Nero: The Man Behind the Myth to open at the British Museum May 27, 2021

An exhibition that will examine the misogynistic treatment of women under the reign of the emperor Nero is slated to open at the British Museum on May 27, 2021.  It will be on display until October 24, 2021.

This "fresh look" at one of Rome's most notorious emperors will include more than 200 objects from the imperial palace in Rome to the streets of Pompeii that appear to contradict the traditional depiction of the “tyrant”, which is based on a “narrow range” of “brutally biased and partisan” sources. Part of the exhibition will also explore the role of imperial Roman women who were portrayed as adulterous and incestuous.

Visitors will be able to see sculpture, manuscripts, objects destroyed in the 64 CE Great Fire of Rome, jewelry and even slave chains from Wales.  The Fenwick Hoard, a treasure discovered in 2014 beneath the floor of a shop in Colchester, will also be on display.

Drawing on the latest research, this major exhibition questions the traditional narrative of the ruthless tyrant and eccentric performer, revealing a different Nero, a populist leader at a time of great change in Roman society.  Was Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus a young, inexperienced ruler trying his best in a divided society, or the merciless, matricidal megalomaniac history has painted him to be?

Read more about it: https://blog.britishmuseum.org/who-was-nero/

Marble bust of Nero. Italy, around AD 55. Photo by Francesco Piras. With permission of the Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo ̶ Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Cagliari.

Portrait bust of the younger Agrippina, the mother of Nero. 37–39 AD.

Marble statue of young Nero, AD 50–54. Photo © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée du Louvre) / Hervé Lewandowski.

Copper head of the emperor Nero, found in England, AD 54–61.

Copy of a doodle scratched into the wall of a shop or tavern on the Palatine Hill in Rome, probably representing the emperor Nero.

The recently excavated Fenwick Hoard was buried for safekeeping during Boudica’s attack on Colchester. The owners of these objects, a Roman veteran and his wife, never managed to retrieve them. AD 60-61 © Colchester Museums.

Marble relief with soldiers of the Praetorian Guard, who served as personal guards to the emperor. Rome, Italy, AD 51–2. Photo © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée du Louvre) / Hervé Lewandowski.

Marble portrait, possibly of Claudia Octavia. Italy, Julio-Claudian. With permission of the Ministero della Cultura ̶ Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli.

Copy of a doodle scratched into the wall of a shop or tavern on the Palatine Hill in Rome, probably representing the emperor Nero.

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Sea Monsters in Ancient Art

 The iconography of the Greek kētos (Latinized as cetus) was established in the Archaic period (ca. 600–480 BCE) and remained amazingly consistent for centuries, long into Roman Imperial times. It is one of the creatures that after the conquests of Alexander the Great (r. 331–323 BCE) traveled to the East, where it appeared in Gandharan art and influenced representations of monsters from Afghanistan to India. The kētos has even been suggested as a partial inspiration for the Chinese dragon. - Metropolitan Museum of Art

According to Greek mythology, Perseus slew Cetus to save Andromeda from being sacrificed to it. In a different story, Heracles slew Cetus to save Hesione.The term cetacean (for marine mammals like whales or porpoises) was derived from cetus. In Greek art, ceti were depicted as serpentine fish, sometimes with the head of a greyhound and the body of a whale or dolphin with a divided fan-like tail.  In Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible, Jonah's "great fish" is translated as kētos.

Art historian, John Boardman, conjectured that images of the kētos in Central Asia influenced depictions of the Chinese Dragon and Indian makara. They suggest that after contact with silk-road images of the kētos, the Chinese dragon appeared more reptilian and shifted head-shape.

Those of us familiar with the "Clash of the Titans" films, think of this mythological sea monster as the kraken. The English word kraken is taken from the modern Scandinavian languages, originating from the Old Norse word kraki. In both Norwegian and Swedish Kraken is the definite form of krake, a word designating an unhealthy animal or something twisted (cognate with the English crook and crank). In modern German, Krake (plural and oblique cases of the singular: Kraken) means octopus, but can also refer to the legendary kraken. Kraken is also an old Norwegian word for octopus and an old euphemism in Swedish for whales, used when the original word became taboo as it was believed it could summon the creatures.

If you want to have a little laugh, ask your Alexa device to "Release the Kraken!"

Ritual Water Jar (loutrophoros) with Perseus Battling the Sea Monster Ketos Greek made in Apulia South Italy 340-330 BCE Terracotta that I photographed at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, California.

Detail of Loricate torso of Nero, mid 1st century CE, from Bologna via de' Carbonesi, the cuirass is decorated with two Nereids riding on a Ketos and the Gorgon's head, Bologna, Museo Civico Archeologico courtesy of Carole Raddato, CC BY

Mosaic of the Nereids, fragment of a mosaic depicting a Nereid riding a hybrid sea monster (Ketos), it paved a room of a Roman house perhaps of the private baths area (thermae), 2nd century AD, Museo Histórico Municipal de Écija, Spain courtesy of Carole Raddato, CC BY

Mosaic of Ketos, the sea monster, found at Caulonia (Monasterace) in the Casa del Drago, 3rd century BCE now in the National Archaeological Museum of Calabria courtesy of Miguel Hermoso Cuesta.

