Duane W. Roller

A thoroughly researched, in-depth analysis of early Greek, Carthaginian and Roman exploration of the Atlantic, with the majority of focus on the western coast of Africa through and including modern day Britain. All of the major figures are covered, including a comprehensive analysis of the surviving literary record.

For those with an interest in this subject, the book is very highly recommended. My only concern is this work is academic in nature, hence may be somewhat dense for the casual reader.… (mehr)

Time flies when you're having fun, and it seemed like only yesterday that I had read Adrienne Mayor's "The Poison King," a biography of Mithridates the Great, one of the Roman Republic's most determined enemies; turns out that was over a decade ago at this point! So, the question then becomes whether I prefer Roller's book over the earlier work, and the answer has to be yes, seeing as Roller gives you a history of the whole Pontic dynasty, how they fit in to the Hellenistic milieu, and gives you a better context for the career of Mithridates. This is at the same time that Roller is spending quality time on the travails of Rome, and its never ending cycle of conquest and retaliation, sustained by a foundation of organization that was just better than all the Republic's competitors. Roller's work is a bit dryer than Mayor's book, but it does seem considerably more reliable.… (mehr)