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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Jan 9

1) A fantastical Roman 'monster' story and marvellous example of an ancient urban myth - to be taken with a generous pinch of salt for sure but all the more entertaining for it..

The bustling ancient port of Puteoli. Vessels from around the empire jostle to offload their cargo..

2) In the harbourside home of an Iberian merchant, confusion reigns. Workers stand perplexed among the smashed remnants of ceramic amphora vessels. Yet again, a large amount of their valuable cargo: prime pickled fish imported from southern Hispania, has vanished overnight..

3) Sifting through the broken pottery fragments and remains of the pickled produce, the men argue about who could be responsible for the night raids. Rivals in the import trade? A criminal gang? No attempt has been made upon the doors. Windows, roof and walls, all are undamaged..

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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Dec 29, 2021

1) A beautiful Roman marble statue thought to depict Claudia Antonia, daughter and oldest surviving child of the emperor Claudius. The statue is one of an imperial group depicting Julio-Claudian family members that were displayed at the Domus Romana in ancient Melite (Malta)..

2) Claudia Antonia was born in 30 AD, the only child from Claudius' short-lived second marriage to Aelia Paetina. She was raised in a palace of intrigue with her father now remarried to Messalina and her cousin Caligula on the throne. When she was around 10 years old..

3) ..Caligula was assassinated and her father was thrust into power as the new emperor. Before long she was married in quick succession to two nobleman; the first a descendant and namesake of Pompey the Great who was soon executed, the second a descendant of the dictator Sulla..

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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Dec 12, 2021

1) The remains of this 35-year-old man from the 1st-2nd century tell a pitiful tale of disability in the ancient world, yet also serve as a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit. When his skeleton was found near Ostia in 2008, experts were astounded to see..

2) ..the unfortunate man suffered from a completely fused jaw (emporomandibular joint ankylosis), perhaps from trauma in childhood but most likely a congenital condition which made it impossible for him to open his mouth through his life. Incredibly, a closer look reveals that..

3) ..several of his front teeth have been removed and a hole drilled through his mouth to allow feeding, likely only eating liquid food his entire life. Nevertheless, bone analysis has shown his diet was rich and well-balanced. Other skeletal damage shows he worked in..

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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Nov 27, 2021

1) Delighted to add to my collection this wonderful denarius of Hadrian, with the restless emperor shown near the end of his 21-year reign and celebrating himself as restorer of the lands of the world - in this case none other than his homeland of Hispania.

2) Where his predecessor Trajan had travelled mainly through military campaigns and his successor Antoninus never left Italy at all during his time on the throne, Hadrian spent more than half his long reign touring the provinces of a Roman empire at its most expansive.

3) In the last few years of his rule, having visited most of his provinces in person, the Roman mint commemorated the emperor's grand tour in an ambitious 'travel series' of coinage, celebrating the imperial provinces visited by Hadrian and their subsequent revitalisation.

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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Nov 26, 2021

1/4) Roman sarcophagus fragment depicting the death of the Greek hero Meleager, famous for killing the Calydonian boar. The emotive tableau focuses on the dying hero being carried home by his father and companions. 2nd century, The Met

2/4) The scene is powerfully realised in high relief emphasising the dying hero, unlike most other classical representations of Meleager which usually show the hunt for the Calydonian boar or the hero being laid to rest in a tomb.

3/4) An emotive detail of a grieving companion of the dying hero Meleager.

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Gareth Harney

@OptimoPrincipi

Nov 21, 2021

1) Marble bust of a Roman empress, commonly identified as Agrippina the Younger (15-59 AD), sister of Caligula, niece and wife of Claudius, as well as mother of Nero by her first husband Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus..

2) The empress has intricately curled and braided hair with luxuriant plaits at the back. She wears a diadem of flame palmettes which has been partially restored..

3) While the bust has been dated to Agrippina's lifetime, around 40-55 AD, certain features like the treatment of the eyes suggest to me this may be a later posthumous portrait of the Julio-Claudian empress, perhaps from the Trajanic era. We know for instance that..

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