Definitions

The Shield of Heracles (also known as The Shield of Herakles, Aspis Herakleous) is a poem of 480 hexameter lines written by an unknown Greek poet in the style of Hesiod (lived 8th century BCE). It deals with the Greek hero Herakles (also...

Alcestis was the mythical queen of Thessaly, wife of King Admetus, who came to personify the devoted, selfless, woman and wife in ancient Greece. While the story of Admetus' courtship of Alcestis was widely told, she is best known for her...

Megara was the first wife of the Greek hero Herakles (better known as Hercules). She was the daughter of King Creon of Thebes who gave her in marriage to Hercules in gratitude for his help in winning back Creon's kingdom from the Minyans...

Deianira was the second wife of the Greek hero and demi-god Herakles (better known as Hercules, son of the god Zeus and the mortal woman Alcmene). She was the daughter of King Oeneus and Queen Althaea of Calydon. During the time of Hercules'...

The Sargonid Dynasty was the last ruling house of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 722-612 BCE, beginning with the reign of Sargon II and ending with fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. Some of the most famous kings in the history of Assyria come...

From the dawn of our species to the present day, stone-made artefacts are the dominant form of material remains that have survived to today concerning human technology. The term “Stone Age” was coined in the late 19th century CE by the Danish...

Sennacherib (r. 705-681 BCE) was the second king of the Sargonid Dynasty of Assyria (founded by his father Sargon II, r. 722-705 BCE). He is one of the most famous Assyrian kings owing to the part he plays in narratives in the biblical Old...

The 4th century BCE Greek philosopher Aristotle once wrote in his essay Politics, “If liberty and equality…are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost.” Regrettably...

Ashurnasirpal II (r. 884-859 BCE) was the third king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. His father was Tukulti-Ninurta II (r. 891-884 BCE) whose military campaigns throughout the region provided his son with a sizeable empire and the resources to...

Esarhaddon (r. 681-669 BCE) was the third king of the Sargonid Dynasty of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. He was the youngest son of King Sennacherib (r. 705-681 BCE), and his mother was not the queen but a secondary wife, Zakutu (also known as...