Misconceptions Archives - Page 19 of 22 - Tales of Times Forgotten

Was Septimius Severus a Black Roman Emperor?

It has been widely claimed on the internet that the Roman emperor Septimius Severus (ruled 193 – 211 AD) was a black man. For instance, a blog post published on the site Rasta Livewire on 25 September 2010 describes Septimius Severus as “first black African-born Emperor of Rome” and declares that it is important for black people today to “remember and celebrate” the Severan Dynasty he founded.

The claim that Septimius Severus was a “black Roman emperor” has even found its way into peer-reviewed journals dealing with contemporary black culture. For instance, here is an article written by Molefi Kete Asante and Shaza Ismail titled “Rediscovering the ‘Lost’ Roman Caesar: Septimius Severus the African and Eurocentric Historiography” that was published in March 2010 in the Journal of Black Studies, a peer-reviewed journal on contemporary African-American culture, that advances this claim.

So, was Septimius Severus a black man? Well, it depends on what you happen to consider “black.” Septimius Severus was definitely born on the African continent; that at least makes him African. Unfortunately, there are some serious problems with calling him a “black Roman emperor.”

Believe It or Not, the Romans Spoke Latin

We all know that the ancient Romans spoke Latin. If you know one thing about the Romans, it’s that they spoke Latin. As it turns out, that is actually correct. The ancient Romans really did speak Latin. (I know; it’s baffling that something ordinary people believe is actually correct, isn’t it? The very notion seems so foreign.)

Nonetheless, there is a fairly widespread misconception that the upper classes in ancient Rome normally spoke in Greek, not Latin. This misconception has, ironically, been primarily promoted by debunkers of popular misconceptions. This notion that upper-class Romans normally spoke in Greek does, in fact, have a tiny bit of truth to it, but it is largely inaccurate.

Why Lead Poisoning Probably Did Not Cause the Downfall of the Roman Empire

Many people seem to have the impression that everyone in ancient Rome suffered from lead poisoning because the Romans used pipes made of lead. Indeed, many people seem to think that this was a major contributing factor in the decline of the Roman Empire. This idea is largely inaccurate, but there is some truth behind it. It is certain that some people in ancient Rome did suffer from lead poisoning. Nonetheless, we have very little evidence to indicate that lead poisoning was ever a widespread ailment on the scale that most people seem to imagine. Contrary to popular speculation, it is highly unlikely that lead poisoning played a significant role in the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. It is also highly unlikely that lead poisoning made any Roman emperors go insane.

No, the New Testament Canon Was Not Decided by Constantine I

Many people today, especially many freethinkers and atheists, wrongly believe that the Roman emperor Constantine I (lived 272 – 337 AD) was the one who decided which books would be included in the New Testament. This idea, despite its widespread popularity, is completely wrong.

The truth is that most of the Biblical canon was already decided long before Constantine I was even born. The remaining questions about the Biblical canon that still existed during Constantine I’s lifetime were not resolved until at least several decades after his death. As far as we know, Constantine I himself had no significant involvement whatsoever in the selection of texts to be included in the New Testament.

How Did Cleopatra Really Die?

Cleopatra VII Philopator of Egypt was the last ruler of an independent Egypt in ancient times to wield actual sovereign authority. Although she ruled Egypt, she was of almost exclusively Greek ancestry. After her suicide on 10 or 12 August 30 BC at the age of around thirty-nine, Egypt was annexed by the Roman Republic (soon to be Roman Empire). Her death is often used by modern historians to mark the end of the Hellenistic Era in Egypt. In spite of all the historical significance that is ascribed to her death, however, we still do not know exactly how she committed suicide.

The most popular story about the death of Cleopatra is that she supposedly committed suicide by allowing an Egyptian asp to bite her on the breast. This event has been depicted in countless paintings, plays, books, and films. Indeed, Cleopatra’s death with an asp at her breast has become one of the most iconic death scenes in all of history. Despite its eternal popularity, however, this story is probably nothing more than a fanciful legend.

Was Pontius Pilate a Historical Figure? Yes.

I have now written several articles on this website in which I have presented the evidence that is currently available for the historicity of various figures from ancient times. For instance, I have written entire articles presenting the evidence for the historicity of Jesus of Nazareth, Alexander the Great, and King David. I also presented the evidence for the historicity of Pythagoras in this article and the historicity of Socrates in this article, although in neither case was historicity the main subject of the article. In this article, I intend to present the evidence for the historical existence of Pontius Pilate.

Although we can never be absolutely, 100% certain about anything in history, we can be about as certain that Pontius Pilate was a real historical figure as we can about anything historical. Furthermore, contrary to the claims you frequently hear from evangelical apologists, no sane historian has ever disputed that Pontius Pilate was a real historical figure. There may have been some kooks at some point who disputed it, but the real historians have basically always agreed that Pontius Pilate existed, since the historical evidence for his existence is so overwhelming.

Busting Misconceptions about the Hippocratic Oath

As many of my readers already know, I tend to do a lot of misconception-busting in these articles. Today I am going to be busting some popular misconceptions about the Hippocratic Oath. I must admit that I am genuinely surprised there are so many, since the Hippocratic Oath is not exactly the sort of flashy, exciting subject that lends itself towards mythologizing. Nonetheless, the misconceptions are rife.

Contrary to popular belief, the Hippocratic Oath was probably not actually written by Hippocrates; it does not contain the words “First, do no harm”; doctors today are rarely ever required to swear the original Hippocratic Oath; and, finally, although there punishments in place for physicians who engage in various forms of malpractice, there are no serious punishments specifically in place for doctors who violate their oaths.

Misconceptions about the Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes was a gigantic bronze statue of the ancient Greek sun god Helios that stood on the Greek island of Rhodes during the third century BC. It was constructed between 292 and 280 BC in celebration of the fact that Rhodes had survived a prolonged, but unsuccessful siege in 305 BC by Demetrios I Poliorketes of Makedonia, the son of Antigonos I Monophthalmos.

Although the Colossus collapsed as the result of an earthquake only fifty-four years after it was built, it is still remembered today as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. There is, however, a pernicious modern misconception about the statue’s position and location. Many people believe that the Colossus originally straddled the harbor of Rhodes with one foot on either side, but, for reasons I shall soon explain, this notion is certainly erroneous.

Fake and Misattributed Ancient Quotes

People who have been following my website for a while may recall that I wrote an article about real ancient quotes that have been misunderstood or misinterpreted back in August 2018. Now I am going to treat a whole different beast: quotes attributed to people from ancient times that are entirely misattributed. Misattributed quotes of this nature are absolutely rampant on the internet and in popular books of wise quotations. I cannot possibly hope to address all of them in this article, because there are far too many, but I will address a few of the more popular ones.

Just How Gay Were the Ancient Greeks Really?

The ancient Greeks have a longstanding reputation in modern culture for their alleged tolerance of homosexuality—a reputation that has been so thoroughly ingrained that a common euphemism for the word homosexuality itself is “Greek love.” Additionally, the modern English word lesbian, referring to a female homosexual, comes directly from the name of a Greek island (i.e. Lesbos) and the word sapphic with the same meaning comes from the name of an ancient Greek poetess (i.e. Sappho).

While the ancient Greeks’ modern reputation does have some basis in truth, the modern popular stereotype of the “boy-loving Greeks” is far from a complete and accurate portrait of ancient Greek sexuality. In reality, the subject of sexuality in the ancient Greek world is a deeply complicated—sometimes downright convoluted—matter. Homosexual activities were considered acceptable in some ancient Greek cultures under some specific circumstances, but, under other circumstances, the same activities were not tolerated at all.