One of the earliest extant representations of a Greek ketos, or sea monster from a terracotta vase of the 2nd half of the 7th century BCE, Greek, Cretan or South Italian at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

Roman fresco depicting Hercules freeing Hesione from the sea monster in front of the walls of Troy found in Pompeii in the Insula Occidentalis, now in the National Archaeological Museum of Naples (inv. 9445) courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Sailko (digitally adjusted for perspective and enhanced).

Ritual stone palette with a Nereid (Sea Nymph) and a Cherub riding a Sea Monster (Ketos) from Gandhara (modern Pakistan) 1st century BCE at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Perseus Rescuing Andromeda by Paolo Veronese, 1576-1578, now in the Museum of Fine Arts of Rennes courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Silver Mirror from the tomb of a Roman woman depicting the legend of Phrixus and Helle with the sea monster, Ketos, beneath the flying ram that I photographed at the Palazzo Massimo in Rome.  The mirror was once gilded and covered with an amalgam of Mercury 2nd century CE Vallerano 

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Roman emperor as pharaoh

A block that originally formed part of a screen wall that connected the four front columns and the sidewalls of the temple of Harendotes ("Horus the Avenger") on the island of Philae represents the "Baptism of Pharaoh," a purification ritual that was part of Egyptian coronation ceremonies. The gods Horus (not preserved) and the ibis-headed Thoth, god of wisdom, pours water, represented by streams of the hieroglyphs ankh (life) and was (dominion), over the head of the king. The pharaoh whose head is partially preserved is a Claudian emperor, most probably either Claudius or Nero as defined in the strip of hieroglyphs along the top of the relief.

Cornice Block with Relief Showing the Baptism of Pharaoh (either Claudius or Nero), 41–68 CE, from the Temple of Harendotes on the island of Philae, Egypt, Roman Period at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

As Pharaoh of Egypt, Nero adopted the royal titulary Autokrator Neron Heqaheqau Meryasetptah Tjemaahuikhasut Wernakhtubaqet Heqaheqau Setepennenu Merur ('Emperor Nero, Ruler of rulers, chosen by Ptah, beloved of Isis, the sturdy-armed one who struck the foreign lands, victorious for Egypt, ruler of rulers, chosen of Nun who loves him').  At 16 years old, Nero was the youngest sole emperor until Elagabalus who became emperor at the age of 14 in 218 CE. Perhaps this is reflected in the Egyptian relief depicting a young man with soft mouth.

According to Suetonius, at the end of his reign when his Praetorian Guard abandoned him, Nero toyed with the idea of fleeing to Parthia, throwing himself upon the mercy of Galba, or appealing to the people and begging them to pardon him for his past offences "and if he could not soften their hearts, to entreat them at least to allow him the prefecture of Egypt." Suetonius reports that the text of a speech to this effect was later found in Nero's writing desk, but that he dared not give it from fear of being torn to pieces before he could reach the Forum.

Nero as a boy 1st century CE, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Prioryman.

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Roman influence in Buddhist art

This small bronze Buddha is probably one of the earliest iconic representations of Shakyamuni from Gandhara. He sits in a yogic posture holding his right hand in abhaya mudra (a gesture of approachability). His unusual halo has serrations that indicate radiating light. His hairstyle, the form of his robes, and the treatment of the figure reflect stylistic contacts with the classical traditions of the West. This Buddha shows closer affinities to Roman sculpture than any other surviving Gandharan bronze. - Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

Buddhism developed as early as the 6th century BCE. But, before the late 1st to early 2nd century CE, the Buddha was represented by symbols and not in human form.  In this early human incarnation of the Buddha, he is shown with a mustache, considered a symbol of princely status.  This aspect, found only on very early depictions of the Buddha, was not included when representations of the Buddha in a variety of postures with varying gestures were codified in the 4th century CE. The radiant halo is thought to be unique to this sculpture.  Some scholars have suggested that it is based upon depictions of the Roman emperor Nero who liked to be portrayed as Helios, the Sun God, with a radiant crown.  Depictions of Solar Apollo in Roman art from the same period also include the radiant crown of Helios.

Seated Buddha, early 2nd century CE, ancient Gandhara (modern day Pakistan) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

Roman mosaic from El Djem, Tunisia depicting Solar Apollo with the radiant halo of Helios, late 2nd century CE, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Mathiarex.

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Nero: Hating those who denounce your mistakes

You are wont to hate not so much those who are responsible for your mistakes as those who undertake to denounce them.  Isocrates.  On The Peace.  Speech 8.  Section 80.

Image: The caldarium of the Villa of Poppaea in Oplontis near Naples, Italy with a panel painting depicting Hercules in the Garden of the Hesperides.  Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor AlMare.

