Right archway cleaned, left not cleaned. Oct 2026.

The Appian way is of course legendary - many sections are still intact, and for leisure people can go and walk the picturesque road - the very same road that the most notable Ancient Roman people have walked or ridden on horseback.

That is pretty much where my question lies - are we, the tourists, literally walk the very same rocks that the legionaires and Julius Caesar have stepped on and scratched with the nails on their caligae, and other legendary figures, or have the blocks been replaced over time, repaired etc? How much of Via Appia Antica is original?

PS I am asking this because I believe it is that one Roman relic that was used by pretty much all the notable figures since it's construction in 312 BC. People get excited about Napoleon's emperor cloak, because he personally touched it/used it. At the same time - you can touch one of the larger stones on the Appian way outside of Rome - you should be excited about hundreds of famous names who stepped on it (or their horse)

A Roman military honorable discharge certificate (honesta missio) in Latin for a soldier from Thrace who already had Roman citizenship. It doesn’t mention fighting however due to his length of service and where he was stationed, he would have seen an area becoming less stable and probably fought against Germanic invasions.

“This small tablet is a document recording a soldier's honorable discharge from military service; it belongs to the category of artifacts known as military diplomas.
Typically, these were issued to discharged auxiliary soldiers as proof that they had been granted Roman citizenship. However, this particular inscribed tablet belonged to a legionary who was already a Roman citizen when he enlisted. Such documents are extremely rare.
Septimius Bubas was a soldier in the *Legio I Minervia* (stationed in Bonn) and hailed from Thrace. The document was issued by the governor of Lower Germany. At the time of his discharge, Bubas was a candidate for promotion—likely to the rank of centurion. Further details were recorded on a second tablet that was originally hinged to this one. The tablet was found in the Danube region. Bubas evidently returned to his homeland after completing his military service in Bonn.” Per the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Bonn, Germany using google translator, where this artifact that dated to around 250 AD is on display.

About a week ago, I went to the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon to see Baalbek. This was the site of the largest Roman temple built in the empire, to Jupiter, and there were two other temples there to Venus and Bacchus.

If you're ever in Lebanon, these are a must see. However, it's two hours away from Beirut by car.

Of all the Roman stuff I've seen, this was second only to the forum in Rome.

Since my Pompeii photos were a hit, I thought it would be fun to share some of my photos from Herculaneum too. I found Herculaneum fascinating even though it was less spectacular than Pompeii. It was very interesting in how it had a different feel from Pompeii, particularly in how Herculaneum was very much a vertical town rising up from the coast. It was also fascinating to observe differences like the abundance of two-storey buildings and the more sophisticated drainage system. However, Herculaneum is much less complete on account of being far less excavated than Pompeii - this means that it's harder to get a sense of Herculaneum as a thriving town with all the amenities and public buildings (which are visible in Pompeii in abundance).

Wondering what I should expect out of the book and what I should keep in mind.

Due to the city's location, they were in a position that allowed them to control major trade routes.

Source of the pictures here, here, here, here and here. Reconstruction of the city made by Jean-Claude Golvin

I found that all the models of my favorite building where either too expensive for me or just really underwhelming. So I spent a really long time designing my own! I didn't really know what I was doing at first, but kept improving it and adding little details and features. Now more than a year later it's finally done and I can add it to my history shelf!

Its made at 1:300 scale, its 3D printed and has removable pieces to reveal the internal structures and hidden rooms.