Ancient History Books
recommended by historians and Classicists
Last updated: September 25, 2024
The best books on Divine Women, recommended by Bettany Hughes
Ancient history was a man’s world – but women were considered closer to the gods. The historian and TV presenter Bettany Hughes reveals the secrets of Athenian priestesses, Byzantine empresses and Stone Age fertility goddesses.
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1
Catiline’s War, The Jugurthine War, Histories
Sallust (trans. AJ Woodman) -
2
Res Gestae Divi Augusti: Text, Translation, and Commentary
by Alison Cooley (editor) & Augustus -
3
Rome's Cultural Revolution
by Andrew Wallace-Hadrill -
4
The Neighborhoods of Augustan Rome
by J. Bert Lott -
5
Augustan Culture
by Karl Galinsky
The best books on Augustus, recommended by Peter Wiseman
The best books on Augustus, recommended by Peter Wiseman
Is it possible that Augustus was not the first Roman emperor, but the last of Rome’s great populist champions? That’s what classicist Peter Wiseman argues in his book, The House of Augustus: A Historical Detective Story. Drawing on a lifetime of research and writing on this period, the emeritus professor of classics and ancient history gives a brilliant overview of the Augustan age, and recommends what to read to better understand the adopted son of Julius Caesar, who found Rome in brick and left it in marble.
The best books on Thucydides, recommended by Johanna Hanink
The Greek historian and general Thucydides wanted his History of the Peloponnesian War “to be a possession for all time.” In that, he’s been remarkably successful, with his name still echoing in the corridors of power. But what lessons should we take away from his great work? Translator and classicist Johanna Hanink talks us through books to better understand Thucydides and the mythical Athens he lived in and wrote about.
The best books on Ancient Rome, recommended by Harry Sidebottom
From the first book he recommends to students coming up to Oxford to read ancient history, to a short, popular book that weaves together all the scholarly research on the fall of the Roman Empire and the terrible things that happened as Rome was sacked by the Vandals, Oxford historian Harry Sidebottom talks us through five must-read books on Ancient Rome.
The best books on Enemies of Ancient Rome, recommended by Adrienne Mayor
Stanford University classics scholar Adrienne Mayor says a comparison between Mithradates, a deadly enemy of the Roman Empire, and Osama bin Laden, who set his sights on the American Empire, is a tempting one.
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Death and Salvation in Ancient Egypt
by Jan Assmann -
2
Visual and written culture in ancient Egypt
by John Baines -
3
The Chapel of Ptahhotep
by Paolo J. Scremin & Yvonne M. Harpur -
4
Village Life in Ancient Egypt
by Andrea McDowell -
5
The Tale of Sinuhe and other ancient Egyptian poems
by Richard Parkinson
The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Elizabeth Frood
The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Elizabeth Frood
Egyptologist Elizabeth Frood recommends books that take us away from the elite context of Egyptian history and focus on the ‘normal’ lives of Egyptians.