Although most of us are familiar with the story that Nero kicked Poppaea to death in a fit of rage (according to Suetonius), The ancient sources actually are not in agreement on that subject. Tacitus claims Nero's kick was a "casual outburst,"  Cassius Dio claims Nero leapt upon her belly, but admitted that he did not know if it was intentional or accidental, and other writers say Nero poisoned her.  Modern scholars, however, think Poppaea may have died due to fatal complications of miscarriage or stillbirth and the stories about Nero's involvement were just attempts to blacken his reputation further and, as often occurred, provide evidence to justify his forced suicide.

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Was Nero's Domus Aurea as big as the ancient sources claim?

A history resource article by Mary Harrsch © 2015

I really enjoyed reading Golden House of an Emperor: How archaeologists are saving Nero’s fabled pleasure palace by Federico Gurgone  in the September/October issue of Archaeology Magazine about the restoration of Nero's Golden House, the Domus Aurea,  I especially appreciated the pictures as both times I have attempted to tour the Domus Aurea I have been thwarted.  In 2005, there was a sign at the entrance saying the site would open in the afternoon but when I went back to the entrance at the designated time, no one was around.  The second time I returned to Rome in 2009 I was told the Domus Aurea was deemed unsafe to visit and closed for repairs.

High vaulted ceilings of the Domus Aurea must have given a feeling of insignificance
to visitors.  Photographed by Mauro Orlando © 2015.  Reproduced with permission
via cc by-nc-nd 2.0.

According to the article, the structure suffered extensive damage from vineyards that were planted atop Nero's buried  palace in the 18th century.  A large public park was also built over the site in 1871 and enlarged by Benito Mussolini in the mid 20th century.  All of the plants and trees' roots have broken the ancient mortar between the stones of Trajan's baths sitting atop the palace and chemical compounds released by the roots have seeped down into underlying structures as well.

Just the sheer weight of all the plants is placing a strain on the palace's structures even though the innovative flat arches and brick-faced concrete support structures are among some of the strongest of the ancient world.  The article mentioned a laurel tree that weighed over 30,000 pounds when it was removed and I remember standing by one about that size when I was there.

I was under the impression that most of the beautiful frescoes that inspired the artists of the Renaissance had crumbled from the walls but I see by the pictures in the article some are actually still intact!

Delicate floral patterns and mythological beings on a white background seen in frescoes of the Domus Aurea inspired decor throughout the Roman Empire including the Temple of Isis in Pompeii.  Photographed by Francois Spilliaert © 2011.
Reproduced with permission via cc by-NC 2.0.

I think there are a lot of misimpressions about the Domus Aurea that architectural researchers hope to clear up once they have an opportunity to explore the remains more thoroughly.  The construction of the Domus Aurea is one of the key events leading to the downfall of the Roman emperor Nero.  The size of the structure alone was used to accuse Nero of causing the great fire of 64 CE so he could build a spacious new palace and "live like a human being".  But was the structural portion of his original Domus Aurea really that big?

In his 1981 journal article "The Domus Aurea Reconsidered", P. Gregory Warden points out that the Domus Aurea was essentially a landscape park in which the architectural components were subordinated to a greater landscape design.  Although earlier scholarship tried to estimate an overall size of 80 hectares of land, Warden suggests the complex covered a much smaller area about half that size.  He also points out that architectural remains in the Esquiline wing, essentially the only extant portion of the palace, indicate it is not even entirely Neronian.  He claims the eastern section is Flavian in date.

Furthermore, much of the Domus Aurea was actually rebuilt over Nero's original palace, the Domus Transitoria as shown in the Archaeology article.  I originally read this in a book and was surprised since it appears to contradict claims that he cleared the center of Rome for his own use, contrary to ancient propaganda.  The expansive gardens, animal menagerie and artificial lake adjacent to the palace did consume quite a bit of property but they were open to the public sort of like Central Park in New York.

In his 1960 text, "The Golden House of Nero", scholar Axel Boëthius distinguished between peristyle and portico villas and described the Domus Aurea as the portico type.  Warden summarizes Boëthius' views:

"Lavish portico villas of the 1st century A.D., with spectacular views of the mountains or seacoast, are commonly shown in Campanian paintings.  They had also been built by emperors before Nero, although, of course, never in Rome.  Nero, however, did much more than import a landscape villa into the heart of Rome; the audacity of his design, or at least the design of his planners, Severus and Celer, was that he imported the landscape as well.  He took advantage of the devastations of the great fire of 64, combined new land with Imperial possessions, probably usurping some private holdings and public monuments as well, turned them all into a large park.  The entire complex, as Boethius noted, was much more than a villa, or architecturally perhaps much less; it was a landscape park in which the villa was but a component.  Buildings, perhaps more correctly termed "pavilions," would have been scattered about, and the individual sections would have been linked conceptually rather than physically." - P. Gergory Warden, The Domus Aurea Reconsidered

With this type of arrangement, determining the size of the actual Domus Aurea has proved challenging.  Warden says there has been too much reliance on a topographical study by C.C. Van Essen published in 1954.  Since that time, whenever a new structure was found within the area described by Van Essen as the Domus Aurea, structures have been accepted as such based on topography alone.

