About Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder, born Gaius Plinius Secundus, was a Roman author, naturalist, scientist, naval and army commander, and procurator in the early Empire. He was a friend of Emperor Vespasian. His most famous work is the encyclopedic Naturalis Historia, a thirty‑seven‑volume collection covering many subjects about human knowledge and the natural world. In his free time he studied, wrote, and investigated natural and geographic phenomena.
![“The ancients had little doubt about the true shape of the earth: "It's [the world's] shape has the rounded appearance of a perfect sphere. This is shown first of all by the name of 'orb' which is bestowed upon it by the general consent of mankind. ...Our eyesight also confirms this belief, because…” quote by Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fc/pliny-the-elder-2838_appearance_the-ancients-had-little-doubt-about-the_1189606.jpg)
![“Contact with [menstrual blood] turns new wine sour, crops touched by it become barren, grafts die, seed in gardens are dried up, the fruit of trees fall off, the edge of steel and the gleam of ivory are dulled, hives of bees die, even bronze and iron are at once seized by rust, and a horrible…” quote by Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/pliny-the-elder-2838_air_contact-with-menstrual-blood-turns-new-w_1631587.jpg)
