Sword and Sandal

A particular kind of Period Piece set in ancient biblical or mythological times, running the gamut from Heroic Fantasy to Historical Fiction; movies set in the Roman empire usually included. Alternatively, it may be used to describe Fantasy Counterpart Culture equivalents in a secondary world. The subgenre of low-budget Sword and Sandal Italian films of the 50s and 60s is the Peplum.

A classic Cyclic Trope, as Hollywood has regular periods of fascination with the era, and the trope was named by an early period of such films being popular.

Contrast Sword and Sorcery, on which the name is based (or vice versa). There is often some overlap, especially when mythology gets involved.

Sword and Sandal flicks in the Golden Age of Myth were especially popular in the Golden Age of Hollywood; compare Epic Movie. Expect the landscape to resemble sand dunes and/or rural Spain throughout, making those sandals look more attractive.

For more information, see The Time of Legends, Ancient Grome.

Films

 * Clash of the Titans
 * Conan the Barbarian
 * Hercules - The Steve Reeves version is the first one called a "sword and sandal".
 * Jason and The Argonauts
 * Troy
 * Immortals

Live-Action TV

 * Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
 * Xena: Warrior Princess
 * Young Hercules

Video Games

 * Age of Mythology
 * Centurion Defender of Rome
 * Circus Maximus - the first (and most likely only) racing game that exclusively utilizes chariots
 * Gladius
 * God of War
 * Rise of the Argonauts
 * Rome: Total War
 * Shadow of Rome - basically Metal Gear Solid IN ANCIENT ROME!
 * Spartan Total Warrior
 * Titan Quest
 * Warriors Legends of Troy

Web Comics

 * Rumors of War

Western Animation

 * Hercules

Films

 * The Greatest Story Ever Told
 * The Ten Commandments
 * Monty Pythons Life of Brian - An Affectionate Parody.

Theater

 * Jesus Christ Superstar - a Rock Opera.

Western Animation

 * The Prince of Egypt
 * Veggie Tales (but only in the episodes that reenact Biblical events, and huge liberties are taken)

Other

 * Stargate, oddly enough, is a remake of Exodus In Space with Ancient Astronauts.

Films

 * Three Hundred
 * The 300 Spartans
 * Alexander
 * Troy (see above)

Literature

 * Gates of Fire
 * Over the Wine Dark Sea

Films

 * Agora
 * Barabbas
 * The Big Fisherman
 * Caligula
 * Centurion
 * The Colossus of Rhodes, the first film directed by Sergio Leone.
 * Cleopatra
 * Demetrius and The Gladiators
 * The Eagle
 * The Fall of The Roman Empire
 * Gladiator
 * Julius Caesar
 * The Robe
 * Spartacus (technically, it is about Republican Rome, but still...) - Subverts just about all of the standard conventions of movies with a Roman setting. The crucifixion scene especially was very controversial.

Literature

 * Belisarius Series: set roughly at the time when The Roman Empire evolved into the Byzantine empire.
 * Ben Hur
 * Codex Alera: Though technically it doesn't take place in the Roman Empire, the setting is essentially built around a displaced Roman legion, and thus closely hews to ancient Rome.
 * Emperor
 * Fabiola
 * Imperium
 * The Last Days of Pompeii
 * Marcus Didius Falco- A series of novels centering on a Private Detective during the reign of Vespasian.
 * Masters of Rome
 * Quo Vadis
 * Roma Sub Rosa- Another Private Detective series, this time set in the late republic.

Theater

 * A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - An Affectionate Parody of this genre.
 * Androcles And The Lion, an early Deconstruction

Live-Action TV

 * I Claudius
 * Rome
 * Spartacus Blood and Sand