"However, if we examine these fragments of what is purported to be the Domus Aurea, we find a confusing diversity of construction techniques and architectural styles." Warden says.

One such example is the nymphaeum found at the intersection of the Vile del Monte Oppio and the Via delle Terme di Traiano.  Although designated as part of the Domus Aurea, the nymphaeum is not aligned with the Domus Aurea and none of the brickwork appears to be Neronian.

"The nymphaeum is roofed with an elaborate system of groin vaults," Warden explains, "In the entire Esquiline wing of the Domus Aurea there are only two groin vaults, considered the earliest existing examples of their kind, and they are found in the eastern part of the building, a section whose date, as we shall see, is problematical'.

I realize most of us are not architects, so, what is a groin vault?  In his excellent lecture, "Construction Revolution - Arches and Concrete", part of the Great Courses series Understanding Greek and Roman Technology: From Catapult to the Pantheon, Professor Stephen Ressler of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, explains that a groin vault is the shape formed when two barrel vaults intersect.  He then demonstrates how the Romans used concrete poured over a wooden frame to create a groin vault.  (Professor Ressler uses models throughout his course to demonstrate construction processes and I find them quite helpful to understand various Roman engineering techniques.)

Groin vaults were used extensively in the construction of Trajan's Market particularly the aulus portion but were not characteristic of Neronian architecture or the western portion of the Domus Aurea.  Warden also notes that all three of the brickstamps found at the nymphaeum are Trajanic in date.

Warden contends that nothing north of the Esquiline wing can be safely attributed to the Golden House.  Apparently buildings to the east of the site of the artificial lake have been found to be from a later date as well.

Lavishly decorated vaulted ceiling in the Domus Aurea circa 1999.  Photographed by Jacqueline Poggi © 1999.
Reproduced with permission via cc by-nc-nd 2.0

Warden admits there are many Neronian-era structures on the Palatine but thinks they should probably be attributed to the Domus Transitoria although a cryptoporticus linking them may have been built in conjunction with the Domus Aurea.

In 2009, Roman archaeologists excavating the Domus Aurea found remains of what they think may have been Nero's famous rotating dining room on the Palatine Hill.

"The rotating dining room had a diameter of more than 50ft and rested upon a 13ft-wide pillar and four spherical mechanisms that rotated the structure.  

The mechanism was a feat of Roman engineering, and moved thanks to the spheres beneath the wooden floor of the room, kept in constant movement by water being forced against them. Quite how this worked is still being researched. 

Experts believe the dining room could be up to 60m long, but have so far uncovered several supporting pillars, one 4m in diameter, as well as a perimeter wall. 

Archaeologist Maria Antonietta Tomei told how it was the circular shape of the building and the stone spheres that led the team to believe they had found the rotating dining room."  - Nick Pisa and Claire Bates, Roman Emperor Nero's legendary rotating dining room uncovered by archaeologists, The Daily Mail, September 30, 2009.

But, If you read Suetonius' biography of Nero, his distinction between structures within the Domus Transitoria and the subsequent Domus Aurea is a bit hazy.

"There was nothing more ruinously wasteful however than his project to build a palace extending from the Palatine to the Esquiline, which he first called ‘The Passageway’, but after it had burned down shortly after completion and been re-built, ‘The Golden House’. The following details will give a good idea of its size and splendour...Inside there was gold everywhere, with gems and mother-of-pearl. There were dining rooms whose ceilings were of fretted ivory, with rotating panels that could rain down flowers, and concealed sprinklers to shower the guests with perfume. The main banqueting hall was circular with a revolving dome, rotating day and night to mirror the heavens." - Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars, Nero, Book Six: XXXI 

Furthermore, Warden says literary sources point to Neronian builders focusing their efforts on areas other than the Palatine.

"There are also undoubtedly remains of Neronian structures to the south, on the edges of the Caelian in the area of the Temple of the Deified Claudius," Warden writes, "These Neronian works ...are considered to have been more like facades and porticoes with elaborate hydraulic works than buildings proper."

So, according to Warden, an analysis of the topology would indicate the Domus Aurea was centered on the artificial lake and hugged the slopes of the surrounding hills where structures there were hardly more than theatrical facades for elaborate landscape effects.

View of the Colosseum, once Nero's artificial lake, from the Domus Aurea.  Photographed by Jean-Pierre Dalbera © 2011
Reproduced with permission via cc by 2.0.

Then Warden tackles issues with differences in construction and the chronology of extant remains.

