Ancient Romans and Their Neighbors: An Activity Guide

By Simonetta Carr

The ancient Romans lived thousands of years before our time, but they left an indelible influence on our language, buildings, laws, ideas of liberty and citizenship, and much more. Ancient Romans and Their Neighbors will teach children to recognize these enduring marks and to appreciate the rich culture of ancient Rome. But the Romans didn't do it all alone. They learned a lot from their neighbors—fascinating cultures that are more relevant than many imagine. The Etruscans, inhabitants of modern-day Tuscany, created a unique, colorful and highly refined culture, pioneering many elements of architecture, art and fashion that have been attributed to the Romans. The Celts, who have long captured popular imagination with fascinating stories of druids and magic potions, were a complex and resourceful population that left an important mark in much of Europe. The Carthaginians are normally remembered because of Hannibal's daring crossing of the Alps on African elephants, but there is much more to their history and culture, which made them for a time the most powerful force along the Mediterranean Sea. Well-researched and based on the latest findings, this unique comparison of ancient civilizations is also full of engaging activities that will give children a taste of daily life in ancient times.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chicago Review Press
• Release date: Aug 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9780914091783

Book preview

Copyright © 2019 by Simonetta Carr

All rights reserved

Published by Chicago Review Press Incorporated

814 North Franklin Street

Chicago, Illinois 60610

ISBN 978-0-914091-71-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Is available from the Library of Congress.

Cover and interior design: Sarah Olson

Cover images: (front) Etruscan jug in bucchero, William Randolph Hearst Collection, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Celtic sword, Rogers Fund, 1999, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY; Carthaginian glass pendant, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY; Emperor Augustus as Pontifex Maximus, ©Art Resource; Gold torque, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, George Blumenthal, and Fletcher Fund, 2005, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY; Roman Colosseum, Noppasin Wongchum/Shutterstock; (back) Carthaginian statuette of a tambourine player, ©Art Resource; Etruscan handle in the shape of an animal, The Walters Art Museum

Illustrations: Lindsey Cleworth Schauer

Map design: Chris Erichsen

Printed in the United States of America

5 4 3 2 1

CONTENTS

Introduction

Time Line

PART I: THE ROMANS

Roman History

Roman Architecture

Build a Miniature Roman Road

Roman Clothing

Clean Your Skin Like a Roman

Roman Writing

Write a Letter Like an Ancient Roman

Roman Art and Music

Tell Your Life Story on a Roman Column

Warn Your Friends with a Roman Mosaic

Roman Religion

Roman Government and Warfare

Design a Coin for a President or Governor

Create a Roman Standard for Your Family or Classroom

Roman Daily Life

Play a Children’s Walnut Game

Roman Food

Serve a Plate of Roman Frictilia

Try an Ancient Roman Spread

PART II: THE ETRUSCANS

Etruscan History

Etruscan Architecture

Build an Edible Etruscan Arch

Etruscan Clothing

Make an Etruscan Mirror

Create an Elegant Etruscan Brooch

Etruscan Writing

Leave a Message on a Gold or Silver Tablet

Create a Secret Language

Etruscan Art and Music

Give Your Backpack an Etruscan Handle

Etruscan Religion

Etruscan Government and Warfare

Etruscan Daily Life

Build an Etruscan Dodecahedron

Etruscan Food

Warm Up with a Bowl of Etruscan Soup

PART III: THE CELTS

Celtic History

Celtic Architecture

Build an Edible Gallic Wall

Celtic Clothing

Create a Celtic Brooch

Weave a Colorful Mat

Make a Celtic Torque

Celtic Writing

Celtic Art and Music

Create a Stylized Celtic Picture

Make a Celtic Knot

Celtic Religion

Celtic Government and Warfare

Make a Celtic Sword

Celtic Daily Life

Celtic Food

Make Butter

PART IV: THE CARTHAGINIANS

Carthaginian History

Carthaginian Architecture

Carthaginian Clothing

Be a Perfume Maker

Create a Carthaginian Pendant

Carthaginian Writing

Carthaginian Art and Music

Make a Thanksgiving Stela

Create and Play a Carthaginian Tambourine

Carthaginian Religion

Mass-Produce Some Figurines

Scare Off Evil Spirits with a Carthaginian Mask

Carthaginian Government and Warfare

Carthaginian Daily Life

Carthaginian Food

Fill Up with Hefty Carthaginian Grains

Glossary

Acknowledgments

Resources

Notes

Selected Bibliography

INTRODUCTION

The ancient Romans lived hundreds of years ago, but their influence is still around us—in our language, our buildings, our laws, our ideas of liberty and citizenship, and much more. They still excite us in action movies and video games, and some of our common expressions relate to Roman history. This book will help you to recognize these enduring signs of Rome in your daily life. You’ll learn about Rome’s fascinating history, from its legendary birth to its unexpected end, and see how it survived both foreign attacks and devastating civil wars to become one of the greatest empires in history, influencing and absorbing dozens of different cultures.

