1.
Ercolano
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Ercolano is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania of southern Italy. It lies at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, on the Bay of Naples. The medieval town of Resina - read Resìna - was built on the material left by the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Herculaneum. Ercolano is a resort and the point for excursions to the excavations of Herculaneum. The town also manufactures leather goods, buttons, glass, in legend, Herculaneum was founded by Hercules returning from one of his Twelve Labours. Historically, it was most likely founded by the Oscans, an Italic tribe of the 8th century BC, under the control of the Romans, the city was a renowned seaside resort where some of the richest Roman citizens spent their summer vacations. It was built according to the model of Hippodamus of Miletus with a grid of crossing Decumans. The houses are elegant and large and there are buildings that are abundant. Unlike neighboring Pompeii, the citizens of Herculaneum died of shock from the extremely hot pyroclastic surges. After the eruption of AD79 the area was slowly re-populated, in the Basilica di Santa Maria a Pugliano are two early Christian marble sarcophagi from the 2nd and 4th centuries AD which give evidence of habitation on the site of the buried Herculaneum. The first records of the existence of a village named Resina or Risìna, are from the 10th century, the etymology of the name is controversial. Some academics believe that it comes from a corruption of Rectina, finally some suggest that the name is the anagram of sirena, a siren was the symbol of the village and the town of Resina until 1969. In 1418 Queen Joanna II of Naples conceded the Università of Torre del Greco, Resina, Portici and Cremano to her favourite Sergianni Caracciolo and later to Antonio Carafa. Since then, these belonged to the Carafa family and passed from hand to hand following the historical events of the family. The main business of the inhabitants of Resina were, agriculture, fishing, IN1631 Mt. Vesuvius violently erupted after a long era of quiescence destroying the area all around, killing more than 4.000 people and altering the geography of the places. It was the second most devastating eruption of Mt. Vesuvius ever, after the one that destroyed Pompeii, Resina paid one third of the total amount. The Baronial Ransom is one of the most memorable events of the history of Resina, enthusiastic about the large amounts and the beauty of the archaeological finds, the king had the summer Palace of Portici constructed, on the border with Resina. Findings of Herculaneum were housed in a part of the palace
2.
Campania
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Campania is a region in Southern Italy. Located on the Italian Peninsula, with the Mediterranean Sea to the west, it includes the small Phlegraean Islands, Campania was colonised by Ancient Greeks and was part of Magna Græcia. During the Roman era, the area maintained a Greco-Roman culture, the capital city of Campania is Naples. Campania is rich in culture, especially in regard to gastronomy, music, architecture, archeological and ancient sites such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Paestum and Velia. The name of Campania itself is derived from Latin, as the Romans knew the region as Campania felix, the rich natural sights of Campania make it highly important in the tourism industry, especially along the Amalfi Coast, Mount Vesuvius and the island of Capri. During the 8th century BC, people from Euboea in Greece, known as Cumaeans, another Oscan tribe, the Samnites, moved down from central Italy into Campania. The Roman consul Quintus Publilius Filo recaptured Neapolis by 326 BC, the Second Samnite War ended with the Romans controlling southern Campania and additional regions further to the south. Campania was a part of the Roman Republic by the end of the 4th century BC, valued for its pastures. Its Greek language and customs made it a centre of Hellenistic civilization, during the Pyrrhic War the battle took place in Campania at Maleventum in which the Romans, led by consul Curius Dentatus, were victorious. They renamed the city Beneventum, which grew in stature until it was only to Capua in southern Italy. During the Second Punic War in 216 BC, Capua, in a bid for equality with Rome, the rebellious Capuans were isolated from the rest of Campania, which remained allies of Rome. Naples resisted Hannibal due to the imposing walls, Capua was eventually starved into submission in the Roman retaking of 211 BC, and the Romans were victorious. The rest of Campania, with the exception of Naples, adopted the Latin language as official and was Romanised. As part of the Roman Empire, Campania, with Latium, Roman Emperors chose Campania as a holiday destination, among them Claudius and Tiberius, the latter of whom is infamously linked to the island of Capri. It was also during this period that Christianity came to Campania, Two of the apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, are said to have preached in the city of Naples, and there were also several martyrs during this time. Unfortunately, the period of calm was violently interrupted by the epic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 which buried the cities of Pompeii. The area had many duchies and principalities during the Middle Ages, in the hands of the Byzantine Empire, under the Normans, the smaller independent states were brought together as part of the Kingdom of Sicily, before the mainland broke away to form the Kingdom of Naples. It was during this period elements of Spanish, French
3.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
4.
World Heritage Site
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A World Heritage Site is a landmark which has been officially recognized by the United Nations, specifically by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Sites are selected on the basis of having cultural, historical, scientific or some form of significance. UNESCO regards these sites as being important to the interests of humanity. The programme catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common culture, under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund. The program was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the Worlds Cultural and Natural Heritage, since then,192 state parties have ratified the convention, making it one of the most adhered to international instruments. As of July 2016,1052 sites are listed,814 cultural,203 natural, in 1959, the governments of Egypt and Sudan requested UNESCO to assist their countries to protect and rescue the endangered monuments and sites. In 1960, the Director-General of UNESCO launched an appeal to the Member States for an International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia, the campaign, which ended in 1980, was considered a success. The project cost $80 million, about $40 million of which was collected from 50 countries, the projects success led to other safeguarding campaigns, saving Venice and its lagoon in Italy, the ruins of Mohenjo-daro in Pakistan, and the Borobodur Temple Compounds in Indonesia. UNESCO then initiated, with the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the United States initiated the idea of cultural conservation with nature conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature developed similar proposals in 1968, the Convention came into force on 17 December 1975. As of June 2016, it has been ratified by 192 states, including 188 UN member states plus the Cook Islands, the Holy See, Niue, a country must first list its significant cultural and natural sites, the result is called the Tentative List. A country may not nominate sites that have not been first included on the Tentative List, next, it can place sites selected from that list into a Nomination File. The Nomination File is evaluated by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and these bodies then make their recommendations to the World Heritage Committee. There are ten selection criteria – a site must meet at least one of them to be included on the list, up to 2004, there were six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage. In 2005, this was modified so there is now only one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of outstanding value and meet at least one of the ten criteria. Thus, the Geneva Convention treaty promulgates, Article 53, PROTECTION OF CULTURAL OBJECTS AND OF PLACES OF WORSHIP. There are 1,052 World Heritage Sites located in 165 States Party, of these,814 are cultural,203 are natural and 35 are mixed properties
5.
Pompeii
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Pompeii was an ancient Roman town-city near modern Naples, in the Campania region of Italy, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the area, was mostly destroyed and buried under 4 to 6 m of volcanic ash. Researchers believe that the town was founded in the seventh or sixth century BC by the Osci or Oscans. It came under the domination of Rome in the 4th century BC, by the time of its destruction,160 years later, its population was estimated at 11,000 people, and the city had a complex water system, an amphitheatre, gymnasium, and a port. The eruption destroyed the city, killing its inhabitants and burying it under tons of ash, the site was lost for about 1,500 years until its initial rediscovery in 1599 and broader rediscovery almost 150 years later by Spanish engineer Rocque Joaquin de Alcubierre in 1748. The objects that lay beneath the city have been preserved for centuries because of the lack of air and these artefacts provide an extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city during the Pax Romana. During the excavation, plaster was used to fill in the voids in the ash layers that once held human bodies and this allowed archaeologists to see the exact position the person was in when he or she died. Pompeii has been a tourist destination for over 250 years, today it has UNESCO World Heritage Site status and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy, with approximately 2.5 million visitors every year. Pompeii in Latin is a second declension plural, the ruins of Pompeii are located near the modern suburban town of Pompei. It stands on a formed by a lava flow to the north of the mouth of the Sarno River. Today it is some distance inland, but in ancient times was nearer to the coast, Pompeii is about 8 km away from Mount Vesuvius. It covered a total of 64 to 67 hectares and was home to approximately 11,000 to 11,500 people on the basis of household counts and it was a major city in the region of Campania. Three sheets of sediment have been found on top of the lava that lies below the city and, mixed in with the sediment, archaeologists have found bits of bone, pottery shards. Carbon dating has placed the oldest of these layers from the 8th–6th centuries BC, the other two strata are separated either by well-developed soil layers or Roman pavement, and were laid in the 4th century BC and 2nd century BC. It is theorized that the layers of the sediment were created by large landslides. The town was founded around the 7th-6th century BC by the Osci or Oscans and it had already been used as a safe port by Greek and Phoenician sailors. According to Strabo, Pompeii was also captured by the Etruscans, and in recent excavations have shown the presence of Etruscan inscriptions. Pompeii was captured for the first time by the Greek colony of Cumae, allied with Syracuse, in the 5th century BC, the Samnites conquered it, the new rulers imposed their architecture and enlarged the town
6.
Torre Annunziata
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Torre Annunziata is a city and comune in the Metropolitan City of Naples, region of Campania in Italy. It is located on the Gulf of Naples at the foot of Mt. Vesuvius, the city was destroyed in the Vesuvius eruption of 79 AD and in 1631. It is known locally in the Neapolitan dialect as Torre Nunziata, the city was once the seat of important ironwork food processing and pasta industries. Today industries still active include naval, armament and pharmaceutical ones, the archaeological site of Oplonti is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997. Torre Annunziata borders with the municipalities of Boscoreale, Boscotrecase, Castellammare di Stabia, Pompei, Torre del Greco, on the Tabula Peutingeriana Torre Annunziata is called Oplonti. In the communal territory, one of the richest Roman villas has been excavated, dating to the 1st century BC, it probably belonged to the gens Poppaea, and is known as Villa Poppaea. Torre Annunziata is home to F. C. Savoia 1908 who play at the Stadio Giraud and their highest achievement was during the 1923-24 season where they finished Serie A runners up. Professional footballer Ciro Immobile was born in Torre Annunziata
7.
