Insane Emperors, Sunken Cities, and Earthquake Machines

More Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans

By Garrett Ryan

Did the ancient Greeks and Romans have conspiracy theories? How did they prove their identity? And how much of the modern gold supply comes from the Romans?

In a series of short and humorous essays, Insane Emperors, Sunken Cities, and Earthquake Machines features more answers to questions that ancient historian Garrett Ryan is frequently asked in the classroom, in online forums, and on his popular YouTube channel, Told in Stone. Unlike most books on the classical world, the focus is not on famous figures or events, but on the fascinating details of daily life. Learn the answers to: Did a tsunami inspire the Story of Atlantis? How did they send longdistance messages? What if Caesar had survived the Ides of March? How did the Romans build the aqueducts? Did they practice Buddhism? How deadly was the eruption that destroyed Pompeii? What if the Roman Empire hadn’t been ravaged by the Antonine Plague? Did they attend concerts? How did they pay taxes? Was Caligula actually insane? Did they have tattoos?

Garrett Ryan earned his PhD in Greek and Roman History from the University of Michigan. Besides teaching at several universities and authoring a series of academic works, he has brought ancient history to life for hundreds of thousands of readers through his contributions to online forums, his website toldinstone.com, and his ToldinStone Youtube Channel. He lives in Chicago.

The follow-up title to Ryan’s hilariously informative and wildly successful Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants.

Prometheus

December 2023

288 pages

Trade paperback

978 1 6338 8893 7 eBook

978 1 6338 8894 4

History • Ancient / General

Paris

Secret Gardens, Hidden Places, and Stories of the City of Light

By Mary McAuliffe

Paris: Secret Gardens, Hidden Places, and Stories in the City of Light, Mary McAuliffe’s multi-layered exploration of Paris, weaves a narrative that takes the reader into secret and hidden places, even in the midst of the most wellknown of Paris destinations. McAuliffe’s hidden places can be small but are always revealing, like a bas-relief on an ignored corner of Notre-Dame or an overlooked courtyard inside an ancient and busy hospital. She takes the reader below the streets and sidewalks of Paris to discover ancient aqueducts and a lost river, and she prompts the reader to notice overlooked treasures in the most trafficked of museums. Always, McAuliffe’s focus is on people and their stories. Evil queens, designing noblemen, bold chevaliers, and desperate lovers mingle with resistance fighters and obsessed artists rising out of abject poverty into unexpected fame and fortune, adding to the tidal wave of creativity that is the life blood of the City of Light. One person, place, and story lead to another, each linked by a common thread within the layered richness of Paris’s past. The story of Paris is not a chronology but an exploration of the many layers of this remarkable city throughout the ages.

Mary McAuliffe received a Ph.D. in history from the University of Maryland and has taught at several universities and lectured at the Smithsonian Institution. For many years she was a regular contributor to Paris Notes. She has traveled extensively in France and is the author of Dawn of the Belle Epoque: The Paris of Monet, Zola, Bernhardt, Eiffel, Debussy, Clemenceau, and Their Friends. She lives in New York City with her husband.

Narrates the story of Paris through an exploration of secret and hidden places.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

July 2023

304 pages

36 illustrations

Hardback with dust jacket

978 1 5381 7333 6 eBook

978 1 5381 7334 3

History • Europe / France