Tastes Of History
Food History: A Roman soldier’s diet
The diet of a Roman soldier consisted of wheat, rations of smoked bacon or fresh meat (when available, usually pork), vegetables,...
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Tastes Of History
- Nov 22
Dispelling Some Myths: Was yellow the colour of prostitution?
Over the years we have periodically encountered claims that prostitutes in the Roman Iron Age and then later in the Mediæval period wore...
Tastes Of History
- Oct 14
Dispelling Some Myths: Romans, Railways and NASA rockets
Yet another urban myth re-appeared on social media the other day, one which regularly does the rounds and has done so for many years...
Tastes Of History
- Jul 12
Dispelling Some Myths: Vomitorium
Dispelling the myths about ancient Roman 'vomitoria'.
Tastes Of History
- May 17
Dispelling Some Myths: Romans knew about bacteria
‘10 modern things the Romans had’ is a YouTube video created and hosted by Raffaello Urbani, who is otherwise known as ‘Metatron’. His...
Tastes Of History
- Mar 29
Horrible History Costume: The ‘Hollywood’ Toga
Introduction What follows was inspired by a @HistoryFilmClub tweet shown right. Like many who responded, naming just one historical...
Tastes Of History
- Mar 15
On This Day: Caesar Murdered!
March 15th, 44 BC: Gaius Julius Caesar is stabbed to death. Idibus Martiis (‘the Ides of March’, 44 BC) should have been an unremarkable...
Tastes Of History
- Mar 6
How To: Dress as a Roman soldier Part Three
This ‘How To:’ series is aimed at the general reader or an individual wishing to portray a Roman legionary or auxiliary as accurately as...
Tastes Of History
- Feb 24
How To: Dress as a Roman soldier Part Two
This ‘How To:’ series is aimed at the general reader or an individual wishing to portray a Roman legionary or auxiliary as accurately as...
Tastes Of History
- Feb 10
Dispelling Some Myths: Roman Cheshire Cheese
The BBC’s Bargain Hunt has struck again. On this occasion the claim was made that Cheshire cheese was made by the Romans. That was news...
Tastes Of History
- Jan 23
How To: Dress as a Roman soldier Part One
Where to start? If we accept that Rome was founded in 753 BC and that the eastern half of the Empire did not collapse until...
Tastes Of History
- Jan 17
How To: Dress as an ancient Roman
This ‘How To:' guide is a follow up on a previous one aimed at readers wishing to recreate simple yet effective ancient Greek costume....
Tastes Of History
- Aug 8, 2022
Rome's 'Secret Agents'
There is a tendency to attribute modern structures, ranks and roles to descriptions of the ancient Roman army (Latin: exercitus). Such...
Tastes Of History
- Jul 18, 2022
Mithras versus Christ: a Centuries Old Dispute?
Introduction The background to the eastern mystery cult of Mithras was outlined in 'Mithras Sol Invicti: an Initiates Guide'. With the...
Tastes Of History
- Jul 2, 2022
Kitchenalia: Roman soldier's cookware
In an earlier article, we challenged the idea that Roman soldiers cooked farinata, a type of unleavened bread made from chickpea flour,...
Tastes Of History
- Jun 6, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: Romans cleaned their teeth with Urine
While teaching primary school children about the Romans, and specifically hygiene, we have encountered the belief that they cleaned their...
Tastes Of History
- May 9, 2022
Ludi: ancient Greek and Roman games
Continuing the series 'Ludi', and following on from ancient Egypt, here are selection of games played by ancient Greeks and Romans. Pente...
Tastes Of History
- Apr 19, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: Romans in the Americas
The mosaic floor pictured (right) is housed in a gallery dedicated to ancient Roman frescoes and mosaics on the second floor of the...
Tastes Of History
- Apr 14, 2022
What’s in a Name: ‘Barbarian’
In April 2022 social media, specifically Twitter, was awash with criticism of the UK’s Conservative government’s plans to privatise...
Tastes Of History
- Mar 29, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: 'ancient Roman trebuchets'?
A recent search of the internet for information on Roman artillery machines returned, amongst other results, a website with a page...
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