Justin was a Roman historian that flourished in the second or early third century AD. Almost nothing is known of his personal history. He composed an Epitome of Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus’ expansive ‘Philippic Histories’, a history of the kings of Macedon, which was compiled in the time of Augustus and is now lost. Like his model, Justin employs numerous digressions throughout, rendering the work more of an idiosyncratic anthology than a strict epitome. Divided into forty-four books, i...

The world’s most famous composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart produced masterpieces in every musical genre of his day, having a profound influence on the course of Western music. Famed for his enchanting melodies and unique range of expression, he is the most universal of all composers. Delphi’s Great Composers Series offers concise illustrated guides to the life and works of our greatest composers. Analysing the masterworks of each composer, these interactive eBooks include links to p...

Norse sagas concern tales of ancient Nordic and Germanic history, detailing early Viking voyages, the battles that took place during these voyages, exotic adventures in foreign lands and the migration to Iceland. These prose sagas were written in the Old Norse language, sharing similarities with epic poetry, telling of heroic deeds of days long gone. The tales offer an endless panorama of pagan chieftains, Viking warriors, historic saints, noble bishops and ordinary men and women, ...

This stunning eBook is a concise illustrated guide, evaluating the masterpieces that have changed the course of art as we know it. Whether an art novice or a cultivated connoisseur, this eBook offers you an intriguing overview of the world’s most famous and iconic artworks. Illustrated with over 500 full colour images, it builds upon Delphi’s groundbreaking Masters of Art Series — the world’s first digital e-Art books. Through the analysis of 50 famous and innovative paintings, the...

A collection of Old English annals, the original manuscript of ‘The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle’ was created late in the ninth century, during the reign of Alfred the Great. It is the oldest history of a European country in its vernacular, offering a treasure trove of knowledge of the Anglo-Saxon period. Along with Bede’s ‘Ecclesiastical History of the English People’, it provides an insight into the history of the English in the period following Roman rule up until the Norman Conquest, ...

became the leading exponent of the ‘maxime’, a French literary form of epigram that expresses a harsh or paradoxical truth with brevity. He muses on honour, fate, friendship, love and the human tendency for self-delusion. His experience with the royal court during the Fronde influenced his thinking immensely. An exemplar of the older noblesse, La Rochefoucauld influenced numerous philosophers and men of letters, including Nietzsche, who sought to imitate his aphoristic style. This ...

The American short story writer, poet and critic, Edgar Allan Poe is famous for his writings in the genre of mystery and the macabre. Poe initiated the modern detective story and the powerful atmosphere he evoked in his tales of horror remains unrivalled in American fiction. This comprehensive eBook presents London’s complete works, with numerous illustrations, rare texts appearing in digital print for the first time, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (...

A fourth century Byzantine philosopher and theologian, Gregory of Nyssa was the leader of the orthodox party in controversies over the doctrine of the Trinity. First and foremost a scholar, he composed numerous theological, mystical and monastic works in which he balanced Platonic and Christian traditions. Gregory, his elder brother Basil of Caesarea and their friend Gregory of Nazianzus are collectively known as the Cappadocian Fathers. Delphi’s Ancient Classics series provides eR...

Saint Athanasius was a fourth century theologian and ecclesiastical statesman, who was the chief defender of Christian orthodoxy in the battle against Arianism — the heresy that the Son of God was a creature of like, but not of the same, substance as God the Father. He upheld that the Son of God, the eternal Word through whom God made the world, entered the world in human form to lead men back to the harmony from which they had fallen away. Later Church fathers in both the West and...

Saint John of Damascus was an eighth century monk and theological doctor of the Greek and Latin churches. His treatises on the veneration of sacred images placed him in the forefront of the Iconoclastic Controversy and his theological synthesis made him a preeminent intermediary between Greek and Medieval Latin culture. Also ascribed to John is ‘Barlaam and Ioasaph’, one of the best known examples of the hagiographic novel. It tells the tale of an Indian prince that becomes aware o...

The ninth century Frankish scholar Einhard was a dedicated servant of the Emperor Charlemagne and his son Louis the Pious. Einhard’s principle work is a biography of Charlemagne, the ‘Vita Karoli Magni’, regarded by many as one of the most precious literary bequests of the early Middle Ages. Historians have traditionally described it as the first example of a biography of a European king. Delphi’s Medieval Library provides eReaders with precious works of the Middle Ages, with noted...

A celebrated early eighteenth century philosopher, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 3rd Earl of Shaftesbury published the three-volume ‘Characteristicks of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times’, which has had a profound impact on Western thought. Shaftesbury was a firm supporter of Deism, favouring acceptance of religious knowledge that is inborn in every person or acquired by reason, while rejecting religious knowledge gained from revelation or church teachings. Promoting religious tolerance, the ...