Internet History Sourcebook
Themes In Understanding Ancient Societies
The mass of information about the past in the Internet Ancient History
Sourcebook is overwhelming. Rather than working through all the material,
as if one thing happened after another, one way to make sense of it is to see that
there are a number of recurrent themes in human history. Of course we
know more about some societies than others, and each society has something unique. But
almost all human societies have had to deal in some way with common issues. For instance:
- How to organize human society (political organization)
- How to make sense of nature
- How to account for the past and present
CONTENTS
SUGGESTED READINGS
HOW TO ORGANIZE HUMAN SOCIETY (POLITICS)
Monarchy
- Çatal
Hüyük [At Northpark]
- The
Emergence of Kingship: Inscription of Umma and Lagash, c. 2500BCE [At Northpark]
- Birth Legend of
Sargon (c. 2240 BCE)[At Crieghton]
- Hittite King List [At Hittite HP]
- Assyrian Kings List [at aina.org]
- Tiglathpileser I (r. 1115-1077 BCE): Inscription
[At Northpark]
- List of Egyptian Dynasties
[At Ukonline]
- Birth of
Hatshepsut 18th Dynasty [At Creighton]
- David (1000-961 BCE): The Succession Document (aka Court History): 2 Samuel:9-20;
1 Kings:1-2
- Solomon (961-922 BCE)
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Artaxerxes (r. 465-424)[At MIT]
- Seal of Darius
(r. 521-486 B.C.) [At WCSLC]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Alexander [At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of Alexander,
selections [At Clinch Valley College]
- Alexander (356-323 BCE): Speech,
from Arrian (c85/90-after 146/6 CE) The Campaigns of Alexander [At Clinch Valley
College]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Demetrius [At MIT]
- List of Ptolemys [At Alberta]
- List of Selucid Kings [At
Alberta]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Pyrrhus [At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): On Romulus [At
CCNY]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of
Caesar (100-44 BCE)[At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): The Assassination of Julius
Caesar, from Marcus Brutus, translated by John Dryden, [At Clinch Valley
College]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of
Anthony (82-30 BCE) [At MIT]
- Cicero (98-c.55 BCE): Selections
from Letters on the Rise of Augustus [At Saskatchawen]
- Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE): Selections
from the Acts of the Divine Augustus (Res Gestae Divi Augusti) [At
Saskatchawen]
- Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE): Res Gestae
[In Latin][At CSUN]
- Ausgustus (63 BCE-14 CE): Select Testimonia [At
Saskatachawen]
- Suetonius: Life of Augustus
(outline)(63 BCE-14 CE) [At CSUN]
- Nicolaus of Damascus: Life of
Augustus (63 BCE-14 CE)[At CSUN]
- Augustus' Legislation [At CSUN]
- Proclamation of Nero's
Succession Nov 17, 54 CE [in Greek and English][At St Olaf]
- Tacitus (b.56/57-after 117 CE): Murder of Agrippina (Book XIV,
1-16) [At Heliogabby)
- Tacitus (b.56/57-after 117 CE): The Fire of Rome 64 CE [At
IDBSU]
- Aurelius Victor, Liber de
Caesaribus 13: Trajan [In Latin][At CSUN]
- Aelius Spartianus (dates?): Life
of Caracalla [At Heliogabby]
- Aelius Lampridius (dates?): Life
of Heligabulus and in Latin
(r.218-222 CE)[At Heliogabby][Full Text]
Both lives above are part of the Historia Augusta, prob. 4th Cent CE.
- Dio Cassius (2nd-after 229 CE): Book
LXXX [At Heliogabby]
- Herodian (early 3rd Cent. BCE): History of the Empire from the
Time of Marcus Aurelius, Book 5, [At Heliogabby]
Lawgiving
War Making
Other Polities
- The Israelite Judges (c.1200-1050 BCE)
- Herodotus (c.490-c.425 BCE): The Persians Reject Democracy (Book 3:80-82)
- Herodotus (c.490-c.425 BCE): Croesus and Solon from The
Histories [At Clinch Valley College]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Themistocles (c.528-s462 BCE)[At MIT]
- Solon (c.640-after 561 BCE): Selected Fragments, [At
Saskatchawen]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Peisistratus, Tyrant of Athens (c.600-527 BCE) (from the Life
of Solon, 29-31
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): On
Aristogeiton and Harmodius, (Book 6) [At PWH]
- Texts on Ostracism at Athens
[At CSUN]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Pericles (c.495-429 BCE) [At MIT]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): Pericles' Funeral Oration
(Book 2.34-46) [At IDBSU]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): The Mitylenian Debate
(Book 3.36-50)[At WCSLC]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): The Melian Dialogue
(Book 5.84-116)[At IDBSU]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): Funeral Oration/Melian
Dialogue [in one file][At Clinch Valley College]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): Pericles'
Last Speech (Book 2:59-64) [At CSUN]
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE): The
Athenian Constitution [At MIT]
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE): The
Politics, the beginnings of political society, [At Northpark]
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE): The Politics, on the
origin of the polis, [At Clinch Valley College]
- The Kings and Ephors of Sparta [At CSUN]
- The Great Rhetra [At CSUN]
- The Krypteia [At CSUN]
Forced theiving.
