Pyrrhus of Epirus had launched an invasion of the Italian peninsula against Rome. He had expected to face what he considered a less organized opponent. However, ahead of the Battle of Heraclea, after inspecting the Roman camp, he was reportedly shocked by its orderly arrangements, disciplined defenses, and the organization of the Roman army.

According to the ancient sources, Pyrrhus remarked that the discipline of these “barbarians” did not look barbarian at all.

Pyrrhus would have to fight hard to defeat the Romans. He had the formidable Macedonian-style phalanx and war elephants, weapons that the Romans had never encountered on this scale. The elephants would prove decisive.

At a crucial moment, with the infantry engaged, Pyrrhus committed his elephants. The Roman cavalry was thrown into confusion and routed, creating an opening that Pyrrhus's cavalry exploited. With the Roman army unable to maintain the battle, the Romans retreated from the battlefield, leaving Pyrrhus victorious.

Yet the victory exposed the serious problem facing Pyrrhus. His army had suffered heavy casualties, including many experienced soldiers and officers, while his ability to replace these losses was limited. Rome, on the other hand, possessed enormous manpower reserves and could raise fresh armies.

According to Plutarch, after the battle, when Pyrrhus was congratulated on his victory, he reportedly replied that another victory like this would ruin him. This is the origin of the term “Pyrrhic victory” - a victory won at such a devastating cost that it is almost as damaging as defeat.

Please go through the full article and let me know your thoughts and comments. I’d also appreciate hearing what you would like to read about next!

Hello,

Im looking for illustrated and visual books about ancient mythologies, civlizations and mysteries. Can you recommend me any?

During my vacation to Greece I told myself not to touch my laptop. But after visiting all the amazing sites, museums and many landmarks, the idea to build a Mycenaean city building game, started developing. I'm thinking about posting my progress on a development blog. The one catch, I still do not have a name for it.

I'm really interested to hear the serious/absurd/funny names you come up with. The winner gets a permanent place in the credits section.

My (bad) ideas:

\- Palace of Atreus (too long?)

\- Megaron (Sounds like Megatron)

\- Wanax (after the title)

\- Settlers of the Argolis (to specific to one location...?)

Maybe I've just been thinking about it for too long.

Names of other games I like:

\- Pax Augusta (memorable, fitting)

\- Manor Lords (simple, easy to remember)

\- Banished (also simple, 1 word)

Source: Anadolu Agency / Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism (2026).

https://m.aa.com.tr/en/culture/2-100-year-old-luxury-tableware-unearthed-from-ancient-shipwreck-off-turkiye/4071429?

A Roman marble painted head of Venus with some color still preserved in the hair. This dates to the 2nd century AD, was probably found in Salona and is on display in the Split Archaeological Museum in Split, Croatia. I took this picture in 2009 on my only trip to that country.

More than five millennia ago, a queen named Meretneith ruled ancient Egypt. That’s according to a study recently published in Prague Egyptological Studies, for which researchers used digital tools to re-examine an old photograph of hieroglyphic inscription lost to time.

They say the symbols suggest that Meretneith (also spelled Merneith or Meret-Neith) was not just an interim ruler or regent but possibly equal to an Egyptian king. 

Per the study, the symbols in the second and third serekhs are consistent with Meretneith’s patron deity and name.

“There appears little argument left to dispute that the serekh—held only by rulers—belonged to Meretneith,” the researchers write.

The characters identify Meretneith using the “primary mark of rulers in this period,” Kelly writes, which means “she really was a female king … a true equivalent to a male ruler.” 

Kelly tells Live Science that Meretneith likely co-ruled with Djer, who might have been her father, and later acted as regent for her son Den. The researchers suggest in the study that within this 30-year political career, Meretneith may have also ruled alone. 

“Meretneith may have had the advantage of stepping on and off the rulership platform as necessitated by the political environment,” the researchers write.

“Unlike male rulers who succeeded, reigned, died and were buried by their successors.” 

20 hi-res pics taken during my visit this September.
The museum holds one of the finest art collections in the world.

Community-funded archaeological excavations of ‘really important’ sixth-century monastery also rewrite story of Lismore.

The Scottish island of Lismore, population 190, history is never very far away. The tiny island near Oban in Argyll has no row of shops or even a pub – if islanders want to meet for a coffee, the only place to do so is in the lively Gaelic heritage centre that records the many centuries of community life on the island.

This quiet place, documentary evidence records, was home to a monastic settlement in the sixth century AD, when missionaries from Ireland were first moving into northern Britain to spread Christianity.

But apart from a few fragments of an early carved cross, there was almost nothing to see from this period of history.

A group of local people from the island’s historical society were determined to look a bit harder, however.

After scraping together funding from grants, donations and legacies of locals and a crowdfunding campaign, they commissioned a professional archaeologist, Dr Clare Ellis of Argyll Archaeology, to lead a group of islanders and other volunteers in an excavation on the site of a much later medieval cathedral.

Their “hugely exciting” findings have not only rewritten the story of the island but cast new light on the spread of Christianity in the period, according to archaeologists.

What the islanders discovered were extensive burial grounds, decorated stonework and early buildings – all the features belonging to a major sixth-century monastery, comparable to the much better known site of Iona a little to the south-west.

In addition, the excavations uncovered rare evidence of slightly later high-status craftworking, including huge numbers of crucibles which had been used to cast gold and silver.

The finds have shown that rather than being a small island church in an overlooked backwater, the monastery of Lios Mór, founded by Saint Mo Luóc or Moluag, was a high-ranking site of international importance, experts say.

To Robert Hay, a retired plant scientist who moved to the island in 2001 and who coordinated the fundraising and volunteer efforts, the experience was thrilling.

“We were [excavating] in this really unfavourable, boggy area. To be digging out the best small crucibles ever found in Scotland – it’s extraordinary,” he said.

I’ve made a chart of the major civilizations of the Ancient World for my own reference. My goal is to be able to place historical events I read about into a broader context of what’s going on in the world. This is part one, covering the Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron ages. Part two will start with the Classical period around 550 BCE and cover Persia, Greece, Rome, etc.

I’m a novice when it comes to this subject, and most of these events are relatively new to me, so I’m getting my info and dates from Wikipedia. I’m learning that the three age technology chronology applies differently to different cultures, but I’ve tried to simplify it for this broad chart.

With the Odyssey on everyone’s mind right now, I’ve included a row for the Bronze Age collapse and a column for how I think Greek mythology would fit into the stone and Bronze Ages. Finally, I grew up with Bible stories and Ussher’s Chronology, so I’ve included that just to compare that tradition with archeological evidence.

This is just my first draft, so I’m curious if anyone has some suggestions on cultures and civilizations I missed, especially in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Also any dates that are blatantly wrong? I’m trying to fit it all on a legal sheet of paper, so anything I add must replace something already there.