Mount Vesuvius
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Mount Vesuvius is a somma-stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about 9 km east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes which form the Campanian volcanic arc, Vesuvius consists of a large cone partially encircled by the steep rim of a summit caldera caused by the collapse of an earlier and originally much higher structure. Mount Vesuvius is best known for its eruption in AD79 that led to the burying and destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, more than 1,000 people died in the eruption, but exact numbers are unknown. The only surviving account of the event consists of two letters by Pliny the Younger to the historian Tacitus. Vesuvius has erupted many times since and is the volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years. Vesuvius has a historic and literary tradition. An inscription from Capua to IOVI VESVVIO indicates that he was worshipped as a power of Jupiter and it was inhabited by bandits, the sons of the Earth, who were giants. With the assistance of the gods he pacified the region and went on, the facts behind the tradition, if any, remain unknown, as does whether Herculaneum was named after it. An epigram by the poet Martial in 88 AD suggests that both Venus, patroness of Pompeii, and Hercules were worshipped in the devastated by the eruption of 79. Mount Vesuvius was regarded by the Romans as being devoted to the hero, Vesuvius was a name of the volcano in frequent use by the authors of the late Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. Its collateral forms were Vesaevus, Vesevus, Vesbius and Vesvius, writers in ancient Greek used Οὐεσούιον or Οὐεσούιος. Many scholars since then have offered an etymology, as peoples of varying ethnicity and language occupied Campania in the Roman Iron Age, the etymology depends to a large degree on the presumption of what language was spoken there at the time. Naples was settled by Greeks, as the name Nea-polis, New City, the Oscans, a native Italic people, lived in the countryside. The Latins also competed for the occupation of Campania, etruscan settlements were in the vicinity. Other peoples of unknown provenance are said to have been there at some time by various ancient authors. Some theories about its origin are, From Greek οὔ = not prefixed to a root from or related to the Greek word σβέννυμι = I quench, from Greek ἕω = I hurl and βίη violence, hurling violence, *vesbia, taking advantage of the collateral form. From an Indo-European root, *eus- < *ewes- < *wes-, shine sense the one who lightens, the Gran Cono was produced during the A. D.79 eruption. For this reason, the volcano is also called Somma-Vesuvius or Somma-Vesuvio, the caldera started forming during an eruption around 17,000 years ago and was enlarged by later paroxysmal eruptions, ending in the one of AD79
8.
Italian language
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By most measures, Italian, together with Sardinian, is the closest to Latin of the Romance languages. Italian is a language in Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City. Italian is spoken by minorities in places such as France, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Crimea and Tunisia and by large expatriate communities in the Americas. Many speakers are native bilinguals of both standardized Italian and other regional languages, Italian is the fourth most studied language in the world. Italian is a major European language, being one of the languages of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. It is the third most widely spoken first language in the European Union with 65 million native speakers, including Italian speakers in non-EU European countries and on other continents, the total number of speakers is around 85 million. Italian is the working language of the Holy See, serving as the lingua franca in the Roman Catholic hierarchy as well as the official language of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Italian is known as the language of music because of its use in musical terminology and its influence is also widespread in the arts and in the luxury goods market. Italian has been reported as the fourth or fifth most frequently taught foreign language in the world, Italian was adopted by the state after the Unification of Italy, having previously been a literary language based on Tuscan as spoken mostly by the upper class of Florentine society. Its development was influenced by other Italian languages and to some minor extent. Its vowels are the second-closest to Latin after Sardinian, unlike most other Romance languages, Italian retains Latins contrast between short and long consonants. As in most Romance languages, stress is distinctive, however, Italian as a language used in Italy and some surrounding regions has a longer history. What would come to be thought of as Italian was first formalized in the early 14th century through the works of Tuscan writer Dante Alighieri, written in his native Florentine. Dante is still credited with standardizing the Italian language, and thus the dialect of Florence became the basis for what would become the language of Italy. Italian was also one of the recognised languages in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Italy has always had a dialect for each city, because the cities. Those dialects now have considerable variety, as Tuscan-derived Italian came to be used throughout Italy, features of local speech were naturally adopted, producing various versions of Regional Italian. Even in the case of Northern Italian languages, however, scholars are not to overstate the effects of outsiders on the natural indigenous developments of the languages
9.
Roman Empire
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Civil wars and executions continued, culminating in the victory of Octavian, Caesars adopted son, over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the annexation of Egypt. Octavians power was then unassailable and in 27 BC the Roman Senate formally granted him overarching power, the imperial period of Rome lasted approximately 1,500 years compared to the 500 years of the Republican era. The first two centuries of the empires existence were a period of unprecedented political stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana, following Octavians victory, the size of the empire was dramatically increased. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, the senate briefly considered restoring the republic, under Claudius, the empire invaded Britannia, its first major expansion since Augustus. Vespasian emerged triumphant in 69, establishing the Flavian dynasty, before being succeeded by his son Titus and his short reign was followed by the long reign of his brother Domitian, who was eventually assassinated. The senate then appointed the first of the Five Good Emperors, the empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, the second in this line. A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus, Commodus assassination in 192 triggered the Year of the Five Emperors, of which Septimius Severus emerged victorious. The assassination of Alexander Severus in 235 led to the Crisis of the Third Century in which 26 men were declared emperor by the Roman Senate over a time span. It was not until the reign of Diocletian that the empire was fully stabilized with the introduction of the Tetrarchy, which saw four emperors rule the empire at once. This arrangement was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that was finally ended by Constantine I. Constantine subsequently shifted the capital to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople in his honour and it remained the capital of the east until its demise. Constantine also adopted Christianity which later became the state religion of the empire. However, Augustulus was never recognized by his Eastern colleague, and separate rule in the Western part of the empire ceased to exist upon the death of Julius Nepos. The Eastern Roman Empire endured for another millennium, eventually falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history, at its height under Trajan, it covered 5 million square kilometres. It held sway over an estimated 70 million people, at that time 21% of the entire population. Throughout the European medieval period, attempts were made to establish successors to the Roman Empire, including the Empire of Romania, a Crusader state. Rome had begun expanding shortly after the founding of the republic in the 6th century BC, then, it was an empire long before it had an emperor
10.
Volcano
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A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. Earths volcanoes occur because its crust is broken into 17 major, therefore, on Earth, volcanoes are generally found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging. This type of volcanism falls under the umbrella of plate hypothesis volcanism, Volcanism away from plate boundaries has also been explained as mantle plumes. These so-called hotspots, for example Hawaii, are postulated to arise from upwelling diapirs with magma from the boundary,3,000 km deep in the Earth. Volcanoes are usually not created where two plates slide past one another. Erupting volcanoes can pose hazards, not only in the immediate vicinity of the eruption. Historically, so-called volcanic winters have caused catastrophic famines, the word volcano is derived from the name of Vulcano, a volcanic island in the Aeolian Islands of Italy whose name in turn comes from Vulcan, the god of fire in Roman mythology. The study of volcanoes is called volcanology, sometimes spelled vulcanology, at the mid-oceanic ridges, two tectonic plates diverge from one another as new oceanic crust is formed by the cooling and solidifying of hot molten rock. Most divergent plate boundaries are at the bottom of the oceans, therefore, most volcanic activity is submarine, black smokers are evidence of this kind of volcanic activity. Where the mid-oceanic ridge is above sea-level, volcanic islands are formed, for example, subduction zones are places where two plates, usually an oceanic plate and a continental plate, collide. In this case, the plate subducts, or submerges under the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench just offshore. In a process called flux melting, water released from the subducting plate lowers the temperature of the overlying mantle wedge. This magma tends to be very viscous due to its high content, so it often does not reach the surface. When it does reach the surface, a volcano is formed, typical examples of this kind of volcano are Mount Etna and the volcanoes in the Pacific Ring of Fire. Because tectonic plates move across them, each volcano becomes dormant and is eventually re-formed as the plate advances over the postulated plume and this theory is currently under criticism, however. The most common perception of a volcano is of a mountain, spewing lava and poisonous gases from a crater at its summit, however. The features of volcanoes are more complicated and their structure. Some volcanoes have rugged peaks formed by lava domes rather than a summit crater while others have features such as massive plateaus
11.
Pyroclastic flow
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A pyroclastic flow is a fast-moving current of hot gas and volcanic matter, which reaches speeds moving away from a volcano of up to 700 km/h. The gases can reach temperatures of about 1,000 °C, Pyroclastic flows normally touch the ground and hurtle downhill, or spread laterally under gravity. Their speed depends upon the density of the current, the output rate. They are a common and devastating result of explosive eruptions. The word pyroclast is derived from the Greek πῦρ, meaning fire, a name for some pyroclastic flows is nuée ardente, this was first used to describe the disastrous 1902 eruption of Mount Pelée on Martinique. In the dark, these pyroclastic flows glowed red, Pyroclastic flows that contain a much higher proportion of gas to rock are known as fully dilute pyroclastic density currents or pyroclastic surges. The lower density sometimes allows them to flow over higher topographic features or water such as ridges, hills, rivers and seas. They may also contain steam, water and rock at less than 250 °C, cold pyroclastic surges can occur when the eruption is from a vent under a shallow lake or the sea. A pyroclastic flow is a type of gravity current, in literature they are sometimes abbreviated to PDC. There are several mechanisms that can produce a flow, Fountain collapse of an eruption column from a Plinian eruption. In such an eruption, the forcefully ejected from the vent heats the surrounding air. If the erupted jet is unable to heat the air sufficiently, convection currents will not be strong enough to carry the plume upwards and it falls. Fountain collapse of an eruption column associated with a Vulcanian eruption The gas and projectiles create a cloud that is denser than the surrounding air, frothing at the mouth of the vent during degassing of the erupted lava. This can lead to the production of a rock called ignimbrite and this occurred during the eruption of Novarupta in 1912. Gravitational collapse of a dome or spine, with subsequent avalanches. The directional blast when part of a volcano collapses or explodes, as distance from the volcano increases, this rapidly transforms into a gravity-driven current. The volumes range from a few hundred meters to more than a thousand cubic kilometres. The larger ones can travel for hundreds of kilometres, although none on that scale have occurred for several hundred thousand years, most pyroclastic flows are around one to ten cubic kilometres and travel for several kilometres
12.