- On Alcman [At CSUN]
- Herodotus (c.490-c.425 BCE): Demaratus and the
Spartan Conception of Freedom, from The Histories Book 7, [At WCSLC]
- Thucycdides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): The Failure of the Spartan System (Book 1:94-95,
129-132)
- Xenophon (c.428-c.354 BCE): On the
Spartans [At CSUN]
- Pausanias (fl.160 CE): On the
Spartan Origins Myth [At CSUN]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Pelopidas (c.410-364 BCE) [At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Demosthenes (384-322 BCE)[At MIT]
- Livy (59 BCE-17 CE): Selections
from Books 1 and 2 [At Saskatachawen]
- Livy (59 BCE-17 CE): The
Rape of Lucretia, from History of Rome, [At Clinch Valley College]
- Polybius (c.200-after 185 BCE) Book 6.11-18: The Constitution of
the Roman Republic [At Saskatchawen]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Tiberius Gracchus (c.164-133 BCE) [At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Tiberius Gracchus
(c.164-133 BCE) translated by John Dryden, excerpts [At Clinch Valley College]
See 2ND Sources on
Tiberius Gracchus [At Reed]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE) Life
of Caius Gracchus (c.121 BCE)[At MIT]
- The Gracchi
[Modern Account][At Reed]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of
Sulla (c.138-78BCE)[At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Marius (157-86 BCE)[At MIT]
- Sallust (prob.86-35 BCE): Selections on the
Jurgathine War [At Saskatachawen] A Speech by Marius.
- Lucan (Marcus Annaeus Lucanus) (39-65 CE): Pharsalia (aka "The Civil
War") [At OMACL]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of
Pompey (100-48 BCE)[At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Crassus (115-53 BCE)[At MIT]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life of
Cicero (98-c.55 BCE)[At MIT]
Men, Women and Society
HOW TO MAKE SENSE OF NATURE
Gods
Gods and Creation
Gods and Judgment
Gods as Saviors
Gods and Sexual Life
Death
Religious Organization
The Human Encounter with Evil
Philosophy
- PreSocratic Fragments
[At Internet Encylopedia of Philosophy]
- Thales (c.600-550
BCE)[At Hanover]
- Anaximander
(c.610-545 BCE)[At Hanover]
- Anaximenes (fl.546
BCE)[At Hanover]
- Anaxagoras
(c.500-c.428 BCE)[At Hanover]
- Anaxagoras (c.500-c.428 BCE): Fragments
[At 4th Tetralogy]
- Texts about Pythagoras [At CSUN]
- Pythagoras
(c.580-c.500 BCE)[At Hanover]
- Parmenides
(c.515-after 450 BCE)[At Hanover]
- Parmenides (c.515-after 450 BCE): Fragments [At 4th Tetralogy]
- Zeno of Elea (c.490-after
445 BCE)[At Hanover]
The puzzles still work!
- Melissos (5th Cent
BCE)[At Hanover]
- Protagoras
(c.485-411 BCE) [At Northpark]
Fragments
- Gorgias
(c.483-c.385 BCE) [At Northpark]
- Heraklitos (c.540-c.480 BCE) [At
WSU]
- Heraklitos (c.540-c.480 BCE): Fragments
[At 4th Tetralogy]
- Socrates (469-399 BCE)
- Aristophanes (c.445-c.385 BCE): The
Clouds, extracts, [At Northpark]
Pokes fun at Socrates.
- Plato (427-347 BCE): The
Apology, [At EAWC][Full Text]
Plato (427-347 BCE): Last Days of Socrates
[Website]
Texts from Euthyphro, Apology, Crito and Phaedo.
- Xenophon (c.428-c.354 BCE): On
Socrates [At CSUN]
- Plato (427-347 BCE)
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE)
- Epicurus (342-270 BCE) : Letter to Menoecius,
From Digenes Laertius (3rd Cent. CE), Lives, [At Internet Encyclopedia of
Philosophy]
- Epicurus (342-270 BCE): Principle Doctrines,
From Digenes Laertius (3rd Cent. CE), Lives, [At Internet Encyclopedia of
Philosophy]
- Epicurus (342-270 BCE): Maxims [At
Northpark]
- Lucretius (98-c.55 BCE): On
the Nature of Things (De Rerum Natura) [At MIT][Full Text][Chapter files] or one text file [At Virginia Tech]
- Epictetus (50-c.120 CE): Enchiridion, c.135CE
[At Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy]
- Plotinus (c.205-c.270 CE): Six
Enneads [At MIT][Full Text][Chapter files]
- Porphyry (232/3-c.305 C.E.): On Cult Images [At
Cosmopolis]
Drawn from fragments in Eusebius.
