Only the emperor was allowed to wear a purple toga, while senators ... people they conquered, while Roman provinces or cities often sought out an influential senator to act as patroni and oversee ...

"A lot of the people who try to romanticize what the Roman Empire was ... imagine themselves being, you know, the senator in the fine toga laying on the side, being hand-fed grapes," he said.

The Roman Senate started life as an advisory council ... Once elected, an ambitious senator would progress through the different ranks of magistrates. These included the quaestorship, the ...