Stabiae
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Stabiae was an ancient Roman town which is famous for the magnificent Roman villas found there near to the modern town of Castellammare di Stabia approximately 4.5 km southwest of Pompeii. The beautiful objects and frescoes taken from these villas were sold and distributed. The villas were sited on a 50 m high overlooking the Gulf of Naples. Being only 16 kilometres from Mount Vesuvius, this resort was largely buried by two metres of tephra ash in 79 AD. Originally a small port, by the 6th century BC Stabiae had already overshadowed by the much larger port at Pompeii. The town was destroyed by Lucius Cornelius Sulla on 30 April 89 BC during the Social War, the Roman author and admiral Pliny the Elder recorded that the town was rebuilt and became a popular resort for wealthy Romans. He reported that there were miles of luxury villas built along the edge of the headland. According to the account written by his nephew, Pliny the Elder was at the side of the bay in Misenum when the eruption started. He travelled by ship across the bay, partly to observe the eruption more closely. Pliny died at Stabiae the following day, probably during the arrival of the sixth, the very diluted outer edge of this surge reached Stabiae and left two centimetres of fine ash on top of the immensely thick aerially-deposited tephra which further protected the underlying remains. The archaeological remains of Stabiae were originally discovered in 1749 by Cavaliere Rocco de Alcubierre and these ruins were partially excavated by Alcubierre with help from Karl Weber between 1749–1782. The ruins that had been excavated, however, were reburied and their location was forgotten until 1950, the site was declared an archaeological protected area in 1957, and by 1962 many of the ruins had been again uncovered. The remains of both an Oscan settlement and the later Roman town were discovered, the most famous of the findings at Stabiae are the villas that come from the time between the destruction of Stabiae by Sulla in 89 BC and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. As described above, Stabiae became a town during this time and was particularly favored for its view of the Bay of Naples. Stabiae was also known for the quality of its spring water. The ideal placement and qualities of this location drew many wealthy Romans to build villas on the ridge overlooking the bay. These villas, which are described below, provide us with some of the most stunning architectural, a great many artifacts which come from Stabiae are preserved in the Naples National Archaeological Museum. Before the age of the villas, however, an Oscan settlement existed in the region of Stabiae, in 1957 three hundred tombs dating from the 7th to the 3rd centuries BC were found in a necropolis associated with this town
13.
Oplontis
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Oplontis was an ancient Roman site near Pompeii in Italy. It is best known today for the sumptuous Roman Villa Poppaea which is open to visitors. As with other Roman sites in the area, such as Herculaneum and other villas, the villa was excavated in the mid-20th century up to 1984, and is associated with Poppaea, the second wife of Emperor Nero. A second villa, the Villa of L. Crassius Tertius, was discovered in 1974,300 metres east of the Villa Poppaea, a bronze seal bearing Crassius name was found at the site. A large number of artifacts from Oplontis are preserved in the Naples National Archaeological Museum, Herculaneum Pompeii Stabiae Official website The Oplontis Project AD79 Year of Destruction Website
14.
Boscoreale
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Boscoreale Italian pronunciation, is an Italian comune and town in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, with a population of 27,457 in 2011. Located in the Parco Nazionale del Vesuvio, under the slopes of Mount Vesuvius, it is known for the fruit, there is also a fine Vesuvian lava stone production. The villa of P. Fannius Synistor was built and decorated shortly after mid-first century BC, the quality of its frescoes seems to have preserved them from changes in fashion, before the villa was entombed in the eruption. The neighboring Boscotrecase yielded some elite works of art to excavators at the time, in particular at the Villa of Agrippa Postumus. The municipality is part of Naples metropolitan area, and borders with Boscotrecase, Poggiomarino, Pompei, Scafati, Terzigno and it counts the hamlets of Cangiani, Marchesa, Marra, Passanti, and Pellegrini. Frankfurt am Main, Germany, FBP Music Publishing, Nel mio bosco Reale - debut album of Veronica Vitale a. k. a. Ivee, international pop artist and multi-talented researcher in the field of systems theory and her first album released worldwide in 2011 is entitled Nel mio bosco Reale, outright inspired to her ancient hometown Boscoreale. Because of her outstanding works done as scientist and artist abroad her own country Veronica Vitale has got the Excellency Honor from Boscoreale Town on 27 September 2014, with Nel mio bosco Reale album, achieves the Amazon. Frankfurt am Main, FBP Music Publishing,1100 autobiographical song from Nel mio bosco Reale - dedicated to Boscoreale. Le Trésor dorfèvrerie romaine de Boscoreale
15.
Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79
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The 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius was one of the most catastrophic volcanic eruptions in European history. Historians have learned about the eruption from the account of Pliny the Younger. It is the namesake for Vesuvian eruptions, several Roman settlements were obliterated and buried underneath massive pyroclastic surges and ashfall deposits, the most well known being Pompeii and Herculaneum. The remains of about 1,500 people have found at Pompeii and Herculaneum. The 79 AD eruption was preceded by a powerful earthquake seventeen years before on February 5,62 AD, which caused widespread destruction around the Bay of Naples, some of the damage had still not been repaired when the volcano erupted. Suetonius recorded that the emperor continued singing through the earthquake until he had finished his song, the Romans grew accustomed to minor earth tremors in the region, the writer Pliny the Younger wrote that they were not particularly alarming because they are frequent in Campania. Small earthquakes started taking place on 20 August 79, becoming more frequent over the four days. Reconstructions of the eruption and its effects vary considerably in the details but have the same overall features, the eruption lasted for two days. Mount Vesuvius violently erupted, spewing up a column from which ash and pumice began to fall. Rescues and escapes occurred during this time, at some time in the night or early the next day, August 25, pyroclastic flows in the close vicinity of the volcano began. Lights seen on the mountain were interpreted as fires, people as far away as Misenum fled for their lives. These were accompanied by additional light tremors and a tsunami in the Bay of Naples. By evening of the day, the eruption was over. Pliny the Younger wrote an account of the eruption, Broad sheets of flame were lighting up many parts of Vesuvius, their light, two pyroclastic surges engulfed Pompeii, burning and asphyxiating the stragglers who had remained behind. Oplontis and Herculaneum received the brunt of the surges and were buried in ash, pumice, lava fragments. In an article published in 2002, Sigurdsson and Casey elaborate on the evidence based on excavations. Subsequently, the cloud collapsed as the gases densified and lost their capability to support their solid contents, releasing it as a pyroclastic surge, the eruption alternated between Vesuvian and Peléan six times. Surges 4 and 5 are believed by the authors to have destroyed and buried Pompeii, surges are identified in the deposits by dune and cross-bedding formations, which are not produced by fallout
16.
Heracles
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Heracles, born Alcaeus or Alcides, was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson and half-brother of Perseus. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, a paragon of masculinity, the ancestor of clans who claimed to be Heracleidae. In Rome and the modern West, he is known as Hercules, with whom the later Roman emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximian, often identified themselves. The Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged, details of his cult were adapted to Rome as well. Extraordinary strength, courage, ingenuity, and sexual prowess with both males and females were among the characteristics commonly attributed to him, together with Hermes he was the patron and protector of gymnasia and palaestrae. His iconographic attributes are the skin and the club. These qualities did not prevent him from being regarded as a figure who used games to relax from his labors. By conquering dangerous archaic forces he is said to have made the safe for mankind. Many popular stories were told of his life, the most famous being The Twelve Labours of Heracles and his figure, which initially drew on Near Eastern motifs such as the lion-fight, was widely known. Heracles was the greatest of Hellenic chthonic heroes, but unlike other Greek heroes, the core of the story of Heracles has been identified by Walter Burkert as originating in Neolithic hunter culture and traditions of shamanistic crossings into the netherworld. Heracles role as a hero, whose death could be a subject of mythic telling, was accepted into the Olympian Pantheon during Classical times. Around him cries of the dead rang out like cries of birds scattering left, in Christian circles a Euhemerist reading of the widespread Heracles cult was attributed to a historical figure who had been offered cult status after his death. The ancient Greeks celebrated the festival of the Heracleia, which commemorated the death of Heracles, what is believed to be an Egyptian Temple of Heracles in the Bahariya Oasis dates to 21 BCE. A reassessment of Ptolemys descriptions of the island of Malta attempted to link the site at Ras ir-Raħeb with a temple to Heracles, several ancient cities were named Heraclea in his honor. A major factor in the tragedies surrounding Heracles is the hatred that the goddess Hera. A full account of Heracles must render it clear why Heracles was so tormented by Hera, Heracles was the son of the affair Zeus had with the mortal woman Alcmene. Zeus made love to her after disguising himself as her husband, Amphitryon, thus, Heracles very existence proved at least one of Zeus many illicit affairs, and Hera often conspired against Zeus mortal offspring as revenge for her husbands infidelities. His twin mortal brother, son of Amphitryon, was Iphicles, Hera did this knowing that while Heracles was to be born a descendant of Perseus, so too was Eurystheus
17.
