequence of linking opportunities to sell his books. And sadly, no one has any real idea of what Roman money means in modern day terms - the best you can say is that x amount was a lot or an awful lot, really.
posted by lesbiassparrow at 7:16 AM on May 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


Apparently everyday Roman life involved a lot of stone pillars next to amphitheaters.
posted by burnmp3s at 7:23 AM on May 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


So if he uses all the good stuff for the book he can't write about it on his blog? I don't think sordid coin negates facts and interesting anecdotes.
posted by h00py at 7:25 AM on May 9, 2013


I had no idea the Romans mixed metric and imperial measurements in their recipes. Good thing they didn't launch any satellites (that we know of).
posted by DU at 7:26 AM on May 9, 2013 [3 favorites]


Well, there was Sputnicus, but that was really more of just a big rock they flung at the Parthians.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 7:31 AM on May 9, 2013 [7 favorites]


The more I learn about the Romans, the more I root for the Vandals and Visigoths (a lot of whom became Romanized, but, still).
posted by thelonius at 7:36 AM on May 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


Man I love this shit. Roman history is the best. If there was a Roman version of Steampunk I'd be all over it.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 7:43 AM on May 9, 2013 [4 favorites]


If there was a Roman version of Steampunk I'd be all over it.

Glue some laurel branches to your head.

I kid because I love.
posted by DU at 7:53 AM on May 9, 2013 [2 favorites]


Apparently he can't even afford more than one piece of clipart.
posted by brain_drain at 8:00 AM on May 9, 2013 [2 favorites]



If there was a Roman version of Steampunk I'd be all over it.

Glue some laurel branches to your head.

I kid because I love.


HELLENEPUNK

TALOS-MEN-MACHINES

LET'S MAKE THIS HAPPEN PEOPLE
posted by The Whelk at 8:19 AM on May 9, 2013 [3 favorites]


(this is in no way inspired by my desire to do away with pants as a cultural construct)
posted by The Whelk at 8:22 AM on May 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


Loincloths are due for a comeback.
posted by h00py at 8:40 AM on May 9, 2013


Togapunk.
posted by MartinWisse at 8:52 AM on May 9, 2013


If there was a Roman version of Steampunk I'd be all over it.

Careful, you'll attract Neoclassicist Hipsters, and nobody wants that.
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:40 AM on May 9, 2013


NeoClassicial Egyptian chic was the most hilariously awful looking thing ever.
posted by The Whelk at 9:47 AM on May 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


(this is in no way inspired by my desire to do away with pants as a cultural construct)

Having worn a sulu whilst visiting tropical Fiji, I can attest to the wisdom of wearing such garments in a hot climate. Ventilation is a wondrous thing.
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:01 AM on May 9, 2013


The anthology Steampunk! has a story by M. T. Anderson - The Oracle Engine - which is set in the late Roman republic, with historical figures (Crassus, portrayed true to his attested reputation, plays a key role) and an inventor who builds an equivalent of Babbage's Difference engine. Can't vouch for the rest of the book, but as a Roman history buff I thought this one was a hoot!
posted by purple_frogs at 10:45 AM on May 9, 2013


Almost forgot - the story is also full of other anachronisms like closed-circuit television cameras and Roman legions dropping Greek fire from hot-air balloons, IIRC.
posted by purple_frogs at 10:49 AM on May 9, 2013


the story is also full of other anachronisms like closed-circuit television cameras

So, basically that one episode of Star Trek, then.
posted by Halloween Jack at 11:33 AM on May 9, 2013


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