Maya Ritual and Myth: Human Sacrifice in the Context of the Ballgame and the Relationship to the Popol Vuh
What this paper intends to establish is the exploration of the role of ritual human sacrifice among the Maya with particular reference that this ritual possessed in the context of the ballgame.
Violence in Sports: A Comparison of Gladiatorial Games in Ancient Rome to the Sports of America
Aristocrats’ funerals celebrated their victories and enhanced their reputations. Emperors presented the games to show the public how much power they had. Among the gladiators were thousands of prisoners of war.
Frank Miller
Has 300 so successfully appealed to audiences globally because of, or despite, its extremely violent, racist, homophobic, and sexist subtext?…This paper approaches 300 as a media product produced and consumed in spatially specific ways. I present a geographical reading of 300
Trophies and Tombstones: Commemorating the Roman Soldier
How were the corpses disposed of and to what extent were these men commemorated and remembered? The intention of this paper is to unite the diverse relevant evidence for the first time and to argue that, although displays of public loss and mourning were often muted, the sacrifices of some soldiers did receive public acknowledgement.
The Neanderthal dead: exploring mortuary variability in Middle Palaeolithic Eurasia
The question of whether or not Neanderthals buried their dead has received considerable attention over the last few decades and has played a central role in exploring the similarities and differences between Neanderthals and early anatomically modern humans.
Plague and theatre in ancient Athens
Until a recent archaeological discovery, our understanding of what happened in Athens during the plague had been almost entirely reliant on the gripping narrative of Thucydides, which seems so dramatically shaped that some have wondered whether the historian embellished his vivid, harrowing eye-witness report.
The Afterlife in Ancient Egypt
The Egyptians envisioned the hereafter as a duplication of the best moments of earthly existence. There was nothing morbid in their lifelong preoccupation with death, they prepared for it earnestly and confidently.
Hemlock Poisoning and the Death of Socrates: Did Plato Tell the Truth?
It is a remarkable account, rich in emotive power and in clinical detail. But is it true?
Thrown Away Like Rubbish – Disposal of the Dead in Ancient Greece
In this article, the literary and archaeological evidence for burial practices that can be associated with the English expression ‘to be disposed of like rubbish’ are discussed.
Poisons, Poisoning and the Drug Trade in Ancient Rome
The first recorded instance of poisoning in ancient Rome occurred in 331 BC when, during an epidemic, a large number of women were accused of concerted mass poisoning.