From Tiberius“the hypocrite” to Commodus“the psychopath”, via Nero“the tyrant”, ancient texts convey a dark and authoritarian image of imperial power, according to the University of Geneva. Mary Beard, a specialist in antiquity, proposes to examine these portraits, at a time when the modern media regularly compare today's rulers to Roman emperors.

+ Facing up to Switzerland's Roman past

Entitled“Tyrants, bureaucrats and victims. Do the Roman emperors have anything to teach us?”, the lecture will be given in English with simultaneous interpretation into French on October 30 at at Uni Dufour, the main building of the University of Geneva.

It will be preceded by the presentation of the Latsis University AwardsExternal lin, each worth CHF25,000 ($31,407) to four scientists whose research stands out for its excellence and originality.

Translated from French by DeepL/ds

This content was published on Aug 22, 2018 The small town of Orbe is home to the largest and most beautiful collection of Roman mosaics north of the Alps. Where are the visitors?