He points out that the most obvious differences in the remains on the Esquiline are the fact that the western section of the complex is primarily rectilinear with a porticoed southern facade and relatively traditional while the eastern half of the complex is structurally complex with its octagonal room with flat arches and a domed concrete ceiling with oculus, groin-vaulted subsidiary rooms and an apsed nymphaeum.

Innovative flat arches and concrete domed ceiling with oculus of the spacious
octagonal reception room of the Domus Aurea.  Photographed by Jacqueline Poggi © 1999.Reproduced with permission via cc by-nc-nd 2.0

The two sections are also fused awkwardly and there is a distinctive difference in mortar color from one section to the next.

"Some of the brickwork of the Esquiline wing is very similar to brickwork in the Colosseum," Warden observes. "...at least some of the brickwork of the Esquiline wing is probably Flavian in date.  The crucial question is whether the later brickwork represents minor alterations or an entire building phase."

The degree of decoration may also point to later construction in the eastern section.

"...the concrete dome of the octagonal room still shows signs of the planks of the wooden armature onto which it was cast.  Further, there is no evidence that the concrete of the dome was ever stuccoed or revetted.  While this eastern section may never have been finished, the western section was not only completed but also fully decorated, and it was also extensively restored in later, probably Flavian times."

Although Nero dedicated the Domus Aurea before his death, it, like many buildings in antiquity that were dedicated before completion, may not, in fact, have been completed.  Suetonius, in his biography of Otho, mentions that Otho put aside 50 million sesterces for the completion of the Domus Aurea.  This would indicate that it was not finished at the time of Nero's death.

Detail of a fresco in the Domus Aurea.  Photographed by Francois Spilliaert © 2011.
Reproduced with permission via cc by-NC 2.0

Cassius Dio recounted that Galeria, the wife of Vitellius, found the place too gloomy for her taste and that Vespasian preferred the Horti Sallustiani instead.    Pliny the Elder notes that the famous sculpture of the Laocoon, reported found in either the Termae Traiani or the Domus Aurea, resided in the palace of Titus.  Since this structure has never been identified, some scholars think the eastern part of the Domus Aurea may have been identified as the Domus Titi.

The Trojan Priest Laocoon and his sons attacked by sea snakes because Laocoon had tried to warn
the Trojan citizens of the danger of bringing in the wooden horse.  This sculptural group was found
"in the palace of Titus" in the general area of the Domus Aurea in 1506.  Photographed by
Mary Harrsch at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City © 2005

Warden points to one more literary source indicating a portion of the Domus Aurea was, in fact, Flavian.

"The complex spatial planning of the eastern half would accord well with our view of Flavian architecture, and in support of a Flavian date there is one more piece of evidence. Eusebius, writing at the beginning of the 4th century A.D., mentions in a long list of Flavian monuments a certain Mica Aurea, the remains of which have not been identified. It has been suggested by A.M. Colini, on the basis of the name, that the Mica Aurea could have been a pavilion or a section of the Domus Aurea which was restored under Domitian."

As an architectural historian, Warden raises the question that if the eastern section of the Esquiline wing of the Domus Aurea is not the work of Nero's famous architects, Severus and Celer, but is instead the work of Domitian's architect, Rabirius, historians should perhaps not view the original Domus Aurea as the revolutionary structure marking the turning point of Roman architectural engineering when concrete replaced opus quadratum as the material of choice "to express newer and freer definitions of interior space".

As a student of Roman politics, I think this entire discussion makes me wonder if most of the hype around Nero's lavish lifestyle was just one more example of imperial Roman propaganda used to villify yet another deposed emperor!

References:

Gurgone, F. (2015, August 10). Golden House of an Emperor. Retrieved August 15, 2017, from https://www.archaeology.org/issues/187-1509/features/3562-golden-house-of-an-emperor

Warden, P. (1981). The Domus Aurea Reconsidered. Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 40(4), 271-278. Retrieved September 7, 2015, from https://www.jstor.org/stable/989644

Boëthius, A. (1960). The golden house of Nero: some aspects of Roman architecture. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

Ressler, S., Ph.D. (2015, September 10). Construction Revolution - Arches and Concrete. Lecture presented as part of the course Understanding Greek and Roman Technology: From Catapult to the Pantheon produced by The Great Courses.

Pisa, N. and Bates, C. (2009, September 30). Roman Emperor Nero's legendary rotating dining room uncovered by archaeologists, The Daily Mail.

Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars, Nero, Book Six: XXXI 

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Why did the "optimus" princeps Trajan admire Nero?

A history resource article by Mary Harrsch © 2015

Recently, I watched Dr. Steven Tuck's lecture on the Pompeii earthquake of 62 CE from his course "Pompeii: Daily Life in an Ancient Roman City" recorded for The Great Courses.  Dr. Tuck mentioned that the Pompeii earthquake produced a tsunami that destroyed 200 of 300 grain ships in the harbor at Ostia (actually the newly constructed harbor subsequently named Portus).  I was intrigued by this as Tacitus mentions a storm that destroyed 200 ships but does not seem to make the connection between the earthquake in Pompeii and that storm.  Tacitus merely says they occurred in the same year.

