The climax of Rome

The years between 161 AD and 337 AD, from the accession of Marcus Aurelius to the death of Constantine the Great, have been regarded as the years of the Roman Empire's decline. Yet this age, dogged by rising totalitarianism and internal strife, produced some of the greatest cultural achievements in Rome's history. The author, seeing this as a period of accomplishment not of decay, reviews these triumphs in art and architecture, in literature and philosophy, and in religion.