In our imagination, Romans were strong, powerful, and brave. They lived in luxurious mansions and conquered the rest of the world with their strong armies. But that is not a full picture of their lives. They had humble beginnings and learned much from their neighbors. Scholars believe their willingness to learn from other nations and to respect their cultures played a great role in Rome’s success.

Today, these neighbors are not equally well known, but they are fascinating and important. The Etruscans, inhabitants of modern-day Tuscany, created a unique, colorful, and highly refined culture, pioneering many architectural elements that have been attributed to the Romans. The Celts, with their fascinating history of druids and magic potions, were a complex and resourceful population that left important marks across Europe. The Carthaginians are remembered most for Hannibal’s daring crossing of the Alps with African elephants, but there is much more to their history and culture. For a time, they were the most powerful force along the Mediterranean Sea.

Ancient Romans and Their Neighbors will give you a glimpse of the lives of these unique people. You will learn how they spent their days, what they ate, how they dressed, what gods they worshiped, how they governed, and how they fought. You will relive extraordinary events and moments from their everyday lives—how they created artwork, cooked meals, and overcame obstacles.

TIME LINE

This time line of the Romans and their neighbors ends with the fall of the Western Roman Empire, because the Eastern Empire, which continued for about 1,000 years longer, was different in many ways, and would require a book of its own.

PART I: THE ROMANS

Map of the Roman Empire at its time of fullest expansion, around AD 117. It included 40 provinces spread over 2 million square miles.

The Romans believed their city began with two babies nursed by a wolf. Davide Colli, Flickr

ROMAN HISTORY

The small group of people who built their huts along the Tiber River couldn’t have imagined they started one of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known. But they knew they had chosen a great location where food was easy to grow and sell thanks to the river and the nearby Tyrrhenian Sea.

Most historians agree that Rome began when local tribes banded together for safety and strength near where the Roman Forum stands today. Roman legends, however, are much more fun and colorful.

The Legends

The story of Romulus and Remus, told in many versions, is the most popular legend of Rome’s founding. As told by the Roman historian Livy, it all started in the lost city of Alba Longa in the Alban Hills southeast of Rome, when a prince named Amulius grabbed the throne from his older brother, Numitor.

To eliminate challengers, Amulius killed Numitor’s sons and forced Numitor’s daughter, Sylvia, to become a priestess of Vesta, goddess of home and family. Priestesses of Vesta could not marry, so Amulius was confident she wouldn’t have any children to one day claim their right to the throne. To his surprise, Sylvia gave birth to twins, claiming the father was the Roman god Mars.

Enraged, Amulius imprisoned Sylvia and ordered his men to drown the children in the Tiber. His men put them in a basket and placed it in the river, but the basket never sank. As the story goes, a female wolf heard the babies’ cries, breast-fed them, and cared for them as if they were her own cubs. Finally, a shepherd named Faustulus saw them and took them to his home, raising them with his wife, Larentia.

When the boys grew up, they discovered who they were and what had happened to their grandfather. In revenge, they killed Amulius, returned the throne to Numitor, and left to found a new city.

After the city was built, the two brothers argued over who should be king. They asked the gods for a sign. Remus was the first to receive one: he saw six vultures in flight. To the ancients, this was a token of good news. Remus was still rejoicing when Romulus saw 12 vultures. Each man was declared king by his followers, one because he saw the birds first, the other because he saw twice as many. Eventually, the argument turned violent. Romulus killed Remus and seized the throne, and the city was named Rome in his honor. This story was immortalized in many images, and the wolf became the symbol of Rome.

It’s hard to know how much of this is truth and how much is legend. However, this story dates the foundation of Rome as 753 BC, close to what archaeologists believe was Rome’s beginning.

The Greeks gave a different account. Their story starts after the Trojan War, when a man named Aeneas escaped the burning city of Troy (in today’s Turkey) carrying his aging father on his shoulders and leading his son by the hand. Aeneas finally settled in Italy, where his son founded a city. However, the Trojan War ended around 1200 BC, much earlier than the foundation of Rome. Some Roman historians combined the two legends, saying that Aeneas’s son founded Alba Longa, where Romulus and Remus were born a few centuries later.

