The Detectives of Antiquity

Ulisse - The Pleasure of Discovery – Season 12

This week's episode of Ulysses is tinged with mystery. The theme of the episode revolves around a simple question: is it possible to use the forensic techniques we read about in the newspapers or see on hit crime series like CSI to investigate crimes of the past, with laboratory analysis of skeletons found at archaeological sites? Like true detectives, we attempt to shed light on some enigmatic events that occurred many centuries ago. The profession of investigator and historian are not so different. We recount the brutal murder of a Roman nobleman and the trial that followed. Leading us in this investigation will be the greatest lawyer of antiquity: Cicero, who left a detailed account of this dramatic case, which took place in Rome in 81 BC.