The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Nero

423 Pages·2017·42.54 MB·English

by  Shadi Bartsch, Kirk Freudenburg, Cedric Littlewood

T C C
HE AMBRIDGE OMPANION TO
THE AGE OF NERO
S
TheageofNerohasappealedtothepopularimaginationmorethananyother
periodofRomanhistory.Thisvolumeprovidesalivelyandaccessibleguideto
the various representations and interpretations of Emperor Nero as well as
to the rich literary, philosophical, and artistic achievements of his eventful
reign.Themajorachievementsoftheperiodinthefieldsofliterature,govern-
ance, architecture, and art are freshly described and analyzed, and special
attentionispaidtothereceptionofNerointheRomanandChristianerasof
thefirstcenturiesCEandbeyond.Writtenbyaninternationalteamofleading
experts,thechaptersprovidestudentsandnon-specialistswithclearandcom-
prehensive accounts of the most important trends in the study of Neronian
Rome. They also offer numerous original insights into the period, and open
newareasofstudyforscholarstopursue.
Shadi Bartsch is the Helen A. Regenstein Distinguished Service Professor in
ClassicsattheUniversityofChicago.Herworkfocusesontheliteratureand
philosophyoftheNeronianperiodinRome.Sheisalsotheinauguraldirector
oftheStevanovichInstituteontheFormationofKnowledge,aninitiativeto
studytheculturalandhistoricalrootsofdifferentformsofknowledge,andshe
held a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2007–8. Her most recent books are
The Mirror of the Self (2006) and Persius: A Study in Food, Philosophy, and the
Figural(2015).
KirkFreudenburgisBrooksandSuzanneRagenProfessorofClassicsatYale
University. His major publications include The Walking Muse: Horace on the
TheoryofSatire(1993),SatiresofRome:ThreateningPosesfromLuciliustoJuvenal
(Cambridge, 2001), (edited) The Cambridge Companion to Roman Satire
(Cambridge, 2005), and (edited) Oxford Readings in Classical Studies: Horace’s
SatiresandEpistles(2009).
Cedric Littlewood is an associate professor in the Department of Greek and
Roman Studies at the University of Victoria, British Columbia. He is the
authorofSelf-RepresentationandIllusioninSenecanTragedy(2004).

