Germanicus was a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and a prominent general of the Roman Empire known for his campaigns in Germania. The son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia Minor, Germanicus was born into a prominent branch of the pat...

Claudius was Roman emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and Antonia Minor. He was born at Lugdunum in Gaul, the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy. Because he was afflicted with a...

Mary Magdalene is described, both in the canonical New Testament and in the New Testament apocrypha, as a devoted disciple of Jesus. She is considered by the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Anglican churches to be a saint, with a feas...

John the Apostle was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. Christian tradition identifies him as the author of several New Testament works: the Gospel of John, the Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation. Many modern scholars believe th...

Bartholomew was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He has been identified with Nathanael, who appears in the Gospel according to John as being introduced to Christ by Philip (who would also become an apostle), although some modern comment...

Emperor Guangwu, courtesy name Wenshu, was an emperor of the Chinese Han dynasty, restorer of the dynasty in AD 25 and thus founder of the Later Han or Eastern Han (the restored Han Dynasty). He ruled over parts of China at first, and throu...

Saint Peter (died c. 64 AD), also known as Simon Peter, according to the New Testament, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, leaders of the early Christian Church. The Roman Catholic Church considers him to be the first pope, ord...

Paul the Apostle commonly known as Saint Paul and also known by his Hebrew name Saul of Tarsus, was an apostle (although not one of the Twelve Apostles) who taught the gospel of Christ to the first-century world. Paul is generally considere...

Jesus (c. 4 BC – AD 30 / 33), also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus of Galilee, is the central figure of Christianity, whom the teachings of most Christian denominations hold to be the Son of God. Christianity regards Jesus as the...

John the Baptist (late 1st century BC – c. AD 30) was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure in Christianity, Islam (known as Yahya ibn Zakariyya), the Bahá'í Faith, and Mandaeism. John is described as having the unique pract...

Lucius Annaeus Seneca was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and in one work humorist, of the Silver Age of Latin literature. He was tutor and later advisor to emperor Nero. While he was later forced to commit suicide for alle...

Servius Sulpicius Galba, also called, was Roman Emperor from June 8, 68 until his death. He was the first emperor of the Year of the Four Emperors. Galba's primary concern during his brief reign was in restoring state finances, and to t...

Metamorphoses, the best-known poem by one of the wittiest poets of classical antiquity, takes as its theme change and transformation, as illustrated by Greco-Roman myth and legend. Melville's new translation reproduces the grace and fluency...

Titus Flavius Vespasianus was the ninth Roman Emperor, who reigned from 69 AD until his death in 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the short-lived Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 AD and 96 AD. He was succeeded by...

Heron of Alexandria was an ancient Greek mathematician who was a resident of a Roman province (Ptolemaic Egypt); he was also an engineer who was active in his hometown of Alexandria. He is considered the greatest experimenter of antiquity a...