Romans

Archeologists have unearthed what they say are the only existing insignia belonging to Roman Emperor Maxentius -- precious objects buried to protect them after Maxentius was defeated by his rival Constantine at the battle of Milvian Bridge in AD 321. Some of the objects are believed to be the bases for the emperor's standards -- rectangular or triangular flags, Italian officials said Wednesday.

An exhibit opening Tuesday at England's National Trust property The Vyne in Hampshire will feature a rather precious object - perhaps even the Precious, as Gollum would have it. The exhibit centers around a "cursed" Roman ring that is believed to have been the inspiration for J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Created in conjunction with the Tolkien Society, the exhibition's "Ring Room" will tell the fascinating story of the artifact and explore its connections to Tolkien.

"Centurion" begins with the image of a man. Stripped bare to the waist, bloodied, hands still bound, he's stumbling across a vast snowfield, trying to outrun pursuers who will kill him if the cold doesn't get him first. It's an apt opening salvo for this fast-moving, epic-on-a-shoestring tale of one Roman soldier's fight that is by turns heroic, fearsome, funny, fateful and, oh, so brutal, with swords hacking off heads at every turn. Michael Fassbender stars as Quintus, the son of a legendary gladiator and the man on the move, but as we soon learn it will be a bloody long time before he catches a breath (bloody being the operative word)

SAO PAULO, Brazil - In Mexico, President Enrique Peña Nieto tweeted an affectionate greeting for Pope Francis as he prepared for a last-minute trip to arrive in Rome in time for Mass at the Vatican on Sunday. Acting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro joked that Hugo Chavez, his predecessor who died last week, must have persuaded Jesus that the world was ready for a South American pope. And in Brazil, many people confessed a tinge of disappointment that a Brazilian papal candidate had been bypassed for a cardinal from their rival - and fellow soccer-mad nation - Argentina.

Archeologists have started exploring a sunken 1st century Roman vessel carrying about 1,500 clay amphorae, some still containing nearly 2,000-year-old fish bones nestled inside. Boaters found its cargo of amphorae in 2000 when their anchor got tangled with one of the two-handled jars. Exploration of the site a mile off Alicante in southern Spain began in July, said Carles de Juan, a co-director of the project, who works for the Valencia regional government.

Old adage: When in Rome, do as the Romans do. New adage: When in the U.S., do as you darn please. DORIANE LEE PARKER Van Nuys

Jeane Kirkpatrick writes about her 20-year infatuation with Provence (Traveling in Style, March 15), yet the ex-ambassador thinks that first came the Romans, then the Celts. TOM O'KEEFFE Orange Coast College Costa Mesa

VATICAN CITY - In rainy Saint Peter's Square, the mix of opinions about the surprise announcement Monday that Pope Benedict XVI planned to resign ranged from admiration to anger. James Cadman, 29, a seminarian from London, said the 85-year-old Benedict's decision to step down for health reasons rather than dying in office like his predecessor “showed his greatness.” “By putting the good of the church before his own desires he made this one of the greatest moments of his papacy,” Cadman said.

After playing an SS officer and a bounty hunter in Quentin Tarantino's films, words like “charming”, “impish” and even “cute” may not be the first terms that spring to mind to describe Christoph Waltz, but that was the type of energy the Austrian actor threw into his turn at hosting "SNL," playing man-child characters like a game show host who just wants to dance, an emotionally and sexually stunted soul singer and a...

LONDON -- He led a global superpower, bought popularity with tax cuts and faced a divisive war in Iraq. In many ways, the Roman Emperor Hadrian and his 2,000-year-old world sound familiar. A new exhibition at the British Museum aims to show that Hadrian, best remembered for building a 73-mile wall to separate England and Scotland, is a leader whose achievements and contradictions helped forge our times. "Hadrian is one of the great Roman emperors," exhibition curator Thorsten Opper said.

VATICAN CITY - Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina became the first pope from the Americas and the first from outside Europe in more than a millennium in an election that recognized a shift in the Roman Catholic Church's center of gravity while maintaining its conservative theology. The new Pope Francis, the 266th in the church's history, is immediately confronted with daunting challenges. His flock is growing rapidly in some parts of the globe but is disenchanted and shrinking elsewhere.

