The Fire of AD 64

Those of you familiar with my documentary addiction won't be surprised to hear that this evening I watched a fascinating show on PBS. It was an episode of "The Secrets of the Dead" dealing with the great fire during the Roman Emperor Nero's reign. They discussed Tacitus' belief that Nero himself was behind it (unlikely--even though it did make his ambitious building plans possible); whether it was an accident (very possible); or even if the Christians that Nero blamed were responsible (also possible). This last is doubtless the most interesting portion--if you buy the theory, it casts the fire (which destroyed 5/7ths of the city) as a grand act of religious terrorism. The site is here.