Hadrian's Empire

Though at first glance this book seems as if it would provide history and analysis of Rome’s great emperor, Hadrian, that’s not the case at all. Rather, Danny Danzinger and Nicholas Purcell have teamed up to produce a book that provides a broad overview of the Roman Empire in the second century AD, under the rule of Hadrian.

Though Hadrian himself does receive a signficiant amount of attention in the book, the authors of Hadrian's Empire most often use aspects of Hadrian's life as stepping-off points for the exploration of broader themes. Thus, there are chapters that cover topics such as the workings of the Roman city, the administration of the Roman Empire, the military, politics, religion, social life, attitudes towards sex, houses and apartments, food, clothing, class differences, and women's role in society.

If you're the kind of person who spends your time in the Roman Forum wishing you knew more about how Romans lived, worked, and played, then this book will satisfy some of your longings, for it will leave you with a much-expanded idea of what life was like in the ancient Roman world.