The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome (Hist Atlas) [Mass Market Paperback]

Chris Scarre (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0140513299 | ISBN-13: 978-0140513295 | Publication Date: September 1, 1995

Traces the Roman Empire's rise and fall, looking at its provinces and cities, trade and economy, armies and frontier defenses; following its foreign wars and internecine struggles; charting its transformation into a Christian theocracy; and assessing its lasting impact on the modern world. Full-color maps and illustrations throughout.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Matching clear graphics with informative text, Christopher Scarre's atlas gives a fine overview of Roman history from the emergence of the first city-state in the eighth century B.C. to the rise of Christian theocracy a millennium later. The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome is especially helpful in showing the growth of the Roman empire through successive centuries of military campaigning from Scotland to Arabia and in delineating the networks of trade, transit, and communication that bound the far-flung outposts to the imperial capital. Scarre notes that many of those networks still survive in one form or another.

About the Author

Chris Scarre is Professor of Prehistory in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Durham.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (September 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140513299
• ISBN-13: 978-0140513295
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,531 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #11 in Books > Education & Reference > Atlases & Maps > Atlases
  • #13 in Books > History > Ancient > Greece
  • #27 in Books > History > Ancient > Rome

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

109 of 111 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars For beginners only!!!, January 30, 2002

By 

Jacques Talbot (Oakland, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome (Hist Atlas) (Mass Market Paperback)

If you are already familiar with the broad outlines of Roman history and are looking for a visual reference to further your explorations, keep looking. This volume appears to be the outcome of an effort guided primarily by concern for today's short attention spans and budget limitations. The text is adequate enough as the briefest of introductions to its subject, but in fact this is an ATLAS, not a history per se, and its usefulness as such depends on the quality of its maps, which I found sadly disappointing. For one thing, there are surprisingly few maps in this volume. If you are interested in the growth of the city itself, if you hope to trace the movements of particular military campaigns, or if you seek a better understanding of trade routes, you will not find this volume helpful. Only the tired highlights (which can be found in any number of books) are covered. Furthermore, the maps are small--to the point of silliness--and the editors have in a number of instances alluded to events separated by a wide gulf of years on the same map. This renders even the few maps in the atlas muddled and is sure to confuse rather than inform neophytes, though these would seem to be the primary target audience. On the plus side, the book contains a number of interesting photographs, and the captions to these are surprisingly informative--the best thing about the book. All in all, a great disappointment and a surprising one as I remember Penguin's excellent pocketbook atlases of world history. Unfortunately, the narrowed focus of this Roman atlas was not matched by a corresponding increase in the quality of information offered.

53 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Historical Atlas of Where?!?, February 20, 2003

By 

alexandersfraser "alexandersfraser" (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome (Hist Atlas) (Mass Market Paperback)

I don't know where these folks got their information, but it is certainly not based in reality.

I found a tremendous amount of the information in this book to be downright erroneous. At one point, the book claims that the Emperor Tiberius restored the Temples of Castor and Pollux between the years 6 B.C and 7 A.D. Sad to say, Penguin, but Augustus was Emperor during those years and was responsible for the restoration of the Temple.

Bad information, bad typesetting (yes, they've actually used cut and paste - the old fashioned form - in areas to correct mistakes before press time), and sadly inaccurate maps are the highlights of this book.

On the plus side ... pretty colors.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Concise Yet Wonderfully Detailed Overview, November 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome (Hist Atlas) (Mass Market Paperback)

With several dozen books on my shelf regarding Ancient Rome, I often need something akin to an index for all of their combined knowledge: a few paragraphs, a map, or a photo will have me scurrying to the appropriate text (or, of late, an internet link).

Of note are the numerous Roman city maps, showing walls, aqueducts, forts, temples, etc. relative to the natural geography.