This book will teach readers -- even those with no knowledge of Latin -- how to decipher these ancient messages. Each illustrated inscription is accompanied by a transcription, a transliteration in which all abbreviations are spelled out, a translation, and finally an interpretation of the text's meaning and significance.

Even the smallest piece of information in an inscription can aid classicists in reconstructing the daily lives of Romans, especially those less visible in the archaeological record: the poor, slaves, and women. In conveying devastation at the death of a loved one, comradery among soldiers, or the key events in individual lives, inscriptions can reveal much about ancient Roman history and culture.