🟤 COMMAGENE The Kingdom of Commagene, situated in present-day southeastern Turkey, emerged from a Seleucid satrapy to become an independent entity. Its rulers are notable for their attempts to merge Hellenistic and Persian cultures. Ptolemaeus of Commagene initiated the kingdom's independence around 163 BC. Antiochus I Theos is perhaps the most celebrated, having commissioned the elaborate monuments of Nemrut Dağ (picture). The kingdom's strategic position between empires like Rome and Parthia shaped its political trajectory. Antiochus IV, the final independent king, faced increasing Roman pressure, culminating in Commagene's annexation by the Roman Empire in 72 AD. Kings list: -Ptolemaeus of Commagene 163-130 BC. -Sames Il Theosebes Dikaios 130-109 BC. * -Mithridates | Callinicus 109-70 BC. ~ -Antiochus I of Commagene 70-38 BC. -Mithridates Il of Commagene 38-20 BC. -Mithridates III of Commagene 20-12 ВС. -Antiochus IIl of Commagene 12 BC - 17 AD. -The gap between 17 AD and 37 AD is because of the annexation of Commagene by Tiberius in 17 AD -Antiochus IV of Commagene 38-72 AD.

🔶 THE KINGDOM OF PONTUS ON HOW ROME VIEWS KINGS. "That it was not the offences of kings, but their power and majesty, for which they attacked them and that they had not acted thus against himself alone, but against all other princes at all times. That they had treated his grandfather Pharnaces in the same manner, who, by the arbitration of his relatives, was made successor to Eumenes king of Pergamum; that Eumenes himself, again, in whose fleet they had for the first time been transported into Asia, and by whose army ,rather than their own, they had subdued both Antiochus the Great and the Gauls in Asia, and soon after king Perseus in Macedonia, had been treated by them as an enemy, and had been forbidden to come into Italy, though they made war, which they thought it would be disgraceful to make upon himself, upon his son Aristonicus. No king's services were thought more important by them than those of Masinissa, king of Numidia; to him it was ascribed that Hannibal was conquered; to him, that Syphax was made prisoner; to him, that Carthage was destroyed; he was ranked with the two Africani, as a third saviour of the city; yet a war had lately been carried on with his grandson in Africa, so implacably, that they would not save the vanquished prince, for the sake of his grandfather's memory, from being cast into gaol, and led in triumph as a public spectacle. That they had made it a law to themselves to hate all kings, because they themselves had had such kings at whose names they might well blush, being either shepherds of the Aborigines, or soothsayers of the Sabines; or exiles from the Corinthians, or servants and slaves of the Etruscans, or, what was the most honourable name amongst them, the proud; and as their founders, according to their report, were suckled by the teats of a wolf, so the whole race had the disposition of wolves, being insatiable of blood and tyranny, and eager and hungry after riches.” Mithradates 6, king of Pontus speech. Justinus

🔺 HARD WORK BEATS TALENT “As for his literary pursuits, he (Crassus) cultivated chiefly the art of speaking which was of general service, and after making himself one of the most power­ful speakers at Rome, his care and application enabled him to surpass those who were most gifted by nature. For there was no case, they say, however trifling and even contemptible it might be, which he undertook without preparation, but often, when Pompey and Caesar and Cicero were unwilling to plead, he would perform all the duties of an advocate. And on this account he became more popular than they, being esteemed a careful man, and one who was ready with his help. He pleased people also by the kindly and unaffected manner with which he clasped their hands and addressed them. For he never met a Roman so obscure and lowly that he did not return his greeting and call him by name.” Plutarch

🔘 THE GREATEST “Marcus Agrippa was charged with constructing the ships, collecting soldiers and rowers, and familiarizing them with naval contests and manoeuvres. He was a man of distinguished character, unconquerable by toil, loss of sleep or danger, well disciplined in obedience, but to one man alone, yet eager to command others; in whatever he did he knew no such thing as delay, but with him action went hand in hand with conception. Building an imposing fleet in lakes Avernus and Lucrinus, by daily drills he brought the soldiers and the oarsmen to a thorough knowledge of fighting on land and at sea.” Velleius Paterculus, Roman History

🔵 POLYBIUS ON CAMP CONSTRUCTION “Their method of laying out a camp is as follows. The place for the camp having been selected, the spot in it best calculated to give a view of the whole, and most convenient for issuing orders, is appropriated for the general's tent (Praetorium). Having placed a standard on the spot on which they intend to put the Praetorium, they measure off a square round this standard; in such a way that each of its sides is a hundred feet from the standard, and the area of the square is four plethra. Along one side of this square—whichever aspect appears most convenient for watering and foraging—the legions are stationed as follows. I have said that there were six Tribuni in each legion, and that each Consul had two legions,—it follows that there are twelve Tribuni in a Consular army. Well, they pitch the tents of these Tribuni all in one straight line, parallel to the side of the square selected, at a distance of fifty feet from it (there is a place too selected for the horses, beasts of burden, and other baggage of the Tribuni); these tents face the outer side of the camp and away from the square described above,—a direction which will henceforth be called "the front" by me. The tents of the Tribuni stand at equal distances from each other, so that they extend along the whole breadth of the space occupied by the legions.” Polybius, histories