Bust of the Roman Emperor Trajan
photographed by Mary Harrsch © 2005

Anyway, I was intrigued enough to research the history of Ostia further on JSTOR and stumbled across a research paper, "Nero's Quinquennium: The Ostian Connection", by Oxford scholar M.K. Thornton that appeared in the journal Historia in 1989.  Although it made no mention of a tsunami-like phenomenon, Thornton mentions a quote by Trajan in which Trajan openly expresses profound admiration for Nero.  I found this even more intriguing than verification of the tsunami.  The quote was attributed to Trajan by Aurelius Victor and his Epitomator:

"...un merito Traianus saepius testaretur procul differre cunctos principes Neronis quinquennio."  (Trajan quite often declared that all other emperors fell behind Nero in his quinquennium).

Apparently, this quote has puzzled scholars for over a century since Nero's moral shortcomings and political brutality are usually the focus of most scholarship.  Thus we are regaled by stories of his initially bungled assassination of his mother, Agrippina the Younger, by collapsible boat and Nero's temper tantrum that ended in the death of his second wife, Poppaea Sabina, and unborn child.  We hear of his ridiculous performances in Greece and his brutal persecution of the Christians in retribution for the Great Fire of 64 CE.

The Torches of Nero by Henryk Siemiradzki (1876).  Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

In fact, Nero's shenanigans are so extensive, Dr. Garrett Fagan must use three lectures to detail them in his course "Emperors of Rome" produced by The Great Courses.  In contrast, Trajan who the Roman Senate voted "Optimus Princeps" and is widely recognized by scholars as one of the "good" emperors, warrants only one and a half.

So, what other aspects of Nero's reign could have prompted such an exclamation from a subsequent respectable emperor? Actually, there were a number of military conflicts, administrative challenges and major natural disasters that took place during Nero's rather short, less than 14-year, reign that was resolved successfully despite Nero's obvious moral shortcomings.  Nero did not spend all of his time conspiring to murder his relatives or practicing his lyre.

A rare gold and silver statuette of a youthful Nero
at the British Museum.  Photo by Mary Harrsch © 2008

Thornton discovered this question has confounded scholars since the early 20th century.   He also found that the first problem that arises when attempting to resolve this issue is identifying the time period Trajan was referencing.  Some scholars point to the first five years of Nero's reign when he was under the close supervision of his tutor Seneca the Younger and the aged Praetorian Prefect Sextus Afranius Burrus, considered a creature of Nero's mother Agrippina.  Therefore, they dismiss any favorable outcomes attributable to Nero himself.  However, an early 20th-century scholar, Professor F. Haverfield, one of the references cited by Thornton, points to the first five years of Nero's reign after Burrus died (presumably of natural causes) and Seneca resigned his court position as the period Trajan may have been referencing.

Sculpture of Old Fisherman or Dying Seneca
Photographed at The Louvre by Mary Harrsch
© 2008

In his article "Trajan on the Quinquennium Neronis" that appeared in the 1911 Vol. 1 Issue of The Journal of Roman Studies, Professor Haverfield explains, "...Nero himself tried to divide his reign up into quinquennia by establishing in 60 a quinquennale ludicrum (Tac. Ann. xiv, 20,21) and repeating it in 65 (Ann. xvi, 2).  As the second lustrum was not concluded before his death, it might be held that the period 60-65 was his [first] quinquennium."

Haverfield and his co-author J.G.C. Anderson are both convinced Trajan's admiration is directed at Nero's building programs based on a strict translation of Trajan's entire quote, in particular, the qualification "augenda urbe maxime".  They dismiss a natural interpretation, "enlarging the city", pointing out "augere" may denote an increase not only in size but also greatness, splendor, and dignity of the city.

I personally agree with this point and would take this interpretation a step further since most Romans viewed their city as representative of the empire as a whole.  Therefore I would include not only his building projects but his management of imperial business as well.

Looking at the years 60 - 65, we see that Nero's handling of the Boudiccan Revolt (60-61 CE) resulted in the successful retention of Britannia as a province.  In 62 we know from Dr. Tuck's lecture that Nero must have successfully developed a strategy to relieve any loss of Rome's food supplies and fleet from the catastrophic tsunami that destroyed 200 ships in the newly constructed harbor at Ostia and caused another 100 ships in the Tiber to catch fire.  We also know Poppaea Sabina became Nero's consort in 62 and had close family connections to Pompeii, (her villa in Oplontis still exists and is a fascinating archaeological site with many frescoes still in situ!).  She would have undoubtedly insisted Nero send aid to Pompeii after its devastating earthquake and assist in its reconstruction.  Dr. Tuck tells us the Pompeii quake was of a magnitude roughly equal to that of the catastrophic 1906 San Francisco earthquake. So aid sent to Pompeii would have had to have been comprehensive and very expensive.



