A working model of an ancient computer was recently recreated in London.

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Google Earth has hooked up with the University of Virginia to produce a 3D rendition of Rome in the year 320AD featuring 250 “highly detailed” and 5000+ other buildings.

The modelling is, the Google Earth Blog notes, based on a physical model of the city dubbed the “Plastico di Roma Antica” created between 1933 and 1974. As well as exteriors, the virtual city displays 11 buildings with viewable interiors, including the Colosseum and the temple of Vesta.

To get the best from your Roman tour, Google also recommends you turn off the “3D Buildings” layer, after which should should be able to glide gracefully around the city.

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It is now just a matter of days before we see the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics in China, the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (or for those who don’t like Roman numerals, the Games of the 29th Olympiad.) This lends us the perfect opportunity to present a list of fascinating facts about the Ancient Olympics – held in Olympia, Greece.

1. No one actually knows what the origins were of the very first games. One myth suggests that Heracles (the divine son of the god Zeus) ran a race in Olympia and decreed that it be repeated every four years.

2. The olympic games were one of two central rituals in Ancient Greece. The other was the Eleusinian Mysteries – initiation ceremonies for people joining the cult of Demeter and Persephone.

3. The Statue of Zeus – the father of the Gods and one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, was housed in a temple at Olympia – the site of the Ancient Olympics.

4. An Olympiad (a period of 4 years which refers to the time between two games) was used as a measure of years by the Ancient Greeks in much the same way as we now use AD and BC. This idea was devised by the historian Ephorus. Previously, every Greek state used its own different method of time measurement which led to a great deal of confusion.

5. The only event at the first olympics was the Stadion race – a race of around 190 meters (measured after the feet of Zeus). The race was named after the building in which the race took place (the source of the English word “stadium“.

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