Book: The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Orange Julius, Jun 18, 2017.

  1. Orange Julius

    Orange Julius Well-Known Member

    Hi all,
    Just picked up this book:The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome by Chris Scarre

    I found it in a used book store for $8.49 and am sure you could find it on Amazon for cheaper. Anyway, as I just picked it up, a review will have to wait but it's filled with lots of fun maps and high level information on military campaigns, building programs and cultural stuff... many coin photos too! It's a slim paperback at 140 pages but really interesting. Pictured are a few pages. Check it out!
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  3. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    I have that book. I've had it for 12 years. Worth every penny. At the time I didn't know as much about ancient Roman history, so it was very informative.
     
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  4. Orfew

    Orfew Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

    Interesting book. Thanks for the heads up. I will try to find a copy.
     
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  5. Carl Wilmont

    Carl Wilmont Well-Known Member

    Looks like a great overview- just ordered one from Amazon. Thanks for the recommendation!
     
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  6. tobiask

    tobiask Well-Known Member

    Going to order it as well. Thanks.
    Check out Livys history of early rome..
     
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  7. Orfew

    Orfew Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

    Just ordered the hardcover for 7.30 CAD including shipping. Looking forward to getting it.
     
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  8. Carl Wilmont

    Carl Wilmont Well-Known Member

    Also looks interesting - first hand account.
     
  9. ancientcoinguru

    ancientcoinguru Well-Known Member

    I also recommend this atlas. It's a fun read, and I learned a lot.
     
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  10. alde

    alde Always Learning

    I have this book to and like it very much. It's worth the cost just for the maps.
     
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  11. David Atherton

    David Atherton Flavian Fanatic

    I'm a map lover and have hundreds of wall maps and atlases and I still find the Penguin atlas quite useful. Like Sallent, I've had it for a number of years and use it more frequently than other atlases. And that's high praise indeed considering I own a copy of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World!
     
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  12. TJC

    TJC Well-Known Member

    Cool book!!!
     
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  13. Jwt708

    Jwt708 Well-Known Member

    I have the Greek one and it is very nice - I'm sure the Roman one is nice too.
     
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  14. rg3

    rg3 Well-Known Member

    Nice! Picked up that same book off the free rack of my local public library. Great maps!
     
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  15. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    Here is my copy of OP's book, alongside my favorite book of all antiquity, The Conquest of Gaul. I've read a dozen ancient books by well renowned ancient historians, and to this date this Julius Caesar classic is still my favorite of them all.

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  16. alde

    alde Always Learning

    Can somebody recommend a similar book for the medieval world?
     
  17. Orange Julius

    Orange Julius Well-Known Member

    Ooh there's a Greek atlas too? I'll have to get that one as well!
     
  18. randygeki

    randygeki Coin Collector

  19. Nerva

    Nerva Well-Known Member

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  20. sakata

    sakata Devil's Advocate

    Just found all three on AbeBooks for $12.77 including shipping.
     
  21. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    Just so you understand the level of rip off in colleges, I got mine as part of my course on Roman Britain during my undergraduate years for $20 from my college library. Back then Amazon was in its infancy, and I doubt most of us had even heard of it, so we got ripped off by the college bookstore. Today, that book doesn't even cost anywhere near that much either, and it is still a fantastic book that is just as relevant as it was back then.

    Incidentally, I still have 3 books on Roman Britain from that class's as well as a couple of books on the Roman Republic and Roman Empire from other Roman history classes I took. They still make good reading all these years later.

    I will never forget my Roman history class. I thought being a history buff would help, but the professor was not the "bubble the answer in" or the "just remember this date" type of professor. He made us memorize the exact geographical area of every British tribe and Scottish tribe, and the system of alliances between the tribes, as well as the names of every Roman governor and tribal chief that did anything relevant (and what they did).

    Our final was a blank map into which we had to write the name of every British tribe that was there at the time of the Roman invasion, and the essay had us recount in detail Julius Caesar's two campaigns in Britain, including the names of the tribes, locations of the Roman forces, and the details of the battles.

    I took the class thinking it would be another easy A, and I was thrilled to have walked away with a B given everything that guy threw at us.

    *Sad to say that with the passage of time, I only remember a handful of tribes, people, and events now.
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2017
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