Minerva Magazine - May/June 2018

In this issue

‘The best of emperors’
Trajan’s Markets, now collectively renamed the Museum of the Imperial Fora, are a fitting place to celebrate the 1900th anniversary of a wise and just emperor who brought prosperity to Rome. Dalu Jones

The wrong Caesars
An examination of the scenes from the lives of 12 Roman emperors depicted on a set of stunning Renaissance, gilded silver dishes revealed that they do not match imperial figures attached to them. Mary Beard

In the shadow of the volcano
A stroll up Vesuvius, combined with a visit to Pompeii or Herculaneum, has inspired writers and artists throughout history and continues to evoke a deep sense of the powerful presence of the past. Lindsay Fulcher

The Sun Queen
The beauty of Queen Nefertiti, the ‘Great Wife’ of the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten, was immortalised in a workshop in Amarna and still haunts us today when we face her in Berlin’s Neues Museum. Joyce Tyldesley

Hero of the hieroglyphs
How did the 18th-century French scholar Jean-François Champollion decipher the language of the Ancient Egyptians, that allows us to read the cartouches on tombs, such as that of Tutankhamen? Andrew Robinson

Horse sense
Images of Man’s four-legged companion in war, work and play are exquisitely depicted on Ancient Greek vases and coins in an exhibition on show at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Dominic Green

The view over Atlantis
The location of this mythical island has been assigned to many different parts of the world, but Plato’s story of a lost civilisation may have been a device to make a point about the nature of the state. Steve Kershaw

The Wrong Caesars

As a dozen Renaissance gilded silver treasures, the Aldobrandini Tazze or Twelve Caesars, go on show at Waddesdon Manor, Professor Mary Beard unscrews the puzzle of how the Roman emperors and dishes got mixed up

8 mins

The Sun Queen

Joyce Tyldesley traces the life of Nefertiti, consort of the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten, who is Ancient Egypt’s most iconic and, some would say, most beautiful female ruler

8 mins

Hero Of The Hieroglyphs

Andrew Robinson traces the life of the French archaeologist Jean-François Champollion, who deciphered the tantalising inscriptions of Ancient Egypt

8 mins

Horse Sense

Dominic Green explores the fi ne equine imagery on Ancient Greek vases and coins in a wide-ranging exhibition at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

8 mins

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Minerva Magazine Description:

Now available for iPad, Minerva magazine gives anyone with an interest in archaeology and antiquities a compelling insight into the ancient world. Minerva explores the lost civilisations of the past, from Ancient Egypt to Greece, Rome and the mighty empires of the Middle East and Asia.

For over 25 years, Minerva has revealed record-breaking auction results, exciting new finds, and untold stories of the distant past, spanning the Stone Age to the Dark Ages and beyond.

Each issue includes:
• News of finds and research from around the world
• Original research by international experts
• Reviews of major new exhibitions
• Latest trends and auction reports from the antiquities market
• In-depth features on history’s most fascinating people and events
• Profiles of leading figures from the world of archaeology
• Reviews of new publications and a must-have events diary