Flavia Gemina

Salvete, omnes! Some of you might like to know that you can watch an episode of the new series based on my books online: The Colosssus of Rhodes (part 1) It will be up for five days, until Wednesday 6 August. Enjoy! Flavia Gemina (AKA Caroline Lawrence)

The TV series isn't too bad. They have drastically changed some of the storylines, some writers more than others, and sometimes by necessity. For example, The Gladiators from Capua documents the opening of the Colosseum in Rome, with 50K spectators, tightrope-walking elephants, beast fights (or maybe 'massacre' is more appropriate), criminal execution, and carefully refereed gladiator bouts. The BBC did not have the budget for all that so they dumbed it down a lot. Also, the actor playing Titus was not available, so they used Domitian instead. Mostly they have got the look right, though in season two Flavia and her friends seem to live in a temple, and all the prisons have iron bars. The costume people were the worst offenders, not bothering to consult me about anything. That's why you get 'Smurf hats' during the Saturnalia, instead of the conical freedmen's hats... If only they'd asked me. But no; they knew best. For viewing clips and excerpts, try this link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/watch/romanmysteries/ Vale! Caroline

Thanks for the great review, Ursus. However, I must warn parents that The Sirens of Surrentum has the most adult theme of any of the books in the series, being about 'sex and decadence' in ancient Rome. For that reason it is probably not suitable for children under 10. Although I know from my experience as a teacher that if children don't know about things, references to them will go over their heads, I also know that some parents will appreciate this warning. I've tried to find the balance in 'Sirens' but the reviews on Amazon.com show that people aren't happy with what I've done. Interestingly, in England they are a lot more open-minded. Many parents don't mind the blood and gore of the arena, or horses dying in the Circus Maximus, but they object to a sex scene no matter how obliquely written! They also miss the fact that the lesson I am teaching in this book is that you CAN be too young for love. BTW, you can see the various 'themes and topics' I tackle on these pages of my website: Themes and Topic for Books 1 - 4 Themes and Topics for books 5 - 8 Themes and Topics for books 9 - 12 Valete!

Producers of the Roman Mysteries TV series want to know what a first century AD waterclock (or clepsydra) looked like. Anyone? Has there been on on HBO's Rome maybe... Flavia

I respectfully disagree that human life was valued any less than it is today. One small example among a plethora of epigrams, epitaphs and laments is the moving poem written by Martial about a female child slave, surely the 'lowest of the low'. To you, my parents, I send on This little girl Erotion The slave I loved, that by your side Her ghost need not be terrified Of the pitch darkness underground Or the great jaws of Hades hound. This winter she would have completed Her sixth year had she not been cheated... etc. (translation James Michie) We also put a value on life. Are we honestly as moved by the death of another baby in Africa as we are by a great artist or statesman? And I disagree that they the Romans thought less about death than we do! The very fact that they had skeleton cups and mosaics and the phrase 'memento mori' meant they thought about death every day. Probably far, far more than we do -- we who are so protected from it. Here are two examples, both from the area around Vesuvius...

Do we need to bother Steven? I thought it was common knowledge that Patricians wore iron rings and Equestrians wore gold rings. I'll go have a search before I email him... Thanks for the plug, Nephele. Sorry I haven't been on the Forum more, I have a book deadline!

I was interviewed this morning on the BBC radio travel program Excess Baggage. I was talking about my recent visit to Sofia to watch the filming of season two and also about how I get ideas about ancient Rome by travelling today. You can hear it for the next week if you go HERE and click 'Listen to the most recent Excess Baggage'...

Even after 30 years here, I haven't lost it. They call it 'mid-Atlantic' here!

Thanks for these! They are great!

Yes, Osiris' manly bits were eaten by a fish... but not just any fish: the oxyrhyncus, literally 'sharp-nosed' pike. The city of Oxyrhyncus (where all the papyrus was found) is named after this fish and the inhabitants revered it. (Someone on this forum recommended I read City of the Sharp-nosed Fish, about Greeks in Roman Egypt and I'm glad they did. It's fabulous!)

