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Add only books that were written in ancient times (before year AD 399) in any genre. From any part of the world.
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25

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30

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31

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32

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33

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34

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35

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36

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38

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41

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42

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43

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44

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45

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46

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47

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48

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50

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51

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52

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53

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56

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60

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61

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62

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63

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64

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65

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66

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68

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69

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70

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71

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72

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73

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73

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75

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77

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77

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80

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81

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82

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83

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84

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85

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86

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87

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87

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89

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90

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91

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92

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93

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94

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95

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96

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97

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98

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99

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100

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277 books · 294 voters · list created July 20th, 2010 by deleted user.
562 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads 3386 books
851 friends
Aleksandr 763 books
13 friends
Al 1055 books
43 friends
Sue 10108 books
164 friends
Tate 26 books
0 friends
Themis-Athena (Lioness at Large) 546 books
365 friends
Thom 6022 books
294 friends
Jan 1316 books
82 friends

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Comments Showing 1-26 of 26 (26 new)

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message 1: by Themis-Athena (Lioness at Large) (last edited Jan 06, 2012 06:14AM) (new)

Themis-Athena (Lioness at Large) If this is truly meant to be a list only for books written BC (or before year 1), Seneca and Epictetus would -- unfortunately -- have to go ...

Enrique, it's your list, though -- where do you want to draw the line?

ETA (Jan. 6): I see you amended the list description ... cool, so not only Seneca and Epictetus get to stay now but a few other great authors get to be included as well! :)

[Still too early for Augustine of Hippo, though ... :( (4th century AD)]


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads I guess St. Augustine is borderline; born in 354.


Themis-Athena (Lioness at Large) Susanna wrote: "I guess St. Augustine is borderline; born in 354."

With the once more amended list description (4th instead of 2nd century AD), I'd agree -- though ultimately I do view Augustine as early medieval as well.


message 5: by Melkor (new)

Melkor  von Moltke Why is the King James Bible on this list? If you want to put the torah or another translation that's fine but I think the inclusion of a 17th century book is a bit of a stretch. If we are setting a date to end this list I would go with 476 CE.


message 6: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (last edited May 14, 2015 10:04AM) (new)

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Removed:

The Riddle of the Labyrinth: The Quest to Crack an Ancient Code - it's about the ancient world, but is not an ancient text
The Guardians of Karma - blurb describes it as "science fiction fantasy about prehistoric times," first published in 2013
The Song of Achilles - historical fiction


message 7: by Melkor (new)

Melkor  von Moltke Also Aspects of Ancient Institutions and Geography: Studies in Honor of Richard J.A. Talbert doesn't seem to belong on this list unless we want to include later histories such as Gibbon's works.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Didn't see that one; will remove.


message 10: by April (new)

April Scatena kile Hasso wrote: "Why is the King James Bible on this list? If you want to put the torah or another translation that's fine but I think the inclusion of a 17th century book is a bit of a stretch. If we are setting a..."

Or you could go with the actual bible of the actual church that Christ established - the Roman Catholic Bible.


message 11: by Monty (last edited Sep 29, 2018 07:40AM) (new)

Monty Circus Deleted Aeschylus' "Agamemnon", "The Libation Bearers" and "The Eumenides" as they are already listed in the far more popular collected "The Oresteia".


message 12: by Monty (last edited Sep 29, 2018 08:15AM) (new)

Monty Circus Deleted "The Oedipus Cycle" (aka "The Theban Plays"), as they are more popular individually than collected (more ratings and also are higher on this list than collected). Also deleted "Oedipus Rex and Antigone", collecting 2 of the 3.


message 13: by Oxalis (new)


message 14: by Monty (new)

Monty Circus Oxalis wrote: "No Callimachus?"

You, or anyone, can add books to the list.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads At the top of the list, at the tab next to "all votes."


message 16: by Oxalis (new)

Oxalis Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "At the top of the list, at the tab next to "all votes.""

Thanks! :-)


message 18: by Georgi (new)

Georgi There is both "Lysistrata and Other Plays" and "Lysistrata" and "Four Plays: The Clouds/The Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogs" by Aristophanes.


For Aeschylus, there is "Prometheus Bound and Other Plays" and "Prometheus Bound".

For Plato, there is both "Apology", "Phaedo", "The Trial and Death of Socrates (Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Phaedo", etc. and " The Collected Dialogues" (containing all of the above.