T C C
HE AMBRIDGE OMPANION TO
THE AGE OF NERO
S
Edited by
S B
HADI ARTSCH
UniversityofChicago,Illinois
K F
IRK REUDENBURG
YaleUniversity,Connecticut
C L
EDRIC ITTLEWOOD
UniversityofVictoria,BritishColumbia
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Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107052208
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AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
names:Bartsch,Shadi,1966–editor.|Freudenburg,Kirk,1961–editor.|
Littlewood,C.A.J.(CedricA.J.),editor.
title:TheCambridgecompaniontotheageofNero/editedbyShadi
Bartsch,UniversityofChicago;KirkFreudenburg,YaleUniversity,
Connecticut;CedricLittlewood,UniversityofVictoria,BritishColumbia.
othertitles:AgeofNero
description:Cambridge;NewYork,NY:CambridgeUniversityPress,
2018.|Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
identifiers:lccn2017024676|isbn9781107052208
subjects:lcsh:Nero,EmperorofRome,37–68.|Rome–History–Nero,
54–68.|Rome– Intellectuallife.|Latinliterature–Historyandcriticism.|
Art,Roman.|Architecture,Roman–History.
classification:lccdg285.c352018|ddc937/.07–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2017024676
isbn978-1-107-05220-8Hardback
isbn978-1-107-66923-9Paperback
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C
ONTENTS
S
ListofIllustrations pageviii
ListofContributors xi
Acknowledgments xiii
TimelineofEvents xiv
ListofAbbreviations xviii
Julio-ClaudianFamilyTree xix
MapoftheRomanEmpirein69CE xx
Introduction:AnglesonanEmperor 1
SHADIBARTSCH,KIRKFREUDENBURG,ANDCEDRIC
LITTLEWOOD
P i: N ’ W 19
ART ERO S ORLD
1 NerothePerformer 21
MATTHEWLEIGH
2 NeroandtheSenate 34
JOSIAHOSGOOD
3 Nero’sImperialAdministration 48
CARLOSF.NOREÑA
4 Nero’sWomen 63
ANTHONYA.BARRETT
P ii: N L 77
ART ERONIAN ITERATURE
5 Post-AugustanRevisionism 79
CEDRICLITTLEWOOD
6 Lucan’sCivilWarinNero’sRome 93
GARETHWILLIAMS
v
CONTENTS
7 Petronius,Realism,Nero 107
KIRKFREUDENBURG
8 “Ain’tSayin’”:PersiusinNeroland 121
DANIELHOOLEY
P iii N S 135
ART ERONIAN ENECA
9 SenecanDramaandtheAgeofNero 137
CHIARATORRE
10 PhilosophersandtheStateunderNero 151
SHADIBARTSCH
11 SenecaandtheQuestforGloryinNero’sGoldenAge 164
CATHARINEEDWARDS
P iv N ’ M R 177
ART ERO S ONUMENTAL OME
12 ArtandtheDecadentCity 179
CAROLINEVOUT
13 StagingNero:PublicImageryandtheDomusAurea 195
EUGENIOLAROCCA
14 BurningRome,BurningChristians 213
JOHNPOLLINI
15 Nero’sMemoryinFlavianRome 237
ERICVARNER
P v T N R 259
ART HE EROS OF ECEPTION
16 Nero:TheMakingoftheHistoricalNarrative 261
DONATIENGRAU
17 SaintPaulandtheChristianCommunitiesofNero’sRome 276
J.ALBERTHARRILL
18 TheImageofNeroinRenaissancePoliticalThought 290
PETERSTACEY
19 ResurgencesofNerointheEnlightenment 305
ELENARUSSO
vi
CONTENTS
20 NeroinHollywood 318
MARTINM.WINKLER
P vi A L L 333
ART FTER THE AST AUGH
21 TheNeronian“Symptom” 335
ERIKGUNDERSON
Appendix:Nero’sImage:TheFourPortraitTypes
(notesbyEugenioLaRocca) 354
GeneralBibliography 359
Index 396
vii
I
LLUSTRATIONS
S
3.1 MapoftheRomanEmpirein69CE.AncientWorld page50
MappingCentre©2016(awmc.unc.edu).Usedby
permission.
4.1 Denarius,Nero,andAgrippina,54CE.PhotoAndreas 66
Pangerlwww.romancoins.info.
4.2 ReliefdepictingNeroandAgrippina.Sebasteion,Sevgi 67
GönülGallery,Aphrodisias.NYU–Aphrodisias
Excavations.
12.1 PortraitofNero,55–9CE,MuseoNazionale,Cagliari, 184
inv.6122(Photo:DAIR66.1946).
12.2 PortraitofNero,64–8CE,WorcesterArtMuseum,inv. 185
no.1915.23(Photo:Museum).
12.3 CentraloctagonalofvaultmosaicshowingOdysseusand 187
theCyclops,room13,DomusAurea,Rome,64–8CE
(Photo:DAIR70.2074).
12.4 NorthwallofTricliniumA,Moregine,showingApollo 189
andtheMusesClioandEuterpe,Fourthstyle,first
centuryCE(Photo:SAP85182).
12.5 EastwallofTricliniumA,Moregine,showingtheMuses 189
Urania,Thalia,andMelpomene,Fourthstyle,first
centuryCE(Photo:SAP85183).
12.6 SouthwallofroomnintheHouseoftheVettii,Pompeii, 192
showingthepunishmentofDirce,62–79CE(Photo:
Alinari).
13.1 Nero’ssestertiusof63CEca.Detailofreversewiththe 197
ArchofNero.
13.2 ColumnplinthwithfemalefiguresandVictories, 198
probablyfromtheArchofNeroontheCapitolineHill.
Rome,CapitolineMuseums.
13.3 FragmentofreliefwithParthianwarrior,probablyfrom 199
theArchofNeroontheCapitolineHill.Rome,Museo
NazionaleRomano.
viii
LISTOFILLUSTRATIONS
13.4 Nero’sdupondiusof63CEca.Obverse:HeadofNero 199
(type4)withcoronaradiata.
13.5 Gem.TheColossusintheFlavianage(fromaplaster 200
cast).Berlin,PergamonMuseum.
13.6 MultiplumofGordianusIII.Reverse:theColosseum 201
withtheColossusatleftandtheMetaSudansatright.
13.7 PlanoftheGoldenHouse(inorange)superimposedon 204
aplanofthevalleyoftheColosseumandsurrounding
areas:1.ThemainentrancetotheDomusAureafromthe
ForumRomanum;2.ThehalloftheColossus;3.
Thelake;4–5.ClaudianorNeronianbuildingsonthe
Palatine;6.ThepavilionoftheColleOppio;7.
ThetempleofClaudiuswithgardensontheCaelianHill;
8.NeronianorFlavianbuildingsunderthenorthwest
corneroftheTrajan’sthermae.
13.8 VirtualreconstructionoftheDomusAureaseenfromthe 205
south(KatalexiluxProject2011):1.Themainentranceto
theDomusAureafromtheForumRomanum;2.
ThehalloftheColossus;3.Thelake;4.Neronian
buildingsonthePalatine;5.ThepavilionoftheColle
Oppio;6.ThetempleofClaudiuswithgardensonthe
Caelianhill;7.NeronianorFlavianbuildingsunderthe
northwestcorneroftheTrajan’sthermae.
13.9 Rome,so-calledDomusTransitoriaonthePalatineHill. 205
Painteddecorationfromthevault.
13.10 Virtualreconstructionoftheeastsideofthe 207
nymphaeum-substructionofthetempleofDivus
ClaudiusontheCaelianHill.
13.11 PlanoftheNeronianbuildingontheslopesoftheColle 208
Oppio.
13.12 Pompeii,CasadiMarcoLucrezioFrontone.Fresco 209
painting:landscapewithavilla,fromthenorthwallofthe
tablinum.
13.13 Rome,NeronianbuildingontheslopesoftheColle 211
Oppio.Vaultfrescopainting,fromroom119.
14.1 Day1ofthefire.AfterPanella2011:fig.10a.1 215
(S.BorghiniandR.Carlani).
14.2 Day3ofthefire.AfterPanella2011:fig.10a.3 216
(S.BorghiniandR.Carlani).
14.3 Day7ofthefire.AfterPanella2011:fig.10a.4 217
(S.BorghiniandR.Carlani).
ix