THE FACE OF ROME

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30302, 30 November 1963, Page 3

THE FACE OF ROME

The Civilisation of Rome. By Pierre Grimal, Professor of Latin Literature at the Sorbonne. Translated by Professor VV. S. Maguinness, King’s College. London. Allen and Unwin. 531 pp. In the “Great Civilisations” series the volume on Roman civilisation has been written by the historian and archaeologist, Pierre Grimal, and is now available in a clear and easily flowing translation bj’ Professor Maguinness. More than two hundred carefully-chosen photographs keep step with the text, and in themselves form a significant record, derived from architecture, sculpture, painting, mosaics, coins and other sources, of the tastes, aspirations, and achievements of the Romans. The text is in three sections. The first gives the historical background, from the early settlements where the seven hills of Rome still stand by the banks of the Tiber, down to Constantine's creation of a second capital at Byzentium in 330 A.D. The

second section deals with the Romans as people—their ideals of “virtus” (self-dis-cipline), "pietas” (respect), and “fides” (faithfulness to engagements); their religious ideas and practices; the growth and characteristics of Roman law; the political organisation through monarchy, republic, principate and empire; methods of warfare; language, literature and the arts. The third section, under the heading of “everyday life,” treats of farming, gardens, the public buildings in Rome itself, houses, water supply, games and gladiators, the theatre, the baths, the meals—with a final chapter on' the provincial cities. In a brief concluding chapter Grimal refers to the question so often asked, was Rome “original”? Was Roman civilisation anything more than a subdivision of the Greek world, a destitute province, devoid of genius? It is one of the great merits of this book to have made it clear that in one respect at least Rome succeeded where Athens failed: the laborious conquests of the Roman re-

publican armies were transformed into an Empire, and an Empire of such a kind that even after the collapse “the ideal image of Rome itself survived as an everinspiring myth, that of a fatherland for all mankind." To those with no knowledge of Latin it may seem that the author has left a dismaying number of words in that language. Sometimes, in the interests of conciseness and an uninterrupted flow ot argument, a full explanation of these has to be deferred. Thus at page 41 Romulus is described as foreshadowing the “imperator": the implication of this becomes clear a hundred pages later when there is a definition and discussion of that singularly Latin word “imperium.’’ The reader who wants more detailed treatment of particular questions will find no lack of hints in the 12 pages of bibliography which end the volume: these in themselves indicate the immense store of information from which Professor Grimal has drawn his 364 pages of text.

A historical and biographical dictionary serves as an index and allows an expansion of some parts of the text. With its help the curious may proceed from Egypt and Elagabalus to Election (see Comitia). Elephants and Eloquence.