Pompeia Paulina Senece gemahel · Centre for Early Modern Visual Culture

Title: Pompeia Paulina Senece gemahel
Subject: Pompeia Paulina; Important Women; Famous Women; Seneca; Emperor Nero; Suicide
Period: 1500-1550;
Geographic: Ancient Rome; Italy
Description: This engraving depicts Seneca and his wife Pompeia Paulina committing suicide in bathtubs. Seneca is depicted on the left side of the image with Pompeia Paulina in the tub beside him. After Emperor Nero found out that his tutor, Seneca, was involved in the conspiracy to assassinate him, he ordered a centurion to command Seneca to commit suicide. Not wanting to live without her husband, Pompeia Paulina got into the tub next to Seneca and slit her arm to die with him. Seneca is depicted dead in the engraving; however, a servant is illustrated saving Paulina by tying a rope around her arm to stop the flow of the blood. Emperor Nero did not want Pompeia Paulina to die as he had nothing against her, which is why the servant came to save her life.
Image Creator: Joerg Breu (Engraver)
Type: Text; Woodcut Engraving
Identifier: mta:18410
Language: ger
Source Name: Ein schöne Cronica oder Hystoribuch von den fürnämlichsten Weybern [A beautiful chronicle or history book of reputable women]
Parent Collection: 1543 Stayner
Image: mta_18410_OBJ.jpg