A condensed Roman history of non-Roman cultures. Attributed to Justin (Marcus Junianus Justinus), who is otherwise unknown, is the shortened version of the lost "Philippic Histories" by (Gnaeus) Pompeius Trogus, an extensive work in forty-four books covering the non-Roman world and its cultures, from myth and ancient era up to Alexander the Great, the Greco-Roman kingdoms, and Parthia. Trogus's work complemented the monumental history of Rome by his contemporary Augustus, Livy, and with elevated style follows similar moral themes: leaders and states that lack virtues such as moderation, justice, and piety cause harm or destruction to themselves and often to their domains. Justin, who worked sometime from the second to the fourth century AD, did not produce a strict epitome but what he calls a "brief anthology": similar to Florus, who used Livy's history as the main source for a brief but original military history of Rome, Justin freely chose what served him, preferring "what makes pleasant reading or serves to provide a moral lesson," with an eye on emotional anecdotes that might be useful for rhetoricians. Additionally, he combines Trogus's language with borrowings from the literature of later generations. Justin's anthology became one of the most widely recognizable and influential works of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, indeed being the main source for world history outside of Rome, surviving in over 200 manuscripts. This edition also includes the "Prologues," which are the summaries of Trogus by another editor, retaining many details that Justin omits or mentions differently.