Hercules
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Hercules is the Roman adaptation of the Greek divine hero Heracles, who was the son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmene. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures, the Romans adapted the Greek heros iconography and myths for their literature and art under the name Hercules. In later Western art and literature and in culture, Hercules is more commonly used than Heracles as the name of the hero. Hercules was a figure with contradictory characteristics, which enabled later artists and writers to pick. This article provides an introduction to representations of Hercules in the later tradition, Hercules is known for his many adventures, which took him to the far reaches of the Greco-Roman world. One cycle of these adventures became canonical as the Twelve Labours, one traditional order of the labours is found in the Bibliotheca as follows, Slay the Nemean Lion. Capture the Golden Hind of Artemis, clean the Augean stables in a single day. Obtain the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, obtain the cattle of the monster Geryon. Steal the apples of the Hesperides, Hercules was a favorite subject for Etruscan art, and appears often on bronze mirrors. The Etruscan form Herceler derives from the Greek Heracles via syncope, a mild oath invoking Hercules was a common interjection in Classical Latin. Hercules had a number of myths that were distinctly Roman, one of these is Hercules defeat of Cacus, who was terrorizing the countryside of Rome. The hero was associated with the Aventine Hill through his son Aventinus, Mark Antony considered him a personal patron god, as did the emperor Commodus. Roman brides wore a belt tied with the knot of Hercules. The comic playwright Plautus presents the myth of Hercules conception as a sex comedy in his play Amphitryon, during the Roman Imperial era, Hercules was worshipped locally from Hispania through Gaul. Tacitus records a special affinity of the Germanic peoples for Hercules, in chapter 3 of his Germania, Tacitus states. They say that Hercules, too, once visited them, and they have also those songs of theirs, by the recital of this barditus as they call it, they rouse their courage, while from the note they augur the result of the approaching conflict. For, as their line shouts, they inspire or feel alarm, some have taken this as Tacitus equating the Germanic Þunraz with Hercules by way of interpretatio romana. In the Roman era Hercules Club amulets appear from the 2nd to 3rd century, distributed over the empire, mostly made of gold, a specimen found in Köln-Nippes bears the inscription DEO HER, confirming the association with Hercules
18.
Latin
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Latin is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. The Latin alphabet is derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets, Latin was originally spoken in Latium, in the Italian Peninsula. Through the power of the Roman Republic, it became the dominant language, Vulgar Latin developed into the Romance languages, such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Romanian. Latin, Italian and French have contributed many words to the English language, Latin and Ancient Greek roots are used in theology, biology, and medicine. By the late Roman Republic, Old Latin had been standardised into Classical Latin, Vulgar Latin was the colloquial form spoken during the same time and attested in inscriptions and the works of comic playwrights like Plautus and Terence. Late Latin is the language from the 3rd century. Later, Early Modern Latin and Modern Latin evolved, Latin was used as the language of international communication, scholarship, and science until well into the 18th century, when it began to be supplanted by vernaculars. Ecclesiastical Latin remains the language of the Holy See and the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Today, many students, scholars and members of the Catholic clergy speak Latin fluently and it is taught in primary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions around the world. The language has been passed down through various forms, some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series, the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same, volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance, the reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy. The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part and they are in part the subject matter of the field of classics. The Cat in the Hat, and a book of fairy tales, additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissners Latin Phrasebook. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed inkhorn terms, as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by the author and then forgotten, many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French. Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Accordingly, Romance words make roughly 35% of the vocabulary of Dutch, Roman engineering had the same effect on scientific terminology as a whole
19.
Roman mythology
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Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Romes legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. Roman mythology may also refer to the study of these representations. The Romans usually treated their traditional narratives as historical, even when these have miraculous or supernatural elements, the stories are often concerned with politics and morality, and how an individuals personal integrity relates to his or her responsibility to the community or Roman state. When the stories illuminate Roman religious practices, they are concerned with ritual, augury. Romes early myths and legends also have a relationship with Etruscan religion. In particular, the versions of Greek myths in Ovids Metamorphoses, written during the reign of Augustus, because ritual played the central role in Roman religion that myth did for the Greeks, it is sometimes doubted that the Romans had much of a native mythology. This perception is a product of Romanticism and the scholarship of the 19th century. From the Renaissance to the 18th century, however, Roman myths were an inspiration particularly for European painting, the Roman tradition is rich in historical myths, or legends, concerning the foundation and rise of the city. These narratives focus on human actors, with only occasional intervention from deities, in Romes earliest period, history and myth have a mutual and complementary relationship. As T. P. Wiseman notes, The Roman stories still matter, as they mattered to Dante in 1300 and Shakespeare in 1600, what does it take to be a free citizen. Can a superpower still be a republic, how does well-meaning authority turn into murderous tyranny. Major sources for Roman myth include the Aeneid of Vergil and the first few books of Livys history as well as Dionysius s Roman Antiquities. Other important sources are the Fasti of Ovid, a six-book poem structured by the Roman religious calendar, scenes from Roman myth also appear in Roman wall painting, coins, and sculpture, particularly reliefs. The Aeneid and Livys early history are the best extant sources for Romes founding myths, material from Greek heroic legend was grafted onto this native stock at an early date. By extension, the Trojans were adopted as the ancestors of the Roman people. Rape of the Sabine women, explaining the importance of the Sabines in the formation of Roman culture, numa Pompilius, the Sabine second king of Rome who consorted with the nymph Egeria and established many of Romes legal and religious institutions. Servius Tullius, the king of Rome, whose mysterious origins were freely mythologized. The Tarpeian Rock, and why it was used for the execution of traitors, lucretia, whose self-sacrifice prompted the overthrow of the early Roman monarchy and led to the establishment of the Republic
20.
Samnium
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Samnium is a Latin exonym for a region of Southern Italy anciently inhabited by the Samnites. Their own endonyms were Safinim for the country and Safineis for the people, the language of these endonyms and of the population was the Oscan language. However, not all the Samnites spoke Oscan, and not all the Oscan-speakers lived in Samnium, the ancient geographers were unable to relay a precise definition of Samniums borders. Moreover, the areas it included vary depending on the period considered. The main configurations are the borders it had during the floruit of the Oscan speakers, from about 600 BC to about 290 BC and this originary Samnium should not be confused with the later territory of the same name. Romes first Emperor, Augustus, divided Italy into 11 regions, although these entities only served administrative purposes, and were identified with the sole numeral, by scholarly convention the Regio IV has been dubbed Samnium. Ancient Samnium had actually split up into three of the Augustan regions. The name survives in Italian today, but it only a small portion of what it once was - virtually, only the Province of Benevento. Etymologically the name Samnium is generally recognized to be a form of the name of the Sabines, from Safinim, Sabinus, Sabellus and Samnis an Indo-European root can be extracted, *sabh-, which becomes Sab- in Latino-Faliscan and Saf- in Osco-Umbrian, Sabini and *Safineis. The eponymous god of the Sabines, Sabus, seems to support this view, the Greek terms, Saunitai and Saunitis, remain outside the group. Nothing is known of their origin, at some point in prehistory, a population speaking a common language extended over both Samnium and Umbria. Salmon conjectures that it was common Italic and puts forward a date of 600 BC and this date does not necessarily correspond to any historical or archaeological evidence, developing a synthetic view of the ethnology of proto-historic Italy is an incomplete and ongoing task. The linguist, Julius Pokorny, carries the etymology somewhat further back, the general concept is our own kith and kin, Pokornys von eigener Art, Gesamtheit der eigenen Leute, Liebe, Sippegenossen, Sippenangehörigen, and the like. Samnium mostly lay on the Apennine area, it was delimited by Latium to the north, by Lucania to the south, by Campania to the west, and by Apulia to the east. The principal cities of the region were Bovaiamom, renamed Bovianum by Latins and Maleventum, for most of their history the Samnites were landlocked, but during a brief period they controlled parts of both coasts of the Italian peninsula. The Samnites were composed of at least four tribes, the Pentri, the Caraceni, the Caudini and they may have later been joined by the Frentani. The earliest written record of the people is a treaty with the Romans from 354 BC, which set their border at the Liris River. Shortly thereafter the Samnite Wars broke out, they won an important battle against the Roman army in 321 BC, by 290 BC, the Romans were able to break the Samnites power after some hard fought battles
21.
Gulf of Naples
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The Gulf of Naples, also called the Bay of Naples, is a roughly 15-kilometer-wide gulf located along the south-western coast of Italy. It opens to the west into the Mediterranean Sea and it is bordered on the north by the cities of Naples and Pozzuoli, on the east by Mount Vesuvius, and on the south by the Sorrentine Peninsula and the main town of the peninsula, Sorrento. The Peninsula separates the Gulf of Naples from the Gulf of Salerno, the islands of Capri, Ischia and Procida are located in the Gulf of Naples. The area is a tourist destination, with the seaside Roman ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, along with the island of Ischia and gulfs of Pozzuoli and Gaeta, local waters are home to varieties of whales and dolphins including fin and sperm whales. It is said that The Roman emperor Caligula built a bridge of boats across the bay, the Gulf of Naples hosted the sailing events for the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. Purcell, N. R. Talbert, T. Elliott, cS1 maint, Multiple names, authors list
22.