From 58 - 63  Nero, through his talented general Corbulo, deflected an attempt by Parthia to wrest control of Armenia away from the Romans and ultimately resolved the conflict by placing a brother of the Parthian king Vologases I on the Armenian throne.  However, the agreement included the requirement that Tiridates I swear allegiance to and be crowned by Nero as a Roman client king. Although some scholars dismiss this agreement as relatively short-lived (50 years), it forestalled any major confrontations with the Parthians until the Roman appointed Armenian king was deposed in 113 CE and the Parthians placed the nephew of then disputed Parthian King Osroes I on the throne. This resulted in Trajan's invasion of Parthia in 114 CE.

Closeup of a Lynx on a Parthian wine horn.
Photographed by Mary Harrsch © 2015

Rome and Parthia were the two great super powers in the region during this period.  The U.S. government has certainly never been able to accomplish a period of peace lasting that long.  So, I would not dismiss this accomplishment so readily.

Although Nero was not a military man, he still expanded the empire during his reign as well. In 63 CE Pontus Polemaniacus was formally annexed into the empire as a new Roman province.  Between 63 and 66 CE the Cottian Alps was annexed as well.

Then in 64 CE, The Great Fire devastated Rome.  Tacitus tells us of Rome's 14 districts, three districts were levelled to the ground, seven districts had only a few shattered, half-burnt relics of houses remaining, and only three escaped damage.  Nero managed the aftermath of the Great Fire and began rebuilding the city on a plan that not only enhanced the city's appearance but made it easier to defend from future conflagrations.

Of Rome meanwhile, so much as was left unoccupied by his mansion, was not built up, as it had been after its burning by the Gauls, without any regularity or in any fashion, but with rows of streets according to measurement, with broad thoroughfares, with a restriction on the height of houses, with open spaces, and the further addition of colonnades, as a protection to the frontage of the blocks of tenements. These colonnades Nero promised to erect at his own expense, and to hand over the open spaces, when cleared of the debris, to the ground landlords. He also offered rewards proportioned to each person's position and property, and prescribed a period within which they were to obtain them on the completion of so many houses or blocks of building. He fixed on the marshes of Ostia for the reception of the rubbish, and arranged that the ships which had brought up corn by the Tiber, should sail down the river with cargoes of this rubbish. The buildings themselves, to a certain height, were to be solidly constructed, without wooden beams, of stone from Gabii or Alba, that material being impervious to fire. And to provide that the water which individual license had illegally appropriated, might flow in greater abundance in several places for the public use, officers were appointed, and everyone was to have in the open court the means of stopping a fire. Every building, too, was to be enclosed by its own proper wall, not by one common to others. These changes which were liked for their utility also added beauty to the new city. - Tacitus, Annals, Book XV

A fresco from Nero's Domus Aurea (Golden House).  Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

I knew Nero had thrown open public buildings and even his own garden to refugees from the fire but I was surprised to read in "Nero: The Man Behind The Myth" by Richard Holland that Nero took over personal leadership of the vigiles (firefighters).

"Nero now took over personal leadership of these already exhausted men, whose prefect, until recently, had been Tigellinus. The young Emperor was to be seen rushing about the city, directing operations by day and night, unprotected by his usual armed guards, whom he had presumably already pressed into temporary service as firefighters, along with any other able-bodied men he could find." - Richard Holland, "Nero: The Man Behind The Myth".

Doesn't sound much like fiddling while Rome burned, does it?

Unfortunately, I have been unable to find any ancient references to this account in the translations of Tacitus, Suetonius or Cassius Dio I have read so I'm not sure who Holland used for a source.

Nero also had to manage a plague that struck Rome and claimed 30,000 victims.  Suetonius is the only source for this incident and we're not sure when it occurred other than "one autumn".  But it would certainly have been a real possibility following the fire when so many people were forced to live in cramped temporary dwellings while awaiting reconstruction

In 64 CE Nero also issued a coin memorializing the completion of the great new harbor at Ostia.  The harbor was begun by his adopted father Claudius in 42 CE and some scholars scoff that it was almost complete when Claudius was assassinated and Nero simply took credit for it.  But, we know from Tacitus (Ann. 15.18.3) that in 62 CE a terrible storm destroyed 200 ships anchored in the new harbor and most certainly must have done tremendous damage to the harbor itself as well.  This would account for a rather delayed recognition of the completion of this project.

Portus: Claudius' first harbor and hexagonal basin extension under Trajan
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Thornton points out, "...Nero obviously credited himself with much of the construction: he placed the harbor of Ostia on his coins as a symbol of his reign.  He would be unlikely to do that if he could not convincingly claim it as his own contribution.  Trajan's remark must be construed as showing that in the minds of the Romans Nero should get credit for the harbor than we today might be inclined to give him." - - M. K. Thornton, Nero's Quinquennium: The Ostian Connection

Thornton is convinced it is the harbor at Ostia that evoked the admiring quote from Trajan.

