Populus: Living and Dying in the Wealth, Smoke and Din of Ancient Rome (Hardback) - Guy de la Bédoyère

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A Time Travellers Guide to Ancient Rome - by one of the best historians of the ancient world.

Living in ancient Rome was superbly and vividly recorded by Rome's historians, philosophers, and poets who were acutely aware of the seething and voluptuous nature of a city that ruled the known world.

Through the words of Tacitus, Seneca, Martial, and a host of others including ordinary Romans, Guy de la Bédoyère takes the reader into a world of violent politics, civil disorder, unspeakably brutal entertainments, extravagance, decadence, eroticism, exotica, and staggering inequality, participated in daily by the Roman people from the hyper-rich elite to the lowliest slaves.

Populus places those who experienced Rome in person at the forefront of their story, from the rabble-rousing senator Clodius Pulcher to Pliny the Elder and Hortensia who defended the rights of women in court to the ex-slave and celebrity baker Eurysaces.

Watch a clip of our exclusive interview with Guy de la Bédoyère featured on the Time Team News, plus an interview on his years with Time Team below:

About Guy de la Bédoyère:

Guy is a respected historian, with a particular interest in Ancient Rome, aviation and – more recently – Ancient Egypt. Guy was always an enlivening and feisty presence on Time Team since 1998 and appeared in some of our most memorable episodes, from Roman temples and mauseleums to a Spitfire lost over Normandy during the Battle of Britain. Many of these episodes are available to watch on Time Team Classics. An expert in identifying Roman pottery, Gus relishes the magic of physical artefacts in bringing history to life. Guy is the author of several books, including his excellent recent addition, Gladius: Living, Fighting and Dying in the Roman Army.

Media Reviews:

A superb combination of wit, first-rate research and panache. Highly recommended! - Tony Robinson

A rollicking new book... Drawing on letters, inscriptions, plays, poems, architecture, coinage and the preserved contents of Herculaneum's sewers, de la Bédoyère sets out to reconstruct how people of all stations lived... De la Bédoyère's command of these disparate sources is masterful, and his curation of them forms the backbone of the book - Honor Cargill-Martin, Sunday Telegraph

A comprehensive and very well referenced appraisal of city life... Where the archaeological record in Rome is patchy, he extrapolates on how life must have been from discoveries at sites such as Pompeii and Ostia as well as the vast written evidence, including letters and inscriptions - The Times

De la Bédoyère paints a vibrant picture, giving readers a lively and immersive look at life in this legendary ancient city - Booklist

Providing considerable detail in an easygoing style, this brings to pulsing life the average Roman's daily existence. Roman history buffs will be thrilled - Publishers Weekly

Populus draws on such archives of the quotidian to make ancient Rome seem both wonderfully weird and convincingly real. . . . With his wide array of sources, his eye for compelling details and his engaging prose style, de la Bédoyère keeps the reader eager for more-and wondering what strange facet of Roman life will be served up next - Wall Street Journal

Additional Details:

Hardback
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
ISBN: 9781408715154
Number of pages: 480
Weight: 720g
Dimensions: 145 x 234 x 41 mm