Messalina

Rare card · No. 52853

Valeria Messalina (Latin: [waˈlɛria mɛssaːˈliːna]; c. 17/20–48) was the third wife of Roman emperor Claudius. She was a paternal cousin of Emperor Nero, a second cousin of Emperor Caligula, and a great-grandniece of Emperor Augustus. A powerful and influential woman with a reputation for promiscuity, she allegedly conspired against her husband and was executed on the discovery of the plot. Her notorious reputation may have resulted from political bias, but works of art and literature have perpetuated it into modern times.

Read on Wikipedia · Image Marie-Lan Nguyen, Public domain