The Kings

According to legend, Rome had a total of seven consecutive kings, starting with Romulus. Historians think this number might be incorrect. If seven kings ruled from 753 to 509 BC, each king would have ruled roughly 35 years, which was uncommon in those days. There might have been more kings, or this monarchy may have lasted for a shorter period of time.

These early kings were different from modern kings. They were more like tribal chiefs, and the throne was not passed down from father to son. Each king was elected by the Senate, a group of influential citizens. Kings led their people in wars, approved laws, and were the link between their subjects and their gods.

To grow the city, Romulus invited everyone to come, including outlaws and runaway slaves. Since these were mostly men, he tried to convince surrounding nations to give them their women in marriage. Everyone refused. Romulus then invited these nearby nations to a great sporting event, and large crowds gathered. At a given signal, the unmarried men of Rome kidnapped the single foreign women and took them to their homes.

Romulus explained to the women that the young men had every intention of loving them and treating them well, and, according to the story, the women agreed to marry them and stay in Rome. The women’s fathers, however, were angry and started a war against Rome. The women put an end to the conflict, pleading with the men not to kill each other. They didn’t want to lose their husbands or their fathers.

Whether or not this story is true, from the beginning Rome was composed of people of different tribes and nations and grew quickly by granting citizenship to loyal allies and freed slaves. In fact, Rome’s last three kings were Etruscan.

Republic, Expansion, and Civil War

The last king of Rome, Tarquinius Superbus (the Proud), imposed forced labor on the citizens and stole from neighboring nations to increase his glory. The Romans eventually became tired of the bullying behavior and, in 509, expelled him and his son. To prevent further abuses, they elected new leaders called consuls and declared Rome a republic, from the Latin res publica, meaning public property.

Tarquinius fought to take back Rome, with the help of the Etruscan king, Porsenna, but they failed. The Romans later told stories of brave heroes from the battle, such as Horatio, who fought the Etruscans singlehandedly as his men destroyed a bridge behind him, preventing the enemy from advancing into Roman territory. Horatio then leapt into the Tiber in full armor and swam safely to the other side. Many outsiders tried to conquer Rome in the early years, and the Romans suffered many defeats. But they learned from them and became strong enough to take over the entire Italian peninsula, both by force and by offering citizenship and benefits to those who joined them willingly.

The general Julius Caesar made the greatest conquests outside of Italy, including Gaul (today’s France), parts of Germany, and some of North Africa. He also explored Britain and opened the door for a full conquest of Egypt, which was a major supplier of wheat, papyrus, linen, and other important products.

Caesar became powerful and well loved by the people. The Roman Senate feared he might assume too much power and ordered him to disband his army. Caesar didn’t think this was fair, and he knew that many who were asking him to step down were corrupt. In 49 BC, he took his army across the Roman border, starting a civil war.

The war was mostly fought in Greece. Caesar’s main adversary, known as Pompey the Great, died in 48 BC, but Caesar continued to fight in northern Africa against Pompey’s allies. He returned to Rome in 46 BC, where he was greeted with honors. By this time, the Senate had come to recognize his abilities and valor. They gave him increasing power until, in 44 BC, they proclaimed him dictator for life.

Some senators, however, were terribly worried. The position of dictator was legal and approved by the Senate in cases of extreme need, but only for six months. Having a dictator for life was like having an absolute king—something Romans had fought to avoid. It looked like the end of the republic they loved. Other senators thought Caesar was too generous to the poor, and they worried they could lose their property and status. Whatever their motives, a group of senators planned an attack.

The death of Julius Caesar, as depicted by 19th-century artist Jean-Léon Gérôme. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

On March 15, 44 BC, Caesar attended a meeting at the Senate, despite a warning from his wife, Calpurnia, who had had an ominous dream. When he arrived, the senators surrounded him, then stabbed him with daggers until he died.

The Empire

Caesar’s murder shocked and divided the people of Rome and their allies. Most Romans were outraged, because Caesar had won the hearts of his people. Others took it as a positive step in restoring the republic.

Once again, a civil war started. Those who had supported Caesar were his longtime friend Marc Antony, his adopted son and heir Octavian, and a military commander named Marcus Lepidus. After working together to defeat Brutus and Cassius, two of Caesar’s main assassins, Antony and Octavian started to