2nd century
The 2nd century is the period from 101 - 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period
Early in the century, the Roman Empire attained its greatest expansion under the emperor Trajan, but after his death became primarily defensive for the rest of its history. Much prosperity took place throughout the empire, ruled as it was by the Five Good Emperors.
This period also saw the removal of the Jews from Jerusalem during the reign of Hadrian after Bar Kokhba's revolt.
The last quarter of the century saw the end of the period of peace and prosperity known as the Pax Romana at the death of the emperor Marcus Aurelius, last of the "Five Good Emperors", and the accession of his ineffective and deranged son Commodus.
Events
Significant persons
- Rabbi Akiva Head of all the Jewish Sages
- Rabbi Yehuda haNasi Prince of the Jewish people
- Commodus, Roman Emperor, claimed to be Hercules reincarnated
- Galen, medical writer
- Irenaeus, 2nd Bishop of Lyons
- Juvenal Roman satirical poet
- Montanus, Christian heretic
- Nagarjuna, founder of Madhyamaka Buddhism
- Pliny the Younger
- Plutarch, Greek historian
- Ptolemy, Greek astronomer, astrologer and geographer
- Septimius Severus, Roman Emperor
- Suetonius, Roman historian
- Valentinius, most famous Christian Gnostic
- Zhang Daoling, Taoist hermit, ascended to heaven
Inventions, discoveries, introductions
- Cai Lun of China invents paper (c. 105)
- Ptolemy compiles a catalogue of all stars visible to the naked eye. He also compiles three of the most influential books in western history:
- the Almagest which becomes the basis for western and Middle Eastern astronomy until the time of Copernicus and Kepler;
- the astrological treatise, Tetrabiblos;
- and the Geographia
- 132: Zhang Heng of China invents first seismometer and the world's first water-powered armillary sphere
Decades and years
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