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Lives of The Roman Empresses, by Serviez


Crispina

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Has anyone else read this book? It's real title is: "Lives of The Roman Empresses, The History of the Lives and Secret Intrigues of the Wives, Sisters, and Mothers of the Caesars" by Jacques Boergas De Serviez, Copyright 1935, with an introduction by Robert Graves.

 

I bought this book long ago when I collected old books and it just so happened that I, Claudius had debuted on TV the year before. The book begins with Calpurnia, wife of Julius Caesar and ends with Constantia, wife of Licinius. It's where I learned the word "debauched" because he uses it so frequently! ha. Now is the time to take it off the book shelf and give it another read.

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Sounds interesting, Crispina. I just downloaded a free copy of Volume I from Google Books. I guess I'll have a look at it.

 

I hereby declare The Roman Empresses Drinking Game to be in progress -- take one sip everytime you read the word "debauched." :)

 

-- Nephele

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Sounds interesting, Crispina. I just downloaded a free copy of Volume I from Google Books. I guess I'll have a look at it.

 

I hereby declare The Roman Empresses Drinking Game to be in progress -- take one sip everytime you read the word "debauched." :)

 

-- Nephele

 

 

Well, now I know more about this book. The online version has a shorter title and was published in 1913. So this means my book consists of both volumes. But why so many different titles? It also has 10 really nice illustrations and four pages of Historical Notes that include a chronological table. Does Volume I have the Author's Preface (I've forgotten even tho I checked) if not here is a bit from it:

"To say the truth, I have been sometimes almost tempted to suppress a great many things which I have, nevertheless, been obliged to touch upon, but yet with all the regard to decency a man can have, who would be extremely sorry to offend against the rules of good manners. But I hope that nobody will have any great reason to blame me upon that subject, since, even in the most shameful passages of these Empresses' lives, I have carefully avoided making use of any shocking expressions". Debauched, I say! hee hee

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I can not believe this. For years, I have been racking my brain and searching through my old Roman history books and other old books to find a story I read once. It was the story of a find of the sixteenth century of a tomb of a young girl swimming in a liquid of some sort and the body was not decomposed one bit. It was put on display and (I thought I remembered) it eventually fell into decay. Again, my little brain thought I'd read it was a daughter of Pliny. I think I even attempted my first post ever to UNRV, asking if anyone knew of this tale and if it was true or not.

 

Well....I began reading Lives of The Roman Empresses last night and lo and behold in the footnotes on page 14 is the story!

The chapter is about Calpurnia and speaks of Cicero. The story goes that it was suppose to have been Tullia, daughter of Cicero. Quote: "In the beginning of the sixteenth century, a tomb was discovered in the high-road near Terracina, which was called by the Romans Via Appia, and in it was found the body of a young girl swimming in a certain unknown liquor. The corpse had fair hair turned up with a gold buckle, and as fresh as if alive. At the feet of the body was a lamp burning, which went out as soon as the air came to it. By the inscriptions it appeared that it had been buried in that place fifteen hundred years, and it was supposed to be the body of Tullia, Cicero's daughter. It was carried to Rome, and exposed in the Capitol, where great crowds of people came to view it; but as the credulous multitude would needs have it to be the body of a saint, because it was not corrupted, the Pope ordered it to be thrown by night into the Tiber."

 

What is your opinion on this? I find it fascinating if it's true but is it just a romantic tale? And why would the Pope throw it into the river if she was thought to be a saint??

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I can not believe this. For years, I have been racking my brain and searching through my old Roman history books and other old books to find a story I read once. It was the story of a find of the sixteenth century of a tomb of a young girl swimming in a liquid of some sort and the body was not decomposed one bit. It was put on display and (I thought I remembered) it eventually fell into decay. Again, my little brain thought I'd read it was a daughter of Pliny. I think I even attempted my first post ever to UNRV, asking if anyone knew of this tale and if it was true or not.

 

Well....I began reading Lives of The Roman Empresses last night and lo and behold in the footnotes on page 14 is the story!

The chapter is about Calpurnia and speaks of Cicero. The story goes that it was suppose to have been Tullia, daughter of Cicero. Quote: "In the beginning of the sixteenth century, a tomb was discovered in the high-road near Terracina, which was called by the Romans Via Appia, and in it was found the body of a young girl swimming in a certain unknown liquor. The corpse had fair hair turned up with a gold buckle, and as fresh as if alive. At the feet of the body was a lamp burning, which went out as soon as the air came to it. By the inscriptions it appeared that it had been buried in that place fifteen hundred years, and it was supposed to be the body of Tullia, Cicero's daughter. It was carried to Rome, and exposed in the Capitol, where great crowds of people came to view it; but as the credulous multitude would needs have it to be the body of a saint, because it was not corrupted, the Pope ordered it to be thrown by night into the Tiber."

 

What is your opinion on this? I find it fascinating if it's true but is it just a romantic tale? And why would the Pope throw it into the river if she was thought to be a saint??

Serviez was not particularly careful with either his source or the details; as usual, reality surpassed legends.

 

This was the famous discovery that took place in April 16, 1485, near the sixth milestone of the Via Appia.

The girl was never identified, in spite of countless faked inscriptions; she was certainly much younger than Tullia (Cicero

Edited by sylla
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[

Serviez was not particularly careful with either his source or the details; as usual, reality surpassed legends.

 

This was the famous discovery that took place in April 16, 1485, near the sixth milestone of the Via Appia.

The girl was never identified, in spite of countless faked inscriptions; she was certainly much younger than Tullia (Cicero

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