Lucius Cornelius Sulla
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Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix, known commonly as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He had the distinction of holding the office of consul twice, Sulla was a skillful general, achieving numerous successes in wars against different opponents, both foreign and Roman. He was awarded a crown, the most prestigious Roman military honor. Sullas dictatorship came during a point in the struggle between optimates and populares, the former seeking to maintain the Senates oligarchy, and the latter espousing populism. In a dispute over the army command Sulla unconstitutionally marched his armies into Rome. Sullas ascension was also marked by purges in proscriptions. After seeking election to and holding a second consulship, he retired to private life, later leaders like Julius Caesar would follow his precedent in attaining political power through force. In Plutarchs Parallel Lives Sulla is paired with the Spartan general, in older sources, his name may be found as Sylla. This is a Hellenism, like sylva for classical Latin silva, lacking ready money, Sulla spent his youth amongst Rome’s comics, actors, lute-players, and dancers. It seems certain that Sulla received a good education, sallust declares him well-read and intelligent, and he was fluent in Greek, which was a sign of education in Rome. Rome declared war on Jugurtha in 111 BC, but for five years Roman legions under Quintus Caecilius Metellus were unsuccessful, Gaius Marius, a lieutenant of Metellus, saw an opportunity to usurp his commander and fed rumors of incompetence and delay to the publicani in the region. These machinations caused calls for Metelluss removal, despite delaying tactics by Metellus, Marius was elected consul and took over the campaign while Sulla was nominated quaestor to him. He had persuaded Jugurthas father-in-law, King Bocchus I of Mauretania and it was a dangerous operation from the first, with King Bocchus weighing up the advantages of handing Jugurtha over to Sulla or Sulla over to Jugurtha. The publicity attracted by this feat boosted Sullas political career, a gilded equestrian statue of Sulla donated by King Bocchus was erected in the Forum to commemorate his accomplishment. Although Sulla had engineered this move, as Sulla was serving under Marius at the time, in 104 BC, the migrating Germanic-Celtic alliance headed by the Cimbri and the Teutones seemed to be heading for Italy. As Marius was the best general Rome had, the Senate allowed him to lead the campaign against them, Sulla served on Marius staff as tribunus militum during the first half of this campaign. Finally, with those of his colleague, proconsul Quintus Lutatius Catulus, Marius forces faced the enemy tribes at the Battle of Vercellae in 101 BC. Sulla had by this time transferred to the army of Catulus to serve as his legatus, victorious at Vercellae, Marius and Catulus were both granted triumphs as the co-commanding generals
23.
Resina
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Ercolano is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania of southern Italy. It lies at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, on the Bay of Naples. The medieval town of Resina - read Resìna - was built on the material left by the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Herculaneum. Ercolano is a resort and the point for excursions to the excavations of Herculaneum. The town also manufactures leather goods, buttons, glass, in legend, Herculaneum was founded by Hercules returning from one of his Twelve Labours. Historically, it was most likely founded by the Oscans, an Italic tribe of the 8th century BC, under the control of the Romans, the city was a renowned seaside resort where some of the richest Roman citizens spent their summer vacations. It was built according to the model of Hippodamus of Miletus with a grid of crossing Decumans. The houses are elegant and large and there are buildings that are abundant. Unlike neighboring Pompeii, the citizens of Herculaneum died of shock from the extremely hot pyroclastic surges. After the eruption of AD79 the area was slowly re-populated, in the Basilica di Santa Maria a Pugliano are two early Christian marble sarcophagi from the 2nd and 4th centuries AD which give evidence of habitation on the site of the buried Herculaneum. The first records of the existence of a village named Resina or Risìna, are from the 10th century, the etymology of the name is controversial. Some academics believe that it comes from a corruption of Rectina, finally some suggest that the name is the anagram of sirena, a siren was the symbol of the village and the town of Resina until 1969. In 1418 Queen Joanna II of Naples conceded the Università of Torre del Greco, Resina, Portici and Cremano to her favourite Sergianni Caracciolo and later to Antonio Carafa. Since then, these belonged to the Carafa family and passed from hand to hand following the historical events of the family. The main business of the inhabitants of Resina were, agriculture, fishing, IN1631 Mt. Vesuvius violently erupted after a long era of quiescence destroying the area all around, killing more than 4.000 people and altering the geography of the places. It was the second most devastating eruption of Mt. Vesuvius ever, after the one that destroyed Pompeii, Resina paid one third of the total amount. The Baronial Ransom is one of the most memorable events of the history of Resina, enthusiastic about the large amounts and the beauty of the archaeological finds, the king had the summer Palace of Portici constructed, on the border with Resina. Findings of Herculaneum were housed in a part of the palace
24.
Venus (mythology)
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Venus is the Roman goddess whose functions encompassed love, beauty, desire, sex, fertility, prosperity and victory. In Roman mythology, she was the mother of the Roman people through her son, Aeneas, Julius Caesar claimed her as his ancestor. Venus was central to religious festivals, and was revered in Roman religion under numerous cult titles. The Romans adapted the myths and iconography of her Greek counterpart Aphrodite for Roman art, in the later classical tradition of the West, Venus becomes one of the most widely referenced deities of Greco-Roman mythology as the embodiment of love and sexuality. It has connections to venerari and venia through a common root in an Indo-European *wenes- or *u̯enis. Their common Proto-Indo-European root is assumed as *wen- or *u̯en- to strive for, wish for, desire, Venus has been described as perhaps the most original creation of the Roman pantheon, and an ill-defined and assimilative native goddess, combined with a strange and exotic Aphrodite. The ambivalence of her persuasive functions has been perceived in the relationship of the root *venes- with Latin venenum, in the sense of a charm, in myth, Venus-Aphrodite was born of sea-foam. Roman theology presents Venus as the yielding, watery female principle, essential to the generation and her male counterparts in the Roman pantheon, Vulcan and Mars, are active and fiery. Venus absorbs and tempers the male essence, uniting the opposites of male and female in mutual affection and she is essentially assimilative and benign, and embraces several otherwise quite disparate functions. She can give military victory, sexual success, good fortune, in one context, she is a goddess of prostitutes, in another, she turns the hearts of men and women from sexual vice to virtue. Images of Venus have been found in murals, mosaics. Petronius, in his Satyricon, places an image of Venus among the Lares of the freedman Trimalchios lararium, prospective brides offered Venus a gift before the wedding, the nature of the gift, and its timing, are unknown. Some Roman sources say that girls who come of age offer their toys to Venus, it is unclear where the offering is made, in dice-games, a popular pastime among Romans of all classes, the luckiest, best possible roll was known as Venus. Venus signs were for the most part the same as Aphrodites, Venus statues, and her worshipers, wore myrtle crowns at her festivals. Likewise, Roman folk-etymology transformed the ancient, obscure goddess Murcia into Venus of the Myrtles, myrtle was thought a particularly potent aphrodisiac. The female pudendum, particularly the clitoris, was known as murtos, as goddess of love and sex, Venus played an essential role at Roman prenuptial rites and wedding nights, so myrtle and roses were used in bridal bouquets. Marriage itself was not a seduction but a condition, under Junos authority. Venus was also a patron of the ordinary, everyday wine drunk by most Roman men and women, in the rites to Bona Dea, a goddess of female chastity, Venus, myrtle and anything male were not only excluded, but unmentionable
25.
Apollo
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Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in classical Greek and Roman religion and Greek and Roman mythology. The ideal of the kouros, Apollo has been recognized as a god of music, truth and prophecy, healing, the sun and light, plague, poetry. Apollo is the son of Zeus and Leto, and has a twin sister, Apollo is known in Greek-influenced Etruscan mythology as Apulu. As the patron of Delphi, Apollo was an oracular god—the prophetic deity of the Delphic Oracle. Medicine and healing are associated with Apollo, whether through the god himself or mediated through his son Asclepius, yet Apollo was also seen as a god who could bring ill-health and deadly plague. Amongst the gods custodial charges, Apollo became associated with dominion over colonists, as the leader of the Muses and director of their choir, Apollo functioned as the patron god of music and poetry. Hermes created the lyre for him, and the instrument became an attribute of Apollo. Hymns sung to Apollo were called paeans, Apollo and Helios/Sol remained separate beings in literary and mythological texts until the 3rd century CE. The name Apollo—unlike the related older name Paean—is generally not found in the Linear B texts, the etymology of the name is uncertain. The spelling Ἀπόλλων had almost superseded all other forms by the beginning of the common era and it probably is a cognate to the Doric month Apellaios, and the offerings apellaia at the initiation of the young men during the family-festival apellai. According to some scholars the words are derived from the Doric word apella, apella is the name of the popular assembly in Sparta, corresponding to the ecclesia. R. S. P. Beekes rejected the connection of the theonym with the noun apellai, several instances of popular etymology are attested from ancient authors. Thus, the Greeks most often associated Apollos name with the Greek verb ἀπόλλυμι, in the ancient Macedonian language πέλλα means stone, and some toponyms may be derived from this word, Πέλλα and Πελλήνη. The role of Apollo as god of plague is evident in the invocation of Apollo Smintheus by Chryses, the Hittite testimony reflects an early form *Apeljōn, which may also be surmised from comparison of Cypriot Ἀπείλων with Doric Ἀπέλλων. A Luwian etymology suggested for Apaliunas makes Apollo The One of Entrapment, Apollos chief epithet was Phoebus, literally bright. It was very commonly used by both the Greeks and Romans for Apollos role as the god of light, like other Greek deities, he had a number of others applied to him, reflecting the variety of roles, duties, and aspects ascribed to the god. However, while Apollo has a number of appellations in Greek myth. Aegletes, from αἴγλη, light of the sun Helius, literally sun Lyceus light, the meaning of the epithet Lyceus later became associated with Apollos mother Leto, who was the patron goddess of Lycia and who was identified with the wolf
26.
Pliny the Younger
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Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo, better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome. Plinys uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him, both Pliny the Elder and the Younger were witnesses to the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, in which the former died. Pliny the Younger wrote hundreds of letters, of which 247 still survive and are of historical value. Some are addressed to reigning emperors or to such as the historian Tacitus. Pliny served as a magistrate under Trajan, and his letters to Trajan provide one of the few surviving records of the relationship between the imperial office and provincial governors. Pliny rose through a series of civil and military offices, the cursus honorum and he was a friend of the historian Tacitus and might have employed the biographer Suetonius on his staff. Pliny also came into contact with other men of the period, including the philosophers Artemidorus and Euphrates the Stoic. Pliny the Younger was born in Novum Comum around 61 AD, the son of Lucius Caecilius Cilo, born there, and his wife Plinia Marcella, a sister of Pliny the Elder. He was the grandson of Senator and landowner Gaius Caecilius, revered his uncle, Pliny the Elder, Cilo died at an early age, when Pliny was still young. As a result, the boy lived with his mother. His guardian and preceptor in charge of his education was Lucius Verginius Rufus, after being first tutored at home, Pliny went to Rome for further education. There he was taught rhetoric by Quintilian, a teacher and author. It was at time that Pliny became closer to his uncle Pliny the Elder. When Pliny the Younger was 17 or 18, his uncle Pliny the Elder died attempting to rescue victims of the Vesuvius eruption, in the same document the younger Pliny was adopted by his uncle. As a result, Pliny the Younger changed his name from Gaius Caecilius Cilo to Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, there is some evidence that Pliny had a sibling. The trustees are apparently named in the inscription, L. Caecilius Valens and P. Caecilius Secundus, sons of Lucius, the word contubernalis describing Lutulla is the military term meaning tent-mate, which can only mean that she was living with Lucius, not as his wife. The first man mentioned, L. Caecilius Valens, is probably the older son, Pliny the Younger confirms that he was a trustee for the largess of my ancestors. It seems unknown to Pliny the Elder, so Valens mother was not his sister Plinia
27.
