Preface vii
Part I Daily Life
1. Why Didn't the Greeks or Romans Wear Pants? 2
2. How Did They Shave? 6
3. What Kinds of Pets Did They Have? 11
4. Did They Use Any Form of Birth Control? 16
5. How Likely Were They to Survive Surgery? 21
6. What Were the Greatest Delicacies? 25
7. How Much Wine Did They Drink? 30
8. How Did They Keep Track of Time? 37
Part II Society
9. How Long Did They Live? 44
10. How Tall Were They? 49
11. How Much Money Did They Make? 53
12. How Dangerous Were Their Cities? 59
13. How Often Were Slaves Freed? 66
14. Was Divorce Common? 71
15. Were Relationships between Men and Boys Controversial? 75
16. Why Are So Many of Their Statues Naked? 80
Part III Beliefs
17. Did They Believe Their Myths? 87
18. Did They Believe in Ghosts, Monsters, and/or Aliens? 92
19. Did They Practice Magic? 101
20. Did They Practice Human Sacrifice? 107
21. Was the Oracle of Delphi High on Fumes? 112
22. How Long Did Paganism Survive? 117
Part IV Sports and Leisure
23. Were There Professional Athletes? 123
24. How Did They Exercise? Did They Jog or Lift Weights? 132
25. Did They Travel for Pleasure? 137
26. How Was the Colosseum Built in Less Than a Decade? 143
27. How Were Animals Captured for the Colosseum? 148
28. Were Gladiators Fat? How Deadly Was Gladiatorial Combat? 154
Part V War and Politics
29. How Were War Elephants Used in Battle? 162
30. How Were Fortified Cities Captured? 168
31. Were There Secret Police, Spies, or Assassins? 175
32. Why Didn't the Romans Conquer Germany or Ireland? 180
Part VI Legacies
33. What Happened to the City of Rome after the Empire Collapsed? 187
34. What Happened to the Body of Alexander the Great? Has the Tomb of Any Roman Ruler Been Discovered Intact? 194
35. Why Did Latin Evolve into Multiple Languages? Why Didn't Greek? 201
36. Can Any Families Trace Their Ancestry Back to the Greeks or Romans? 206
Appendix: A Very Short History of the Classical World 211
Further Reading 231
Acknowledgments 241
Notes 243
Index 269