- Porphyry (232/3-c.305 CE): On
Images [At MIT][Full Text]
Science
What Makes a Person Wise
HOW TO ACCOUNT FOR THE PAST & THE PRESENT
Myth
- Babel: The Origin of Language, Genesis
- The Letter of Aristeas
3rd Cent BCE [At Non-Canonical Homepage]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): Life
of Theseus [At MIT]
- The Iliad trans. Samuel
Butler [At Darkwing]
- The Iliad trans. Sameul
Bulter [At MIT][Full Text]
- The Odyssey [At
MIT][Full Text]
- Aesop (d. 564 BCE): Fables [At
Eserver]
- Virgil (70-19 BCE): The
Aeneid, Dryden translation, [At EAWC][Full Text][Chapter files]
See 2ND Study Guide [At Brooklyn
College]
- Virgil (70-19 BCE): The
Aeneid, beginning, [At Clinch Valley College]
History
- Abraham, Genesis 12-24
- Jacob, Genesis 25-36
- Joseph, Genesis 37-50
- Herodotus (c.490-c.425 BCE): The
Histories 440BCE [At MIT][Full Text][Chapter length files][Book VII on the Persian
War]
- Thucydides (c.460/455-c.399 BCE): History of the Peloponnesian War,
431 BCE [At MIT][Full Text][Chapter length files]
See 2ND Study Guide [At
Brooklyn College]
- Plutarch (c.46-c.120 CE): On
Biography, from Life of Alexander [At CSUN]
- Theon (4th Cent CE): On Biography
[At CSUN]
The last known member of the Museum at Alexandria; father of Hypatia)
Entertainment
- Plato (427-347 BCE): Ion
- Plato (427-347 BCE): The Republic
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE): The Poetics, excerpts
[At Clinch Valley College]
- Aristotle (384-323 BCE): Poetics [At
Mit][Full Text][Chapter length files]
See 2ND Study Guide [At
Brooklyn College]
- Pausanias (fl. 160 CE): Apollo at
Amaklai [At CSUN]
- Julius Victor (4th Cent CE): On
Letter Writing in Latin [At UPenn]
- Plotinus (c.205-c.270 CE): On
Beauty Ennead I:6.1 [At EWAC]
© This text is copyright. The specific electronic form, and any notes and questions
are copyright. Permission is granted to copy the text, and to print out copies for
personal and educational use. No permission is granted for commercial use.
If any copyright has been infringed, this was unintentional. The possibility of a site
such as this, as with other collections of electronic texts, depends on the large
availability of public domain material from texts translated before 1923. [In the US, all
texts issued before 1923 are now in the public domain. Texts published before 1964 may be
in the public domain if copyright was not renewed after 28 years. This site seeks to abide
by US copyright law: the copyright status of texts here outside the US may be different.]
Efforts have been made to ascertain the copyright status of all texts here, although,
occasionally, this has not been possible where older or non-US publishers seem to have
ceased existence. Some of the recently translated texts here are copyright to the
translators indicated in each document. These translators have in every case given
permission for non-commercial reproduction. No representation is made about the copyright
status of offsite links: note that for the Ancient History Sourcebook,
unlike the Medieval Sourcebook and Modern History Sourcebook, most texts
are offsite. This site is intended for educational use. Notification of copyright
infringement will result in the immediate removal of a text until its status is resolved.
Paul Halsall, April 1998
NOTES:
The Internet Ancient History Sourcebook is part of the Internet History Sourcebooks Project. The date of inception was
4/8/1998. Links to files at other site are indicated by [At some indication of the site
name or location]. WEB indicates a link to one of small
number of high quality web sites which provide either more texts or an especially valuable
overview.
The Internet History Sourcebooks Project is located at the History Department of Fordham University, New York. The Internet Medieval Sourcebook, and other medieval components of the project, are located at the Fordham University Center for Medieval Studies.The IHSP recognizes the contribution of Fordham University, the Fordham University History Department, and the Fordham Center for Medieval Studies in
providing web space and server support for the project. The IHSP is a project independent of Fordham University. Although the IHSP seeks to follow all applicable copyright law, Fordham University is not the institutional owner, and is not liable as the result of any legal action.
© Site Concept and Design: Paul Halsall, created 26 Jan 1996: latest revision 15 February 2025 [CV]
|