🟣 THE SEVEN KINGS OF ROME The first King of Rome was Romulus, who founded the city in approximately 753 BC. He reigned until 716 BC and is known for establishing many of Rome's early institutions. Numa Pompilius succeeded Romulus and reigned from 715 to 673 BC. He is credited with establishing many of Rome's religious traditions and legal systems. Tullus Hostilius was the third king, reigning from 672 to 641 BC. He was a more militaristic king and is said to have destroyed the rival city of Alba Longa. Ancus Marcius followed Hostilius, reigning from 640 to 616 BC. He is known for expanding Rome's territory and building the city's first bridge across the Tiber River. Tarquinius Priscus, the fifth king, reigned from 616 to 578 BC. He was the first Etruscan king of Rome and is credited with introducing many Etruscan customs and architectural innovations to the city. Servius Tullius, the sixth king, reigned from 578 to 535 BC. He is known for reforming the Roman army and expanding the city's walls. The final king of Rome was Tarquinius Superbus, who reigned from 534 to 509 BC. He was a tyrannical ruler who was eventually overthrown, leading to the establishment of the Roman Republic.

Are you tough enough to hold formation while a 3000kg enemy war elephant tramples half your company to death?

⚪️ REÏNCARNATION “They (the Gauls) invite strangers to their feasts, and do not inquire until after the meal who they are and of what things they stand in need. And it is their custom, even during the course of the meal, to seize upon any trivial matter as an occasion for keen disputation and then to challenge one another to single combat, without any regard for their lives; for the belief of Pythagoras prevails among them, that the souls of men are immortal and that after a prescribed number of years they commence upon a new life, the soul entering into another body. Consequently, we are told, at the funerals of their dead some cast letters upon the pyre which they have written to their deceased kinsmen, as if the dead would be able to read these letters.” Diodorus Siculus

🟢 WATER MILLS “Wheels on rivers are constructed upon the same principles as those just described. Round their circumference are fixed paddles, which, when acted upon by the force of the current, drive the wheel round, receive the water in the buckets, and carry it to the top with the aid of treading; thus by the mere impulse of the stream supplying what is required. Water mills are turned on the same principle, and are in all respects similar, except that at one end of the axis they are provided with a drum-wheel, toothed and framed fast to the said axis; this being placed vertically on the edge turns round with the wheel. Corresponding with the drum-wheel a larger horizontal toothed wheel is placed, working on an axis whose upper head is in the form of a dovetail, and is inserted into the mill-stone. Thus the teeth of the drum-wheel which is made fast to the axis acting on the teeth of the horizontal wheel, produce the revolution of the mill-stones, and in the engine a suspended hopper supplying them with grain, in the same revolution the flour is produced.” Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, de Architectura

“For who could keep his hands off Libya, or Carthage, when that city got within his reach, a city which Agathocles, slipping stealthily out of Syracuse and crossing the sea with a few ships, narrowly missed taking?” Plutarch

⚫️ TREASURE-HOUSE OF ELOQUENCE “Some regard memory as being no more than one of nature's gifts; and this view is no doubt true to a great extent; but, like everything else, memory may be improved by cultivation. And all the labour of which I have so far spoken will be in vain unless all the other departments be co-ordinated by the animating principle of memory. For our whole education depends upon memory, and we shall receive instruction all in vain if all we hear slips from us, while it is the power of memory alone that brings before us the store of precedents, laws, rulings, sayings and facts which the orator must possess in abundance and which he must always hold ready for immediate use. Indeed it is not without good reason that memory has been called the treasure-house of eloquence.” Quintilian, The Orator’s Education

🟡 GIVEN BY MITHRA, TAKEN BY MITHRA “So died Mithridates, who was the sixteenth in descent from Darius, the son of Hystaspes, king of the Persians, and the eighth from that Mithridates who left the Macedonians and acquired the kingdom of Pontus. He lived sixty-eight or sixty-nine years, and of these he reigned fifty-seven, for the kingdom came to him when he was an orphan. He subdued the neighboring barbarians and many of the Scythians, and waged a formidable war against the Romans for forty years, during which he frequently conquered Bithynia and Cappadocia, besides making incursions into the Roman province of Asia and into Phrygia, Paphlagonia, Galatia, and Macedonia. He invaded Greece, where he performed many remarkable exploits, and ruled the sea from Cilicia to the Adriatic until Sulla confined him again to his paternal kingdom after destroying 160,000 of his soldiers. Notwithstanding these great losses he renewed the war without difficulty. He fought with the greatest generals of his time. He was vanquished by Sulla, Lucullus, and Pompey, although several times he got the better of them also. Lucius Cassius, Quintus Oppius, and Manius Aquilius he took prisoners and carried them around with him. The last he killed because he was the cause of the war. The others he surrendered to Sulla. He defeated Fimbria, Murena, the consul Cotta, Fabius, and Triarius. He was always high-spirited and indomitable even in misfortunes. Until finally overthrown he left no avenue of attack against the Romans untried. He made alliances with the Samnites and the Gauls, and he sent legates to Sertorius in Spain. He was often wounded by enemies and by conspirators, but he never desisted from anything on that account, even when he was an old man. None of the conspiracies ever escaped his detection, not even the last one, but he voluntarily overlooked it and perished in consequence of it -- so ungrateful is the wickedness that has been once pardoned. He was bloodthirsty and cruel to all -- the slayer of his mother, his brother, three sons, and three daughters. He had a large frame, as his armor, which he sent to Nemea and to Delphi, shows, and was so strong that he rode horseback and hurled the javelin to the last, and could ride 1000 stades in one day, changing horses at intervals. He used to drive a chariot with sixteen horses at once. He cultivated Greek learning, and thus became acquainted with the religious cult of Greece, and was fond of music. He was abstemious and patient of labor for the most part, and yielded only to pleasures with women.” Appian, the foreign wars

