Mind-Benders of Greek & Roman History
One of history's great books was a private diary written in a war tent
The Meditations of the emperor Marcus Aurelius — one of the most beloved works of Stoic thought — was never written for publication. It was a private notebook, composed in Greek during his military campaigns; its own book headings place it on the northern frontier, “among the Quadi on the river Gran” and “at Carnuntum.”
How we know
Marcus Aurelius 121–180 CE; the Meditations were written in Koine Greek in the 170s CE on the Danube front during the Marcomannic Wars; Books 2 and 3 carry those location headings.
One of many fact-checked wonders across eight traditions at The Spring of Wisdom.