Tacitus
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Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and an historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors. These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus, in AD14, to the years of the First Jewish–Roman War, There are substantial lacunae in the surviving texts, including a gap in the Annals that is four books long. Tacitus is considered to be one of the greatest Roman historians, details about his personal life are scarce. What little is known comes from scattered hints throughout his work, the letters of his friend and admirer Pliny the Younger, and an inscription found at Mylasa in Caria. Tacitus was born in 56 or 57 to an equestrian family, one scholars suggestion of Sextus has gained no approval. Most of the aristocratic families failed to survive the proscriptions which took place at the end of the Republic. The claim that he was descended from a freedman is derived from a speech in his writings which asserts that many senators and knights were descended from freedmen, but this is generally disputed. His father may have been the Cornelius Tacitus who served as procurator of Belgica and Germania, Pliny the Elder mentions that Cornelius had a son who aged rapidly, which implies an early death. There is no mention of Tacitus suffering such a condition, the friendship between the younger Pliny and Tacitus leads some scholars to conclude that they were both the offspring of wealthy provincial families. The province of his birth remains unknown, though various conjectures suggest Gallia Belgica, Gallia Narbonensis and his marriage to the daughter of Narbonensian senator Gnaeus Julius Agricola implies that he came from Gallia Narbonensis. Tacitus dedication to Fabius Iustus in the Dialogus may indicate a connection with Spain, no evidence exists, however, that Plinys friends from northern Italy knew Tacitus, nor do Plinys letters hint that the two men had a common background. Pliny Book 9, Letter 23 reports that, when he was asked if he was Italian or provincial, he gave an unclear answer, since Pliny was from Italy, some infer that Tacitus was from the provinces, probably Gallia Narbonensis. His ancestry, his skill in oratory, and his depiction of barbarians who resisted Roman rule have led some to suggest that he was a Celt. This belief stems from the fact that the Celts who had occupied Gaul prior to the Roman invasion were famous for their skill in oratory, and had been subjugated by Rome. As a young man, Tacitus studied rhetoric in Rome to prepare for a career in law and politics, like Pliny, in 77 or 78, he married Julia Agricola, daughter of the famous general Agricola. Little is known of their life, save that Tacitus loved hunting. He started his career under Vespasian, but entered political life as a quaestor in 81 or 82 under Titus
28.
Tropopause
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The tropopause is the boundary in the Earths atmosphere between the troposphere and the stratosphere. Going upward from the surface, it is the point where air ceases to cool with height, more formally, the tropopause is the region of the atmosphere where the environmental lapse rate changes from positive, as it behaves in the troposphere, to the stratospheric negative one. The troposphere is one of the lowest layers of the Earths atmosphere, it is located right above the boundary layer. The troposphere extends upwards from right above the layer, and ranges in height from an average of 9 km at the poles. In the absence of inversions and not considering moisture, the lapse rate for this layer is 6.5 °C per kilometer, on average. The tropopause location coincides with the lowest point at which the lapse rate falls below a prescribed threshold. Since the tropopause responds to the temperature of the entire layer that lies underneath it, it is at its peak levels over the Equator. On account of this, the coolest layer in the lies at about 17 km over the equator. Due to the variation in starting height, the extremes are referred to as the equatorial tropopause. It is formed with the aid of potential vorticity, which is defined as the product of the isentropic density, instead of using the vertical temperature gradient as the defining variable, the dynamic tropopause surface is expressed in potential vorticity units. Nevertheless, the tropopause is useless at equatorial latitudes because the isentropes are almost vertical. For the extratropical tropopause in the Northern Hemisphere the WMO established a value of 1.5 PVU and it is also possible to define the tropopause in terms of chemical composition. For example, the stratosphere has much higher ozone concentrations than the upper troposphere. The tropopause is not a hard boundary, vigorous thunderstorms, for example, particularly those of tropical origin, will overshoot into the lower stratosphere and undergo a brief low-frequency vertical oscillation. Such oscillation sets up an atmospheric gravity wave capable of affecting both atmospheric and oceanic currents in the region. Most commercial aircraft are flown in the stratosphere, just above the tropopause. Jet stream Maximum parcel level Andrews, D. G. Holton, J. R. Leovy, C. B. R. Dmowska, Holton, a First Course in Atmospheric Thermodynamics
29.
Troposphere
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The troposphere is the lowest portion of Earths atmosphere, and is also where nearly all weather takes place. It contains approximately 75% of the mass and 99% of the total mass of water vapor. The average depths of the troposphere are 20 km in the tropics,17 km in the mid latitudes, the lowest part of the troposphere, where friction with the Earths surface influences air flow, is the planetary boundary layer. This layer is typically a few hundred meters to 2 km deep depending on the landform, atop the troposphere is the tropopause, which is the border between the troposphere and stratosphere. The tropopause is a layer, where the air temperature ceases to decrease with height. Most of the phenomena we associate with day-to-day weather occur in the troposphere, by volume, dry air contains 78. 09% nitrogen,20. 95% oxygen,0. 93% argon,0. 04% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. Air also contains an amount of water vapor. The chemical composition of the troposphere is essentially uniform, with the exception of water vapor. The source of vapor is at the surface through the processes of evaporation. Thus the proportion of water vapor is normally greatest near the surface, the pressure of the atmosphere is maximum at sea level and decreases with altitude. This is because the atmosphere is nearly in hydrostatic equilibrium. The temperature of the troposphere generally decreases as altitude increases, the rate at which the temperature decreases, − d T / d z, is called the environmental lapse rate. The ELR is nothing more than the difference in temperature between the surface and the tropopause divided by the height. The reason for this difference is that the ground absorbs most of the suns energy. Meanwhile, the radiation of heat at the top of the results in the cooling of that part of the atmosphere. The ELR assumes the atmosphere is still, but as air is heated it becomes buoyant, when a parcel of air rises, it expands, because the pressure is lower at higher altitudes. As the air expands, it pushes the surrounding air outward. As energy transfer to a parcel of air by way of heat is very slow, such a process is called an adiabatic process
30.
Stratosphere
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The stratosphere is the second major layer of Earths atmosphere, just above the troposphere, and below the mesosphere. About 20% of the mass is contained in the stratosphere. The stratosphere is stratified in temperature, with warmer layers higher and cooler layers closer to the Earth, the increase of temperature with altitude is a result of the absorption of the Suns ultraviolet radiation by the ozone. This is in contrast to the troposphere, near the Earths surface, the border between the troposphere and stratosphere, the tropopause, marks where this temperature inversion begins. Near the equator, the starts at 18 km, at mid latitudes, it starts at 10–13 km and ends at 50 km, at the poles. Temperatures vary within the stratosphere with the seasons, in particular with the polar night, the greatest variation of temperature takes place over the poles in the lower stratosphere, those variations are largely steady at lower latitudes and higher altitudes. The mechanism describing the formation of the layer was described by British mathematician Sydney Chapman in 1930. Molecular oxygen absorbs high energy sunlight in the UV-C region, at shorter than about 240 nm. The oxygen atoms produced combine with oxygen to form ozone. Ozone in turn is photolysed much more rapidly than molecular oxygen as it has an absorption that occurs at longer wavelengths. Ozone photolysis produces O and O2, the oxygen atom product combines with atmospheric molecular oxygen to reform O3, releasing heat. The rapid photolysis and reformation of ozone heats the stratosphere resulting in a temperature inversion and this increase of temperature with altitude is characteristic of the stratosphere, its resistance to vertical mixing means that it is stratified. Within the stratosphere temperatures increase with altitude, the top of the stratosphere has a temperature of about 270 K, overall the attenuation of solar UV at wavelengths that damage DNA by the ozone layer allows life to exist on the surface of the planet outside of the ocean. All air entering the stratosphere must pass through the tropopause, the minimum that divides the troposphere and stratosphere. The rising air is literally freeze dried, the stratosphere is a dry place. The top of the stratosphere is called the stratopause, above which the temperature decreases with height and we now know that there are additional ozone loss mechanisms, and that these mechanisms are catalytic meaning that a small amount of the catalyst can destroy a great number of ozone molecules. The first is due to the reaction of hydroxyl radicals OH· with ozone, OH is formed by the reaction of electronically excited oxygen atoms produced by ozone photolysis, with water vapor. While the stratosphere is dry, additional water vapor is produced in situ by the oxidation of methane
31.
