Travel the Roman empire and discover the great diversity of its peoples and cultures. The book shows the importance of the Roman army in conquering and controlling the empire, and how the empire was held together by the Emperor and by his officials and laws. The economic power of Rome depended on raw materials from all over the empire: metals, stone and food. Rome's success lay in its inclusiveness, with many distinct cultures flourishing within its boundaries. People practised many different religions and spoke many different languages, but they were unified by Roman civilization. Sam Moorhead shows how the most successful empire in human history was organised, and why understanding the Roman empire helps us to understand better our world today.

 

This book is part of a book series called British Museum Pocket Explorer .

There are 32 pages in this book. This book was published 2008 by British Museum Press .

Sam Moorhead is an archaeologist who is Finds Adviser for Iron Age and Roman Coins in the Department of Portable Antiquities and Treasures at the British Museum.

This book has the following chapters: Introduction: the Roman empire; Rome, Italy and the birth of Empire; What is Empire?; The first province: Sicily; Metals for empire: Spain; Animals for empire: North Africa; Stone for empire: Egypt; Culture for empire: Greece; Cities of empire: Asia; Exotica for empire: Syria; Revolt against empire: Judaea; Frontiers of empire: the Rhine and Danube provinces; Wine for Empire: Gaul; Impact of empire: Britain; Further reading; Foldout map.