Can someone please delete the duplicates?


message 19: by Emrys (new)

Emrys Georgi wrote: "There is both "Lysistrata and Other Plays" and "Lysistrata" and "Four Plays: The Clouds/ThFour Plays: The Clouds/The Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogse Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogs" by Aristophanes.


For Aeschylus, there is "Prometheus Bound and Other Plays"..."


I deleted Lysistrata and Other Plays (which has The Acharnians/The Clouds/Lysistrata) and Four Plays: The Clouds/The Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogs

I added the single works that are subsequently missing: Lysistrata, The Clouds, The Birds, The Frogs, The Acharnians. I've not looked into your other suggestions yet.


message 20: by Erin (last edited Aug 27, 2021 12:32PM) (new)

Erin Most egregiously, the following are modern historical fiction and should be removed from this list:
#45) Zoroastrians' Fight for Survival by Widad Akreyi
#46) Females of Valor by Widad Akreyi
#59) Roots of To-Be Templars by Widad Akreyi
#134) Trinity by the Horns: A Tale of Gods & Bots by Prana Natarajan
#134) America is the True Old World: Mu Discovered by Amunhotep Chavis El-Bey

Also should be removed:
#26) Mahabharata retelling by William Buck (I added an actual translation of the original by Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa since I could not find it on the list)
#54) City of God by Augustine of Hippo (written in 426 C.E.; alternatively, the description could be altered to extend through the 5th century which I think is often given as a cut-off between ancient and medieval history)
#134) Symposium/The Phaedrus by Plato (each is already on the list individually)
#134) The Everyday I Ching by Sarah Dening (an actual translation of The I Ching or Book of Changes is already on the list making this redundant at best)
#152) The Life of Elizabeth I by Alison Weir


message 21: by Erin (new)

Erin Not directly related to this list but I don’t know where the else to post regarding the publication dates of the following books:

1) Records of the Grand Historian: Qin Dynasty and Records of the Grand Historian: Han Dynasty II by Sima Qian should have a publication date around -94 as Records of the Grand Historian: Han Dynasty I is more correctly listed.

2) The Golden Ass by Apuleius (c. 125 — c. 180 C.E.) should have a publication date in the 2nd century C.E.


message 22: by Emrys (new)

Emrys Erin wrote: "Most egregiously, the following are modern historical fiction and should be removed from this list:
#45) Zoroastrians' Fight for Survival by Widad Akreyi
#46) Females of Valor..."</i>

I removed all those except [book:Mahabharata
. That is an edition of the correct book, just not with the primary role as "Anonymous" or "Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa" (whoever is more appropriate) - I don't feel comfortable deleting it and adding a more appropriate edition like Mahabharata.



message 23: by Emrys (new)

Emrys Erin wrote: "Not directly related to this list but I don’t know where the else to post regarding the publication dates of the following books:

1) Records of the Grand Historian: Qin Dynasty and [bo..."


I changed those Sima Qian works to -94 BC and The Golden Ass to 180 AD.


message 24: by Emrys (last edited Aug 31, 2021 02:16PM) (new)

Emrys Georgi wrote: "There is both "Lysistrata and Other Plays" and "Lysistrata" and "Four Plays: The Clouds/The Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogs" by Aristophanes.


For Aeschylus, there is "Prometheus Bound and Other Plays"..."


I deleted Prometheus Bound and Other Plays (Prometheus Bound, The Suppliants, Seven Against Thebes, The Persians are already on the list separately).

I deleted The Trial and Death of Socrates as Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and Phaedo are all on the list separately.

I'm reluctant to delete The Collected Dialogues as it may have parts that have not been added to the list separately ("Letters"? for example). But it could be replaced with: Plato: Complete Works?


message 25: by Emrys (last edited Aug 31, 2021 02:40PM) (new)

Emrys Deleted The Bacchae and Other Plays as The Phoenician Women, The Bacchae, Iphigenia at Aulis (as Iphigenia in Aulis), Orestes, and Rhesus (as Rhesos) are on the list separately.

Deleted Medea & Bakchanten as Medea & The Bacchae are also on the list separately.

Deleted Ten Plays - Alcestis, Medea, Hippolytus, Andromache, Ion, The Trojan Women, Electra, Iphigenia Among the Taurians (as Iphigeneia in Tauris), The Bacchants (as The Bacchae), and Iphigenia at Aulis (as Iphigenia in Aulis) are on the list.


message 26: by Erin (new)

Erin Emrys wrote: "Erin wrote: "Not directly related to this list but I don’t know where the else to post regarding the publication dates of the following books:

1) [book:Records of the Grand Historian: Qin Dynasty|..."


Thank you! =)


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