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Gareth Harney Profile picture
@OptimoPrincipi
Apr 24, 2021 • 6 tweets • 3 min read • Read on X
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1) A day in the life of a young heir to the throne. In this delightful letter, a twenty-something Marcus Aurelius describes his day:

"Today I worked at my studies from 3am to 8am with some snacks. Then for an hour I cheerfully paced around my bedroom wearing only my slippers..
2) ..Then I put on my boots and cloak and went to say good morning to the emperor (Antoninus Pius). We all set off for a hunt and daring deeds were done! We climbed a steep hill and heard some boars were caught but didn't catch any ourselves. In the afternoon we returned home..
3) ..Then I returned to my books. Kicking off my boots and cape I sat on the couch for two hours and read Cato's speech "On the Property of Pulchra" and another where he impeaches a tribune. Before you tell your slave "Hey, go get me Cato's speeches from the library of Apollo"...
4) ..don't bother, as I have the volumes here! I know they have copies at the Library of Tiberius, so my tip is ingratiate yourself with the librarian there. When I finished the speeches I wrote a few wretched little things that are only fit for dedication to water or fire..
5) Now I seem to have caught a cold, maybe from walking naked in my slippers or maybe I caught it from my bad writing. I frequently suffer nasal congestion but today my nose is running more than usual. Instead of pouring olive oil in my lamp this evening...
6) ..I'll pour the oil on my head and go to sleep, all this riding and sneezing have tired me out. Farewell my dearest teacher whom I cherish more than Rome itself."

(Marcus Aurelius writes to his tutor Cornelius Fronto c.145 AD, 'Fronto's Letters', 4.5)

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More from @OptimoPrincipi

Gareth Harney Profile picture
Aug 12
1) Let's travel in time through this fascinating Roman denarius added to my collection, to the sacred grove of the goddess Diana on the mysterious shores of Lake Nemi – and into one of the most bloody and undeniably cinematic rites of the ancient world... Image
2) Situated in the Alban Hills south of Rome, Lago di Nemi is a circular crater lake nestled within the caldera of an extinct ancient volcano. The sheltered and tranquil body of water, which perfectly reflected the moon, came to be known by the Romans as 'Diana's Mirror'.. Image
3) Within a sacred grove on the northern shore of the lake stood the temple sanctuary of Diana Nemorensis or 'Diana of the Wood' constructed around 300 BC, though the cult of Diana of Nemi is thought to have its origins as far back as the 6th century BC.. Image
Read 28 tweets
Gareth Harney Profile picture
Jun 14
1) This bronze diploma was awarded to Marcus Surus Garasenus on 5th April 71 AD, recognising his completion of 26 years' service as an auxiliary marine in the Roman naval fleet based at Misenum. The prized diploma granted full Roman citizenship to Marcus, his wife and his heirs.. Image
2) Marcus Surus originally came from the Roman province of Syria, leaving his home in what is today Jerash, Jordan to join the Roman navy during the reign of Claudius in 46 AD... Image
3) Marking completion of his stipulation 26 years of service, this diploma not only grants him honourable discharge and full Roman citizenship, but also records that 'Surus, son of Dama, from Jerash' will now be known by his Romanised name, Marcus Surus Garasenus.Image
Read 10 tweets
Gareth Harney Profile picture
May 22
1) An astounding survival from the Roman world. This silver bust of the emperor Galba is an incredibly rare example of an imperial imago, a reverential portrait of the reigning emperor mounted on a pole and carried into battle as a military standard...Image
2) The imago of the emperor was carried on campaign by a special standard-bearer known as the imaginifer. These precious metal busts ensured the symbolic presence of the emperor on the battlefield, and in the absence of the real ruler, could be used as...Image
3) ..objects of veneration in the camp, foci for oaths of fidelity to the emperor, as well as oaths of submission from a defeated enemy. This imago of Galba is of particular historical interest; after he had reigned for six months in the wake of Nero's suicide... Image
Read 8 tweets
Gareth Harney Profile picture
May 15
1) The fascinating Roman grave memorial of Sextus Vettius Geminus, veteran of the Third Augustan Legion based at Lambaesis, Algeria. The stele with its striking portrait is compelling in its own right – but is made even more so by an intriguing added function that it served... Image
2) Sextus Vettius Geminus lived sixty years and was a veteran of Legio III Augusta, in which he served a crucial role as signifer or standard-bearer. The old, bearded veteran is shown wearing his toga in a powerful frontal portrait that extends beyond the limits of its frame..Image
3) The memorial to Vettius Geminus was probably set up by his wife Licinia Muciana and a son also called Vettius, whose names are both damaged in the inscription. It is when we look at the top of the gravestone that we see something very surprising... Image
Read 9 tweets
Gareth Harney Profile picture
May 14
1) This incredible Roman bronze victory trophy is a unique survival from the ancient world, unearthed in the forum of Hippo Regius in Algeria where it once stood in celebration of a Roman military triumph... Image
2) The tropaeum, standing eight feet tall and weighing over a quarter of a ton, is sculpted in emulation of temporary trophies erected near the site of a victorious battle, taking the form of a tree trunk decorated with captured armour and weapons...Image
3) The cast bronze trophy shows a general's cuirass armour draped in a cloak, with precisely sculpted leather pteruges strips that provided some defence at the hips. Captured enemy weapons may have also been fixed to monument in ancient times...Image
Read 7 tweets
Gareth Harney Profile picture
Apr 12
1) The massive Trier Gold Hoard: 2,516 Roman aurei coins weighing 18.5 kg, unearthed in 1993 in the cellar of a Roman administrative building of ancient Augusta Treverorum. The hoard was deposited during the Antonine Plague or 'Plague of Galen' in the late 2nd century AD.. Image
2) The gold hoard was unearthed by chance during the excavation of an underground parking garage in Trier. Sadly, hundreds of coins were stolen before the hoard could be secured by authorities, but an estimated 95% was preserved – the largest surviving Roman imperial gold hoard. Image
3) Study has shown the Trier hoard was first deposited in 167 AD at the height of the Antonine Plague: a catastrophic pandemic that may have killed upwards of 10 million people across the Roman Empire including, in all likelihood, the Roman emperor Lucius Verus.. Image
Read 6 tweets

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