Title Highlight: Pictorial Dictionary of Ancient Rome

Pictorial Dictionary of Ancient Rome


2 vol.: Lists of abbreviations (both volumes), General Index (end of volume 2), List of inscriptions (end of volume 2)

Not all dictionaries define words or concepts. Some dictionaries are concerned with illustrating physical objects. The Pictorial Dictionary of Ancient Rome is one of these. Found in the reference section, it contains photographs, plans and short descriptions of the ancient monuments and sites excavated in the city of Rome up until 1962. The entries are arranged alphabetically and each entry begins with a short written description of the site, its age and general plan, followed by citations to sources. In order to decipher the sources cited, checking the lists of abbreviations found at the beginning of both books is needed to make sense of the references. The descriptive paragraph is followed by photographs of the site showing the architecture, inscriptions and other interesting objects found at the site.

The entries for some sites include plans of early excavations, drawings of its situation and layout. The books also include ancient sites that are incorporated into more modern structures. The book is a snapshot in time of how the many ancient sites of Ancient Rome looked in the late 20th century. The images contained would be very useful to illustrate papers and presentations on ancient Roman sites.