Stone pine
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The stone pine, with the botanical name Pinus pinea, is also called the Italian stone pine, umbrella pine and parasol pine. It is a tree from the pine family, the tree is native to the Mediterranean region, occurring in Southern Europe, Israel, Lebanon and Syria. It is also naturalized in North Africa, the Canary Islands, South Africa, the species was introduced into North Africa millennia ago, such a long time that it is essentially indistinguishable from being native. Stone pines have been used and cultivated for their edible pine nuts since prehistoric times and they are widespread in horticultural cultivation as ornamental trees, planted in gardens and parks around the world. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Societys Award of Garden Merit, the prehistoric range of Pinus pinea included North Africa in the Sahara Desert and Maghreb regions during a more humid climate period, in present-day Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. In Greece, although rare, a stone pine forest exists in western Peloponnese at Strofylia on the peninsula separating the Kalogria Lagoon from the Mediterranean Sea. This coastal forest is at least 8 miles long, with dense, currently, Pinus halepensis is outcompeting stone pines in many locations of the forest. Another location in Greece is at Koukounaries on the northern Aegean island of Skiathos at the southwest corner of the island and this is a half a mile long dense stand of stone and Aleppo pines that lies between a lagoon and the Aegean Sea. A fine-textured sand beach lies between the Koukounaries forest and the sea, northern Africa The Mediterranean woodlands and forests ecoregion of North Africa, in Morocco and Algeria. Known in the Afrikaans language as kroonden, the stone pine is a coniferous evergreen tree that can exceed 25 metres in height, but 12–20 metres is more typical. In youth, it is a globe, in mid-age an umbrella canopy on a thick trunk, and, in maturity. The bark is thick, red-brown and deeply fissured into broad vertical plates, foliage The flexible mid-green leaves are needle-like, in bundles of two, and are 10–20 centimetres long. Juvenile leaves are produced in regrowth following injury, such as a broken shoot. Cones The cones are broad, ovoid, 8–15 centimetres long, the seeds are large,2 centimetres long, and pale brown with a powdery black coating that rubs off easily, and have a rudimentary 4–8 millimetres wing that falls off very easily. The wing is ineffective for wind dispersal, and the seeds are animal-dispersed, originally mainly by the Iberian magpie, Pinus pinea has been cultivated extensively for at least 6,000 years for its edible pine nuts, which have been trade items since early historic times. The tree has been cultivated throughout the Mediterranean region for so long that it has naturalized, in Italy, the stone pine has been an aesthetic landscape element since the Italian Renaissance garden period. The tree is among the symbols of Rome, where many historic Roman roads, stone pines were planted on the hills of the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul for ornamental purposes during the Ottoman period. It has naturalized beyond cities in South Africa to the extent that it is listed as a species there
32.
Skulpturensammlung
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The Skulpturensammlung is part of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. It is located in the Albertinum in Dresden, the collection of the Dresden Skulpturensammlung ranges in age more than five millennia, from classical antiquity to the art of the Renaissance, Baroque, and Expressionism until the 21st century. Sculptures from the likes of Polycletus to Giambologna and Permoser, the origins of the museum can be traced back to the Kunstkammer founded in 1560. However, it was August the Strong who established the “Collection of Antique and Modern Sculptures”, after the arrival of antiquities from Rome at the end of 1729, the collection was displayed in the palace in the Großer Garten, surrounded by masterpieces of contemporary sculpture. In 1786 the collection was rearranged and exhibited in the Japanisches Palais, after the archaeologist Georg Treu took over as director of the museum in 1882, the collection particularly flourished. Over the three decades of his tenure, Treu instituted a systematic policy to build up the collection. Treu continued the tradition of displaying antiquities alongside contemporary works, the collection was the first to acquire numerous works by Auguste Rodin and Constantin Meunier in Germany. Although the Albertinum was partially destroyed in February 1945, most of the collection survived the Second World War, almost all the original sculptures were taken to the Soviet Union, but were returned to Dresden in 1958. Following the restoration and refurbishment of the Albertinum, the Skulpturensammlung, the antiquities will be on view in display storerooms until they are able to move back into their old home in a few years’ time. The Osthalle of the Semperbau was designed in the century by Gottfried Semper specifically for the antique sculpture collection. The exhibition of the Skulpturensammlung begins with works by the French sculptor Auguste Rodin and he heralded the age of modern statuary and sculpture and is regarded as the forerunner of the numerous styles developed during the 20th century. The sculpture of the modern period and post-1945 exhibited in the Albertinum amplifies Rodin’s principle of the subjectivity of art. This principle continues to be visible within the sculpture of today. The exhibition also pays attention to art created during the GDR era through works by artists such as Wieland Förster, Werner Stötzer. The Albertinum now includes two new galleries displaying works of a specific theme, the Klingersaal was designed by the Skulpturensammlung and the Galerie Neue Meister as a space in which both sculpture and paintings can be harmoniously exhibited together. The Klingersaal is devoted to the art of the late 19th century movement the ‘Fin de siècle’, the ‘Fin de Siècle’ movement is illustrated through various works by Arnold Böcklin and Max Klinger to those of Franz von Stuck and Sascha Schneider. The Mosaiksaal is dedicated to the theme of morality, which is exemplified by sculptures from the Classicist period with the emphasis of those by Ernst Rietschel. In a few years’ time, the holdings of the collection, with the inclusion of the Antiquities Collection
33.
Charles III of Spain
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Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. While he was the son of Philip V of Spain, he was the eldest son of Philips second wife. In 1731, the 15-year-old Charles became the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I, following the death of his childless granduncle Antonio Farnese. In 1734, as Duke of Parma, he conquered the kingdoms of Naples and of Sicily, and was crowned king on 3 July 1735, reigning as Charles VII of Naples and Charles V of Sicily until 1759. In 1738 he married Princess Maria Amalia of Saxony, daughter of Polish king Augustus III, Charles and Maria Amalia resided in Naples for 19 years. Charles succeeded to the Spanish throne on 10 August 1759, after the death of his half-brother King Ferdinand VI of Spain who left no heirs. As King of Spain Charles III made far-reaching reforms such as promoting science and university research, facilitating trade and commerce and he also tried to reduce the influence of the Church and avoided costly wars. His previous experience as King of Naples and Sicily proved valuable as King of Spain and he did not achieve complete control over the States finances, and was sometimes obliged to borrow to meet expenses. Most of his reforms proved to be successful and his important legacy lives on to this day, historian Stanley Payne wrote that Charles III was probably the most successful European ruler of his generation. He had provided firm, consistent, intelligent leadership, personal life had won the respect of the people. In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht concluded the War of the Spanish Succession and reduced the political and military power of Spain, which the House of Bourbon had ruled since 1700. Moreover, the House of Savoy gained the Kingdom of Sicily, and the Kingdom of Great Britain gained the island of Minorca, in 1700, Charles father, originally a French prince, became King of Spain as Philip V. For the remainder of his reign, he attempted to regain the ceded territories. Elisabeth and Philip married on 24 December 1714, she proved a domineering consort. On 20 January 1716, Elisabeth gave birth to the Infante Charles of Spain at the Real Alcázar of Madrid and he was fourth in line to the Spanish throne, after three elder half-brothers, the Infante Luis, Prince of Asturias, the Infante Felipe, and Ferdinand. Because the Duke Francesco of Parma and his heir were childless, Elisabeth sought the duchies of Parma and she also sought for him the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, because Gian Gastone de Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany was also childless. He was a distant cousin of hers, related via her great-grandmother Margherita de Medici, the birth of Charles encouraged the Prime Minister Alberoni to start laying out grand plans for Europe. In 1717 he ordered the Spanish invasion of Sardinia, in 1718, Alberoni also ordered the invasion of Sicily, which was also ruled by the House of Savoy
34.
Neoclassicism
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The main Neoclassical movement coincided with the 18th-century Age of Enlightenment, and continued into the early 19th century, laterally competing with Romanticism. In architecture, the style continued throughout the 19th, 20th, European Neoclassicism in the visual arts began c.1760 in opposition to the then-dominant Baroque and Rococo styles. Each neo-classicism selects some models among the range of classics that are available to it. They ignored both Archaic Greek art and the works of Late Antiquity, the Rococo art of ancient Palmyra came as a revelation, through engravings in Woods The Ruins of Palmyra. While the movement is described as the opposed counterpart of Romanticism. The case of the main champion of late Neoclassicism, Ingres, demonstrates this especially well. The revival can be traced to the establishment of formal archaeology, the writings of Johann Joachim Winckelmann were important in shaping this movement in both architecture and the visual arts. With the advent of the Grand Tour, a fad of collecting antiquities began that laid the foundations of many great collections spreading a Neoclassical revival throughout Europe, Neoclassicism in each art implies a particular canon of a classical model. In English, the term Neoclassicism is used primarily of the arts, the similar movement in English literature. This, which had been dominant for decades, was beginning to decline by the time Neoclassicism in the visual arts became fashionable. Though terms differ, the situation in French literature was similar, in music, the period saw the rise of classical music, and Neoclassicism is used of 20th-century developments. Ingress coronation portrait of Napoleon even borrowed from Late Antique consular diptychs and their Carolingian revival, much Neoclassical painting is more classicizing in subject matter than in anything else. A fierce, but often very badly informed, dispute raged for decades over the merits of Greek and Roman art, with Winckelmann. The work of artists, who could not easily be described as insipid, combined aspects of Romanticism with a generally Neoclassical style. Unlike Carstens unrealized schemes, the etchings of Giovanni Battista Piranesi were numerous and profitable and his main subject matter was the buildings and ruins of Rome, and he was more stimulated by the ancient than the modern. Neoclassicism in painting gained a new sense of direction with the success of Jacques-Louis Davids Oath of the Horatii at the Paris Salon of 1785. Despite its evocation of republican virtues, this was a commission by the royal government, David managed to combine an idealist style with drama and forcefulness. David rapidly became the leader of French art, and after the French Revolution became a politician with control of government patronage in art
35.