VATICAN CITY -- Roman Catholic cardinals were set to begin a ritualized process Tuesday to decide who will lead 1.2 billion followers around the world, cloistering themselves as they choose the next pope. The 115 cardinal electors were expected to move into Vatican accommodations at the Casa Santa Marta complex at 7 a.m. local time Tuesday, then attend a Mass with the public at St. Peter's Basilica. They plan to file into the Sistine Chapel at 4:30 p.m. for their first ballot on who should replace Pope Benedict XVI, who resigned Feb. 28. The elaborately regulated gathering at the Sistine Chapel, known as a conclave, is closed to outsiders.

VATICAN CITY - The timing said it all. A smiling Pope Benedict XVI had just wrapped up an official visit to Portugal in May 2010, during which he praised Catholic organizations striving to protect families based on "the indissoluble marriage between a man and a woman. " But barely 72 hours after the pontiff flew home, the president of Portugal declared that he would sign a bill allowing gay and lesbian couples to wed. With Spain having granted such rights five years earlier, the move turned the entire Iberian Peninsula, historically a Catholic stronghold, into an unlikely hitching post for homosexuals.

VATICAN CITY - Roman Catholic cardinals opened talks Monday on choosing a successor to Pope Benedict XVI but made no headway on deciding when they will shut themselves inside the Sistine Chapel to start voting for the new pontiff. The meeting began amid speculation that alleged corruption at the Vatican will top the agenda, which is also expected to include discussion of the church's sexual abuse problem. The papal conclave had been expected to begin March 11. But 12 of the 115 cardinals eligible to vote had yet to show up when discussions started at 9:30 a.m. Monday, and no date will be set for the conclave until they are all assembled.

After playing an SS officer and a bounty hunter in Quentin Tarantino's films, words like “charming”, “impish” and even “cute” may not be the first terms that spring to mind to describe Christoph Waltz, but that was the type of energy the Austrian actor threw into his turn at hosting "SNL," playing man-child characters like a game show host who just wants to dance, an emotionally and sexually stunted soul singer and a...

VATICAN CITY - In the last public Mass of his papacy, Pope Benedict XVI exhorted his followers Wednesday to "return to God" and warned against the dangers of internal division just as the Roman Catholic Church begins preparations to pick a new leader to replace him. Thousands of the faithful packed St. Peter's Basilica to hear the outgoing pontiff inaugurate the season of Lent, traditionally a time of somber introspection and penitence for...

MÉRIDA, Mexico - Until this winter, Mérida had just been a busy city I passed through on my way to the ancient Mayan ruins. Then, in mid-December, I made it my destination. I pretty much had to: I'd been hearing the city's name all fall, from house-hunting shows on TV to acquaintances in Minnesota trading tips about winter getaways. Even my new dog groomer turned out to be renovating a house here. Was Mérida, the capital of Yucatán state, going to be Mexico's next big Yankee magnet - a new Ajijic or San Miguel de Allende?

The American Library Assn. announced its 2013 book award winners Monday at its annual national conference, held this year in Seattle. While the best-known awards are the John Newbery Medal and the Caledecott Medal, there are dozens of awards, each of which helps librarians bring excellent books to the attention of young readers and their parents. The Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children was awarded to "This Is Not My Hat," written and illustrated by Jon Klassen.

VATICAN CITY - In rainy Saint Peter's Square, the mix of opinions about the surprise announcement Monday that Pope Benedict XVI planned to resign ranged from admiration to anger. James Cadman, 29, a seminarian from London, said the 85-year-old Benedict's decision to step down for health reasons rather than dying in office like his predecessor “showed his greatness.” “By putting the good of the church before his own desires he made this one of the greatest moments of his papacy,” Cadman said.

A vibe in no particular search of a plot, "A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III" channels '70s mellow and '30s style through a prism of California dreamin'. In this Charlie Sheen vehicle, the fizzy mood and visuals are often, well, winning. For his second stint in the feature director's chair (after 2001's "CQ"), Roman Coppola has fashioned a noodling indulgence that's alternately freewheeling and dead in the water. The on-screen action never matters or fully engages, but for Sheen fans who are tracking his ongoing image rehabilitation, and those willing to go with the cinematic flow, the self-conscious exercise in low-budget dress-up offers some rewards.