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Exploring History

Exploring History is a publication about history. Instead of focusing on any particular time period of history, we explore anything about the past that helps our readers understand the world they live in today. We pay special attention to historiographical rigor and balance.

Young woman with long red hair sitting on a chair, surrounded by white roses. She is wearing a white tunic and combing her hair with the right hand, while holding a mirror with the left.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Lady Lilith (1866–1868) — Wikimedia Commons

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Red-Haired Roman Femme Fatale: Poppaea Sabina

Sex, scandal, and the fiery-haired woman who rewrote Roman history

7 min readOct 20, 2023

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It was 62 AD and for the first, and perhaps the only time in his life, Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus — Nero for short — was happy.

He had just married his second wife, Poppaea Sabina, and theirs seemed like a great love match. For some time he even abandoned his nightly habit of wandering the streets of Rome in disguise; he instead spent his evenings at home, where he wrote poems about his new little bride.

Self-Care Days

Poppaea was everything Nero had ever wanted: she was smart, vivacious, charming, and she liked to have fun. She was also a head-turning beauty, with alabaster skin and beautiful curls the color of amber.

And she took good care of her good looks: slaves brushed her distinctive hair for an hour every day, and her facials could take up to four hours. A herd of donkeys followed her everywhere to provide milk for her daily baths, guaranteeing her fair and silky complexion. Nero liked soft skin, and what Nero wanted, Nero got.

Poppea also enjoyed luxury: she wore the finest clothes and jewelry and was among the most fashionable women in Rome.

Exploring History
Exploring History

Published in Exploring History

Exploring History is a publication about history. Instead of focusing on any particular time period of history, we explore anything about the past that helps our readers understand the world they live in today. We pay special attention to historiographical rigor and balance.

Giulia Montanari
Giulia Montanari

Written by Giulia Montanari

Thirty-something public servant in Italy. Can’t parallel park to save my life. Join Medium with my referral link: http://jeetwincasinos.com/@tanarx/membership

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