Weird, wild, and little-known facts about long-lost empires from the New York Times-bestselling author . . . To fight off Roman ships in 300 BC, Carthaginians catapulted live snakes at them The Athenian lawmaker Draco died of suffocation when gifts of cloaks were showered upon him by grateful citizens at an Aegina theater in 620 BC A dead man won an early Olympic event Nero not only didn't play a musical instrument while Rome burned, he actually tried to help—but he did scapegoat Christians afterward and subject them to terrible fates Silly, shocking, weird, hilariously funny—and outrageously true—the anecdotes in Stupid Ancient History chronicle Greek philosophers, Roman conquerors, Egyptian mummies, and much more—revealing little-known oddities and busting historic mythconceptions. Discover Biblical misattributions; the nine-year-old girl who spotted a bogus ancient relic in a British museum; the person Caesar salad was actually named after (not Julius)—and much more!