Late Roman Era Students in Athens

Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 25. Chapters: Hypatia, Julian the Apostate, Gregory of Nazianzus, Libanius, Ammonius Hermiae, Hierocles of Alexandria, Eunapius, Basil of Caesarea, Himerius, Asclepiodotus of Alexandria, Olympiodorus of Thebes, Hermias, Aedesia, Heliodorus of Alexandria. Excerpt: Julian the Apostate (Latin: ; 331/332 ¿ 26 June 363), commonly known as Julian, or also Julian the Philosopher, was Roman Emperor from 355 to 363 and a noted philosopher and Greek writer. A member of the Constantinian dynasty, he was made Caesar over the western provinces, by Constantius II in 355, where he campaigned successfully against the Alamanni and Franks. Most notable was his crushing victory over the Alamanni in 357 at the Battle of Argentoratum - despite being outnumbered. In 360 he was acclaimed Augustus by his soldiers, sparking a civil war between Julian and Constantius. However, Constantius died before the two could face each other in battle, naming Julian as his rightful successor. In 363, Julian embarked on an ambitious campaign against the Sassanid Empire. Though initially successful, Julian was mortally wounded in battle and died shortly after. Julian was a man of unusually complex character: he was "the military commander, the theosophist, the social reformer, and the man of letters". He was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire and it was his desire to bring the Empire back to its ancient Roman values in order to save it from "dissolution". He purged the top-heavy state bureaucracy and attempted to revive traditional Roman religious practices at the cost of Christianity. His rejection of Christianity in favour of Neoplatonic paganism caused him to be called Julian the Apostate by the church. Interestingly, he was also the last emperor of the Constantinian dynasty ¿ the empire's first Christian dynasty. Julian solidus, c. 361. The obverse shows a bearded Julian with an inscription, FL(AVIVS) CL(AVDIVS) IVLIANVS PP AVG (PP=Pater Patriae, "father of the nation"; AVG=Augustus). The reverse depicts an armed Roman soldier bearing a military standard in one hand and subduing a captive with the other, a reference to the military strength of the Roman Empire, and spells out VIRTVS EXERCITVS ROMANORVM, "the bravery/virtue of the Roman army". Und