"Who else built a harbor? Trajan did.  Not only the one at Ostia but a number of others; Nero also built a harbor at Antium and was interested in other waterways which would improve the obtaining of the food supply.  Trajan, having built the more easily constructed second and smaller harbor at Ostia would respect Nero's accomplishment in building the first and far more difficult outer harbor, without which the inner harbor would have been impossible.  Trajan knew first hand that the building of the harbor was a difficult task.  His admiration for Nero came honestly from a deep appreciation of a very large task well done." - M. K. Thornton, Nero's Quinquennium: The Ostian Connection

But then Thornton goes on to dismiss other achievements mentioned by Aurelius Victor in the complete Trajan quotation as mere citations of other accomplishments of Nero, not necessarily within his first five years.  I disagree.  I think Trajan, speaking out of genuine respect for Nero's multiple administrative achievements,  probably considered the first five years of Nero's reign after the death of Claudius as more of a regency period rather than Nero's own. So Trajan viewed Nero's first quinquennium as really 60 - 65 CE.

Reviewing the almost overwhelming events of those five years, I no longer find Trajan's quote puzzling at all!

References:

Thornton, M. (1989). Nero's Quinquennium: The Ostian Connection. Historia: Zeitschrift Für Alte Geschichte, 38(1), 117-119. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/4436096

Victor, A. De Caesaribus.

Anderson, J., & Haverfield, F. (1911). Trajan on the Quinquennium Neronis. The Journal of Roman Studies, 1, 173-179. doi:10.2307/295862



Tacitus, C. Annals. multiple references.

Holland, R. (2000). Nero: the man behind the myth. Stroud: Sutton.

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Review: "Avenger of Rome" by Douglas Jackson

A history resource article by Mary Harrsch © 2015

As the third novel in Jackson's "Hero of Rome" series opens, we find Gaius Valerius Verrens, Hero of Rome, has not escaped the clutches of the depraved emperor Nero.  The praetorian prefect killed at the end of "Defender of Rome" has been replaced by an even more vicious creature named Tigellinus.

Tigellinus was a real historical personality known for his cruelty and for gaining imperial favor by arranging the emperor's notorious debaucheries. To a man like Tigellinus, a courageous warrior like Gaius Valerius Verrens posed a threat to Tigellinus' ambitious plans to assume more and more of the emperor's power.  So, threatening Valerius' physically fragile sister, Tigellinus gets Valerius to agree to a mission to travel to Antioch and report on the loyalty of Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, Rome's most accomplished general and even more of a potential threat to Nero's power base than Valerius.

The journey, further complicated by the presence of Corbulo's daughter, Domitia, is a suspense-filled endeavor that requires Valerius to battle Illyrian pirates and an unforgiving desert.

When he finally reaches Antioch, he finds a wary Corbulo surrounded by outwardly hostile officers that do not trust him and suspect he has been sent by Nero to assassinate their beloved commander.

Little by little Valerius redeems himself in their eyes and when Corbulo gathers his legions to repulse a Parthian incursion lead by the "king of kings", Vologases I, Valerius is appointed to lead auxiliary cavalry on a dangerous "behind the lines" mission that will mean ultimate Roman victory or death to the last man of Corbulo's combined army.

Coin of Vologaces I.  Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Once again Jackson has crafted a thrilling narrative that compels the reader to attack each chapter in anticipation as Verrens survives one nearly fatal encounter after the next.  His characters, from the wise but fiercely disciplined Corbulo to the courageous but fatally flawed young tribune, Tiberius, vibrantly bring the eastern Roman Empire, with its multicultural challenges, to life, with Valerius and his trusted companion and former gladiator, Serpentius, at the forefront of the action.

Furthermore, Jackson demonstrates his mastery of both Roman and Parthian battle tactics as he orchestrates, what would have been, if it had actually occurred, one of the greatest Roman victories ever achieved against overwhelming odds.

Parthian infantryman.  Image courtesy of
Wikimedia Commons.

In history, Corbulo, with his command of four legions (III Gallica, V Macedonica, VI Ferrata, and the newly-arrived XV Apollinaris) invaded Armenia in 63 CE to defend the reigning client king of Armenia.  It is thought that Vologases and his brother Tiridates, who claimed to be the rightful heir to the throne of Armenia, thought that a war could not be won over such a force.  Corbulo, too, was convinced that fighting such a war would have been arduous in the moutainous country of the region. So, before the armies came to blows, a treaty was negotiated.  The Parthians agreed to let the Roman emperor appoint the king of Armenia and Tiridates laid down his crown and traveled to Rome where Nero replaced it upon his brow with Rome's blessing.

Jackson imagines how the avoided war would have unfolded and compresses the timeline by three years to combine Corbulo's victory with his ultimate historically documented fate.

Obviously, I highly recommend "Avenger of Rome" and am anxious to begin the next installment in the series, "Sword of Rome".

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