About
This site is dedicated to giving travel tips to the ancient ruins of the various civilizations that the Roman Empire encompassed at it’s peak.
Site Info
My goal is to help make people aware of the sites, where they are located, what their general history is, what you’ll find today, and how to get there. In many cases I will be linking to exterior (and far more professional) websites to help guide you, especially when it comes to major sites like the Pyramids of Giza, Rome, Istanbul, etc.
The goal of this website is not to give you a massive rundown of every single inch of a location, especially when there are sites, like Pompeii, where are there are already terrific breakdowns found elsewhere on the web.
But imagine, if you will, that you are traveling to Tuscany. Interested in finding some Roman ruins? Come check out the site then. 😊
Surprisingly no! It was very difficult for me to find any references to ancient sites in most major cities that aren’t Rome, Istanbul, or anywhere in Egypt. You have your Pompeii or Ephesus here and there, but by and large recent eras are more represented in tourist guidebooks. Many times, people travel to the popular places without realizing what great opportunities there are to see things that aren’t at the front of the guidebook.
Building a site like this takes time. I have decided to start with Italy, given that the Romans are the culture I’m using for the parameters of the site. You can use the maps or the clickable regions on each page to find your way to local site information.
This is a question that could have loads of different definitions. To me, “ancient” can be anything from the dawn of humanity, to the conquests of Islam in the 7th century CE, which effectively ended the ancient world. The Middle Ages, the source of the West’s and Near East’s modern identities, began much earlier, but the conquest of the Persian and Eastern Roman Empires by the Arabs is the final nail in the coffin. In many of these areas, the advent of the Middle Ages was an upgrade, so I am not putting a negative connotation on it.
Be sure to check out the timeline for an overview of ancient history!
There is obviously a LOT to go over here and I am only one person. I built this site from scratch with no website experience, so I will be learning as I go along. Starting with Italy, I intend to update the site regularly with a variety of places from each of the four main areas I have listed: Western Europe, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. I do want to put out a newsletter with the updates as they happen, but again, that will take some time to get to.
Most of the pictures on the site are from other folks, specifically those on Canva. I have always tried to attribute those that I received from Canva or those whom I downloaded from Wikimedia Commons. Some of them are mine! But I obviously have not been to all of these places. I’ve just been doing the research. In fact, if I can’t find good pictures of a place, then you won’t find it on the site, at the moment.
Issues
Because understanding ancient peoples and their history shapes the narrative of who we are and what we value.
Reason 1: It’s what I know the best. Reason 2: Roman civilization, especially, encompasses many others, including ancient Egypt. Using the Roman Empire as a template allows me to start at the very beginning of human civilization, in many cases. I could just as easily do one for Persia, but given that I know more about them, I am choosing the Romans as my outline.
I do not intend to ignore other parts of the world, whose “ancient” eras are at markedly different times than the West or Near East. South Asia and East Asia, for instance, were each reaching developments over a widely varying period.
The idea that buildings in classical antiquity were all white marble or made of mudbrick is largely incorrect. Marble was used as the base in many constructions but most of these buildings were exceptionally colorful back in their heydey. Also, the sheer variety of places where these developments occurred (not to mention Egypt, whose eventual entry will probably eat up half the site), and the many towns or cities that they founded, helps to understand the achievement of the everyday people who built these structures.
Other Questions
My name is Drew, and I am originally from Birmingham, in the US. I currently live in Atlanta where I work in immigration advising.
I have been learning about Greek mythology since 10 and I began studying Latin at 15. My Latin is woeful thanks to the passage of time, but my love for understanding ancient history has only grown. I follow podcasts and obsessively read books on the subject. Friends who are Classics majors say I’m a great source on it, so I feel fairly confident that I have at least halfway decent knowledge.
Yes! Please email me using the Contact page and I will fix it. Again, I make no claims to being the ultimate authority, so I need others to help me out. Plus, history is constantly being rethought as we make new discoveries in archaeology or primary texts, so the site’s info needs to shift with this.
I’d love to explore the rest of the world’s ancient civs! That would take a lot more space and financial resources that I do not have now. Far too many people are not exposed to the glories of ancient Native American, African, South Asian, or East Asian civilizations, among others. Like I said, what I’m doing already is pretty overwhelming but hopefully, one day, I’ll make it to all of them. 😉