Oh dear! Even Ben Kingsley couldn't fight his way out of the layer of cheese which envelops this film. The best thing about The Last Legion -- apart from Aishwarya Rai in a wet tunic -- was identifying the actors: 'Hey! Is that Doctor Bashir from Deep Space Nine? Look! It's Keira Knightley's boyfriend... and the brother from The Mummy... and the kid from Love, Actually. And Vorenus from HBO's Rome, scowling and growling.' One thing it did NOT have was the least whiff of authenticity. Rome didn't feel or look like Rome. Capri was obviously half shot in Yugoslavia or somewhere eastern european and cloudy. The special effects were dire (reminiscent of sword'n'sandals epics from the 60's), the battle scenes were boring and silly... And Colin Firth as a Roman commander? No way. He looks like he's wearing a cardigan even when it's a leather cuirass. Verdict: v. amusing (but sadly not in the way they intended)

I haven't had the heart to watch it yet, for fear of being unable to suspend reality for the entertainment of historical inaccuracy, but there is a discussion of it here. That discussion is mostly speculative though... It doesn't seem that many of us here wanted to take a chance on it. I'm going to see it this afternoon. I will report back. But I think you are right not to get your hopes up...

The final episode of The Sopranos aired last night here in the UK. I thought it was a brilliant finale, a suitable climax to a superb series. You can read my whole review HERE, along with the latest dozen films I've seen below. Has anyone seen The Last Legion yet? Is there a thread?

*cough* No comment I like the wording: This is the first statue from Ancient Rome, exposed in the Kurdjali History Museum. And the boy was obviously a 'leg man'!

I've just heard that they are repeating episodes 6-10 of the Roman Mysteries on CBBC every day next week (Monday 15 - Friday 19 October) at the obscure time of 2.35 -3.00pm. For those of you who live in the UK and get this digital channel... They repeated the first five episodes last week but I only just heard about it from the parent of one of the actors.

I call my iPod 'Darth iPod'. He's black and shiny.

Do you have a reference for that ceremony, Ursus? Preferably a primary source? Thanks!

Thanks for the update! Good to know everything is still working. I LOVE Ostia!!

I've heard it the dam has had a detrimental influence the effects of which we haven't even begun to see. We didn't visit the Delta in May but will be going in December. I suspect it is still pretty green, but I don't know!

Not substantially hotter than the Holy Land. I know because I've been to both places. Heck, I remember being in good ol' Roma in July of 1980 and having two scorch marks on my cheeks because the Italian sun had heated up my metal eyeglass frames. If you lived in Alexandria you might have even enjoyed the pleasant sea-breezes! Alexandria was built specifically to enjoy the Etesian Winds, as I mentioned! The grid of the street plan was laid out to exactly catch this wind which blew from the northwest in summer. As Diodorus says: Alexander laid out the streets with considerable care and skill by selecting the right angle of the steeets to coincide exactly with the direction of the Etesian winds, which grow across a great expanse of sea, so that the winds would be able to pass between the buildings of the future city and provide its inhabitants with cool air in the summer, a moderate climate and good health. The climate was totally unlike the rest of Egypt and it was one of Alexandria's biggest selling-points!

I don't think North Africa was ever heavily forested and I don't think it's changed. We recently visited Libya. The coastal region is surprisingly green because storms from the Med break on the mountains and the coulds release water onto the limestone escarpments. It was only the interior that was dry (because the mountains caused all the watert to drop on the coast). Apart from some very rich oases, it was mainly desert or savannah. I believe this was the case from Morocco to Egypt. Egypt was the bread basket of Rome, producing a huge amount of grain, thanks to flooding in the Delta. Morocco did and does still have forests in the Upper and Lower Atlas mountains and valleys like that of Volubilis which were and still are very lush during the winter rains. To answer your question: no, I don't think the landscape of North Africa has changed much at all. The big difference has been in the deep interior which has been affected by droughts caused to global warming and draining of lakes caused by man. This has turned what was probably cultivatable land into desert.

Thanks for the cute addition, G-Manicus. I'm going to send it to the producer. Second season due to show in Britain around Easter 2008. Still haven't heard anything about TV or DVD rights to America...

WOW! These sets are lavishly detailed, and certainly rival (if not surpass) the sets of HBO's Rome. I especially liked the pictures of the Roman interiors, such as the bedrooms of Flavia Gemina and Miriam. What an intimate peek into the private lives of the ancient Romans! -- Nephele And it was wonderful walking around the sets... like going back in time! I especially love the little wall niche with the snake painted underneath...

Great site! Thanks for the heads-up!

Isn't this amazing? It's the head of the Colossus of Rhodes for the second season of the TV series based on my books! They're filming now in Bulgaria. You can see more HERE Flavia