Hated by the prince, loved by the people: Isis in Rome through texts and images

CYCLE: The Words and images of art: Explorations in the Literature of Ancient Rome
SPEAKER: Lara Nicolini
DATE: Tuesday, November 18, 6:00 PM 
LOCATION: Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Largo di Villa Peretti 2

The most fascinating of the exotic gods, Isis, is at the heart of many beautiful texts in Latin literature, but she is also the absolute protagonist of the Egyptian imagination in Rome, as demonstrated by the statues, coins, frescoes, and obelisks that have survived to us. However, her very long history between the Republic and the Empire was far from simple and involved persecutions of all kinds by the state, which always viewed her with suspicion. Her defenders were primarily the humble classes, but also figures of the highest nobility, including even Julia, the daughter of the Princeps Augustus. In a journey through words and images, we will follow the history of this mystery cult from its clandestine beginnings to its definitive triumph.

Lara Nicolini teaches Latin Language and Literature at the University of Florence. Educated in Pisa and Cambridge, she collaborates with various Italian and international journals and study teams. Her main interests are Latin language and grammar, and the literature of the Imperial age. In particular, she has dedicated many studies to Apuleius' novel Metamorphoses or The Golden Ass, of which she is currently editing a new critical edition for the Bibliotheca Teubneriana Latina.

Admission is free, subject to availability
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