The Children of Athena - Greek writers and thinkers in the Age of Rome, 150 BC–AD 400

A compelling and fascinating portrait of the continuing intellectual tradition of Greek writers and thinkers in the Age of Rome.

In 146 BC, Greece yielded to the military might of the Roman Republic; sixty years later, when Athens and other Greek city-states rebelled against Rome, the general Lucius Cornelius Sulla destroyed the city of Socrates and Plato, laying waste to the famous Academy where Aristotle had studied. However, the traditions of Greek cultural life would continue to flourish during the centuries of Roman rule that followed, in the lives and work of a distinguished array of philosophers, doctors, scientists, geographers, travellers and theologians.

Charles Freeman's accounts of such luminaries as the physician Galen, the geographer Ptolemy and the philosopher Plotinus are interwoven with contextual 'interludes' that showcase a sequence of unjustly neglected and richly influential lives. Like the author's The Awakening, The Children of Athena is a cultural history on an epic scale: the story of a rich and vibrant tradition of Greek intellectual inquiry across a period of more than five hundred years, from the second century BC to the start of the fifth century AD.

About the author

Charles Freeman is a specialist on the ancient world and its legacy. He has worked on archaeological digs on the continents surrounding the Mediterranean and develops study tour programs in Italy, Greece, and Turkey. Freeman is Historical Consultant to the Blue Guides series and the author of numerous books, including the bestseller The Closing of the Western Mind, Holy Bones, Holy Dust and, most recently, The Awakening. He lives in the UK.

Summary

A portrait of the continuing intellectual tradition of Greek writers and thinkers in the Age of Rome.

Foreword

A portrait of the continuing intellectual tradition of Greek writers and thinkers in the Age of Rome.

Product details

• Authors: Charles Freeman, Freeman Charles
• Publisher: Bloomsbury
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 07.11.2024
• EAN: 9781803281964
• ISBN: 978-1-80328-196-4
• No. of pages: 400
• Dimensions: 128 mm x 196 mm x 28 mm
• Weight: 300 g
• Illustrations: 2 x 8pp col
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Antiquity; Non-fiction book > History > Biographies, autobiographies; Europe, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Philosophers, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Historical, Biography: historical, political & military, HISTORY / Ancient / Rome, Ancient Greece, Social & cultural history, Ancient Rome, Social and cultural history, Biography: philosophy and social sciences, Biography: historical, political and military, Ancient (Classical) Greek, Ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, Western philosophy: Ancient, to c 500, c 1 to c 500 CE, c 500 BCE to c 1BCE