Pornokitsch

We'll be collecting Roman tidbits all week, so please don't be shy about sharing... just leave us a note in the comments or stalk us through one of our many social media personalities.

Don't forget - our competition for a uniquely-signed first edition of Romanitas ends tomorrow evening at 7 pm. (Why Rome?)

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Although not quite up to Imperial standards, Renaissance Italy also had a lot to offer as well in the way of sex, scandal and stabbery, as evidenced by a new TV show:

"The pilot episode of The Borgias is essentially a showcase of the series' biggest get in terms of talent, the aforementioned Jeremy Irons. It is his journey in microcosm: from corrupt patriarch to Pope and back again" (The Speculative Scotsman)

"The Borgias, which, like The Tudors before it, is a visually magnificent production that mines captivating drama from a world-famous Renaissance family. The Borgias, however, is even better." (Rob Will Review)

The Wall of Night's Helen Lowe also has a few things to say about the Italian Renaissance, although this time, it is in relation to Guy Gavriel Kay's moody epic, Tigana: 

 "I think it was the authentic, Italian renaissance setting of the opening sequences that helped me fall in love with the story. And the basic premise of the story is straight from history—the divided peninsula of little kingdoms which fail to see the danger of encroaching empires until it is too late" 

Meanwhile, Rich Warren pointed us to the alternate history classic, Lest Darkness Fall. Which, in turn, led to us find this bizarre cover art - particularly entertaining when compared to the rather sedate cover of first edition.

Today was the Megalesia. What'd you do to celebrate? (via @_ancthist)