Francis I of France
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Francis I was the first King of France from the Angoulême branch of the House of Valois, reigning from 1515 until his death. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and he succeeded his cousin and father-in-law Louis XII, who died without a male heir. Francis reign saw important cultural changes with the rise of absolute monarchy in France, the spread of humanism and Protestantism, Jacques Cartier and others claimed lands in the Americas for France and paved the way for the expansion of the first French colonial empire. For his role in the development and promotion of a standardized French language, he became known as le Père et Restaurateur des Lettres. He was also known as François au Grand Nez, the Grand Colas, following the policy of his predecessors, Francis continued the Italian Wars. In his struggle against Imperial hegemony, he sought the support of Henry VIII of England at the Field of the Cloth of Gold. When this was unsuccessful, he formed a Franco-Ottoman alliance with the Muslim sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, a controversial move for a Christian king at the time. Francis was born on 12 September 1494 at the Château de Cognac in the town of Cognac, which at that time lay in the province of Saintonge, today the town lies in the department of Charente. Francis was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. His family was not expected to inherit the throne, as his third cousin King Charles VIII was still young at the time of his birth, as was his fathers cousin the Duke of Orléans, later King Louis XII. However, Charles VIII died childless in 1498 and was succeeded by Louis XII, the Salic Law prevailed in France, thus females were ineligible to inherit the throne. Therefore, the four-year-old Francis became the heir presumptive to the throne of France in 1498 and was vested with the title of Duke of Valois. In 1505, Louis XII, having fallen ill, ordered that his daughter Claude and Francis be married immediately, Claude was heiress to the Duchy of Brittany through her mother, Anne of Brittany. Following Annes death, the took place on 18 May 1514. Louis died shortly afterwards and Francis inherited the throne and he was crowned King of France in the Cathedral of Reims on 25 January 1515, with Claude as his queen consort. As Francis was receiving his education, ideas emerging from the Italian Renaissance were influential in France, some of his tutors, such as François Desmoulins de Rochefort and Christophe de Longueil, were attracted by these new ways of thinking and attempted to influence Francis. His academic education had been in arithmetic, geography, grammar, history, reading, spelling, Francis came to learn chivalry, dancing, and music and he loved archery, falconry, horseback riding, hunting, jousting, real tennis and wrestling. He ended up reading philosophy and theology and he was fascinated with art, literature, poetry and his mother, who had a high admiration for Italian Renaissance art, passed this interest on to her son
36.
Amedeo Maiuri
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Amedeo Maiuri was a renowned Italian archaeologist, famous for his archaeological investigations of the Roman city of Pompeii which was destroyed in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in August of AD79. Born at Veroli, Italy, from 1914 until 1924 the young Maiuri directed the Italian archaeological mission in Greece, with a focus on Rhodes, in 1924, Maiuri was installed as the chief archaeologist of Pompeii, serving as director until 1961. Maiuris work at Pompeii was revolutionary and he exposed many remains, and proposed chronologies, maiuris work focused on one of excavations below the destruction level when he chose to excavate one of the most famous houses of Pompeii, the House of the surgeon. He excavated the Casa dellEfebo in Pompeii, and discovered a bronze statue known as the Placentarius. Maiuri excavated other cities destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius, such as Herculaneum and he rediscovered the Cave of the Cumaean Sibyl in May 1932. The Cave is a trapezoidal dromos or passage over 131 meters long running parallel to the side of the hill and his book, Lanfiteatro flavio puteolano, is considered to be the definitive monograph on the subject of the Flavian Amphitheatre in Pozzuoli. The model of the used in the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome was inspired by Professor Maiuri from torches reproduced on ancient monuments. Maiuri died in Naples in 1963
37.
Villa of the Papyri
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The Villa of the Papyri, is named after its unique library of papyri, but is also one of the most luxurious houses in all of Herculaneum and in the Roman world. It is located in the current commune of Ercolano, southern Italy and it was situated on the ancient coastline below the volcano Vesuvius with nothing to obstruct the view of the sea. It was perhaps owned by Julius Caesars father-in-law, Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, in AD79, the eruption of Vesuvius covered all of Herculaneum with some 30 m of volcanic ash. Herculaneum was first excavated in the years between 1750 and 1765 by Karl Weber by means of underground tunnels, the villas name derives from the discovery of its library, the only surviving library from the Graeco-Roman world that exists in its entirety. It contained over 1,800 papyrus scrolls, now carbonised by the heat of the eruption, most of the villa is still underground, but parts have been cleared of volcanic deposits. Many of the finds are displayed in the Naples National Archaeological Museum, the Getty Villa is a reproduction of the Villa of the Papyri. Sited a few hundred metres from the nearest house in Herculaneum and it was surrounded by a garden closed off by porticoes, but with an ample stretch of gardens, vineyards and woods down to a small harbour. The villas layout is faithful to, but enlarges upon, the scheme of suburban villas in the country around Pompeii. The atrium functioned as a hall and a means of communication with the various parts of the house. The entrance opened with a portico on the sea side. The first peristyle had 10 columns on each side and a pool in the centre. In this enclosure were found the bronze herma of Doryphorus, a replica of Polykleitos athlete, the large second peristyle could be reached by passing through a large tablinum in which, under a propylaeum, was the archaic statue of Athena Promachos. A collection of bronze busts were in the interior of the tablinum and these included the head of Scipio Africanus. The living and reception quarters were grouped around the porticoes and terraces, giving occupants ample sunlight, the grounds included a large area of covered and uncovered gardens for walks in the shade or in the warmth of the sun. The gardens included a gallery of busts, hermae and small marble and these were laid out between columns amid the open part of the garden and on the edges of the large swimming bath. The luxury of the villa is evidenced not only by the works of art. The villa housed a collection of at least 80 sculptures of magnificent quality, among them is the bronze Seated Hermes, found at the villa in 1758. Around the bowl of the atrium impluvium were 11 bronze fountain statues depicting Satyrs pouring water from a pitcher, other statues and busts were found in the corners around the atrium walls
38.
Cupid
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In classical mythology, Cupid is the god of desire, erotic love, attraction and affection. He is often portrayed as the son of the love goddess Venus and he is also known in Latin as Amor. Although Eros is generally portrayed as a winged youth in Classical Greek art. During this time, his iconography acquired the bow and arrow that represent his source of power, a person, or even a deity, in myths, Cupid is a minor character who serves mostly to set the plot in motion. He is a character only in the tale of Cupid and Psyche. Although other extended stories are not told him, his tradition is rich in poetic themes and visual scenarios, such as Love conquers all. In art, Cupid often appears in multiples as the Amores, or amorini in the terminology of art history. Cupids are a frequent motif of both Roman art and later Western art of the classical tradition, in the 15th century, the iconography of Cupid starts to become indistinguishable from the putto. Cupid continued to be a figure in the Middle Ages. In the Renaissance, a renewed interest in classical philosophy endowed him with complex allegorical meanings, in contemporary popular culture, Cupid is shown drawing his bow to inspire romantic love, often as an icon of Valentines Day. The Romans reinterpreted myths and concepts pertaining to the Greek Eros for Cupid in their own literature and art, in the Greek tradition, Eros had a dual, contradictory genealogy. He was among the gods who came into existence asexually, after his generation. In Hesiods Theogony, only Chaos and Gaia are older, before the existence of gender dichotomy, Eros functioned by causing entities to separate from themselves that which they already contained. At the same time, the Eros who was pictured as a boy or slim youth was regarded as the child of a divine couple, in Latin literature, Cupid is usually treated as the son of Venus without reference to a father. Seneca says that Vulcan, as the husband of Venus, is the father of Cupid and this last Cupid was the equivalent of Anteros, Counter-Love, one of the Erotes, the gods who embody aspects of love. The multiple Cupids frolicking in art are the manifestation of these proliferating loves and desires. During the English Renaissance, Christopher Marlowe wrote of ten thousand Cupids, in Ben Jonsons wedding masque Hymenaei, in the later classical tradition, Cupid is most often regarded as the son of Venus and Mars, whose love affair represented an allegory of Love and War. The duality between the primordial and the sexually conceived Eros accommodated philosophical concepts of Heavenly and Earthly Love even in the Christian era, Cupid is winged, allegedly, because lovers are flighty and likely to change their minds, and boyish because love is irrational
39.
Lyre
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The lyre is a string instrument known for its use in Greek classical antiquity and later periods. The lyre is similar in appearance to a small harp but with distinct differences, the word comes via Latin from the Greek, the earliest reference to the word is the Mycenaean Greek ru-ra-ta-e, meaning lyrists and written in the Linear B script. The lyres of Ur, excavated in ancient Mesopotamia, date to 2500 BC, the earliest picture of a lyre with seven strings appears in the famous sarcophagus of Hagia Triada. The sarcophagus was used during the Mycenaean occupation of Crete, the recitations of the Ancient Greeks were accompanied by lyre playing. The lyre of classical antiquity was ordinarily played by being strummed with a plectrum, the fingers of the free hand silenced the unwanted strings in the chord. However, later lyres were played with a bow in Europe, one example from Wales that has been resurrected recently is the crwth. In organology, lyres are defined as yoke lutes, being lutes in which the strings are attached to a yoke which lies in the plane as the sound-table. A classical lyre has a body or sound-chest, which. Extending from this sound-chest are two raised arms, which are hollow, and are curved both outward and forward. They are connected near the top by a crossbar or yoke, an additional crossbar, fixed to the sound-chest, makes the bridge which transmits the vibrations of the strings. They were stretched between the yoke and bridge, or to a tailpiece below the bridge, according to ancient Greek mythology, the young god Hermes stole a herd of sacred cows from Apollo. In order not to be followed, he made shoes for the cows which forced them to walk backwards, Apollo, following the trails, could not follow where the cows were going. Along the way, Hermes slaughtered one of the cows and offered all, from the entrails and a tortoise/turtle shell, he created the Lyre. Apollo, figuring out it was Hermes who had his cows, Apollo was furious, but after hearing the sound of the lyre, his anger faded. Apollo offered to trade the herd of cattle for the lyre, hence, the creation of the lyre is attributed to Hermes. Other sources credit it to Apollo himself, locales in southern Europe, western Asia, or north Africa have been proposed as the historic birthplace of the genus. The instrument is played in north-eastern parts of Africa. Some of the cultures using and developing the lyre were the Aeolian and Ionian Greek colonies on the coasts of Asia bordering the Lydian empire, some mythic masters like Musaeus, and Thamyris were believed to have been born in Thrace, another place of extensive Greek colonization
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