ANCH: Ancient Rome: Overview

• DE 46-DE 70: History of the Greco-Roman world--Antiquities. Civilization. Culture, archaeology
• DG 11-DG 9802: History of Italy--Ancient Italy. Rome to 476 
• DG 63: Ancient Rome
• U 35: Roman Military (also in DG and DS)
• Add any of the following terms--or terms of your choosing to subject term "rome"
• • Rome Emperors Biography 
  • politics and government, law, imperial, justice, history,
  • Families, adoption, nobility, children, women, social classes
  • Social conditions, ancient, rites and ceremonies
  • War, Army, engineering 
  • language and literature 
  • material culture

These resources can help you come up with dates, names, additional vocabulary and variant spellings for your research. They can also help you develop a better understanding of your topic or give you ideas for comparisons and contrasts.

If you are finding your references to journal articles or books from other books and articles--look them up in Articles+ or the Franklin Catalog. 

If you are searching databases, look for the icon:

When Searching Google Scholar, look for "full text via Penn Text" or click on the and look for "Penntext"

Most of the tools listed her will help you find secondary sources -- or works interpreting, assessing, or critiquing people, events, ideas. Primary sources are usually what is being interpreted, critiqued or assessed: the literature, histories from the time.

Digital Loeb is a primary source because it gets you to the texts that were written in ancient Greece and Rome. Most secondary sources will cite these primary sources. Inscriptions on stone or other objects and material culture such as coins, pottery, artwork, and other archaeological finds are also primary sources. 

If the book or books you need are checked out or not on the shelf, request it through Borrow Direct or EZ borrow. Turn around time is less than a week. This is a good reason to get a head start on your research.

For individual appointments or questions by email 

• ask a question or live chat with a librarian

Rome. Baths of Caracalla. From the Collections
at the Library of Congress

Secondary sources may lead you to specific points within the ancient texts that support your argument. They also contain extensive bibliographies for additional secondary sources. Journal articles serve a similar purpose.