"Two major Jewish risings against Rome took place in the years following the destruction of Jerusalem - the first during Trajan's Parthian war, and the second, led by Bar Kokhba, under Hadrian's principate. The impact of these risings not only on Judaea, but also on Cyrene, Egypt, Cyprus and Mesopotamia, is shown by accounts in both ancient Jewish and non-Jewish literature. Historical evaluation has veered between regret for a pointless blood-bath and admiration for sustained resistance. William Horbury offers a new history of these risings, presenting a fresh review of sources and interpretations. Horbury takes into account more recently discovered sources, including letters and documents from fighters and refugees, and inscriptions attesting war and restoration. Horbury explores the period of Jewish war under Trajan and Hadrian not just as the end of an era, but also as a time of continuity in Jewish life and development in Jewish and Christian origins"--