Man is a social animal.

The romans made this.

🟤 JULIA DOMNA Julia Domna was a Roman empress, the wife of Emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193-211). Born in Emesa, Syria, around 160 AD, she hailed from the Emesene dynasty, a wealthy and powerful Arab family with a long history of religious and political prominence in the region. Her father was Julius Bassianus, the high priest of the sun god Elagabalus in Emesa. Julia Domna married Septimius Severus in 187 AD. When he became emperor in 193 AD, she ascended to the position of empress. Known for her intelligence and political acumen, she served as a trusted advisor to her husband. Julia Domna accompanied Septimius Severus on many of his military campaigns, earning her the title "Mater Castrorum" (Mother of the Camps). Beyond politics, she was a renowned patron of philosophers and intellectuals, fostering a circle of scholars in Rome. Her influence extended beyond her husband's reign, impacting the rule of her sons, Caracalla and Geta, and even her nephew, Elagabalus, who briefly became emperor.

🔶 THE WHOLE EASTERN WORLD UNITES AGAINST ROME “Mithridates formed an alliance with Tigranes, with a resolution at once to go to war with the Romans; and they agreed that the cities and territory that should be taken from the enemy should be the share of Mithridates, and that the prisoners, and all booty that could be carried off, should belong to Tigranes. In the next place, well understanding what a war be was provoking, he sent ambassadors to the Cimbri, the Gallograecians, the Sarmatians, and the Bastarnians, to request aid; for all the time that he had been meditating war with the Romans, he had been gaining over all these nations by acts of kindness and liberality. He sent also for an army from Scythia, and armed the whole eastern world against the Romans. Accordingly, without much difficulty, he defeated Aquilius and Maltinus, who had an army wholly composed of Asiatic troops, and having put them to flight, as well as Nicomedes, he was received with great joy by the various cities, in which he found a great quantity of gold and silver, and vast warlike stores, laid up by the care of former princes. Taking possession of these, he remitted the cities all sorts of debts, public and private, and granted them an immunity from tribute for five years.” Justinus

🟠 Even if bitcoin fails, you will never look the same at traditional assets or the world in general ever again.

🔺 THE WEALTHIEST MAN IN ROME “For at the outset he was possessed of not more than three hundred talents; (1 talent is around 30kg), then during his consul­ship he sacrificed the tenth of his goods to Hercules, feasted the people, gave every Roman out of his own means enough to live on for three months, and still, when he made a private inventory of his property before his Parthian expedition, he found that it had a value of seventy-one hundred talents. The greatest part of this, if one must tell the scandalous truth, he got together out of fire and war, making the public calamities his greatest source of revenue.” (Crassus 115-53 BC was a wealthy Roman politician and general. Defeated Spartacus, part of the First Triumvirate, died in a disastrous Parthian campaign). Plutarch

🔘 SEXTUS POMPEIUS “Sextus was a young man without education, barbarous in his speech, vigorous in initiative, energetic and prompt in action as he was swift in expedients, in loyalty a marked contrast to his father, the freedman of his own freedmen and slave of his own slaves, envying those in high places only to obey those in the lowest. The senate, which still consisted almost entirely of Pompeians, in the period which followed the flight of Antony from Mutina, and at the very time at which it had assigned to Brutus and Cassius the provinces across the sea, had recalled Sextus for Spain — where Pollio Asinius the praetorian had distinguished himself in his campaigns against him — restored him to his father's property, and had entrusted to him the guarding of the coast. Seizing Sicily, as we have said, and admitting into his army slaves and runaways, he had raised his legions to their full complement. He supported himself and his army on plunder, and through the agency of Menas and Menecrates, his father's freedmen, who were in charge of his fleet, he infested the seas by predatory and piratical expeditions; nor was he ashamed thus to infest with piracy and its atrocities the sea which had been freed from it by his father's arms and leader­ship.” Velleius Paterculus, Roman History

“I have directed Secretary Connally to suspend temporarily the convertibility of the dollar into gold or other reserve assets, except in amounts and conditions determined to be in the interest of monetary stability and in the best interests of the United States.”