Face to Face

On a rainy November day, a group of soaked students queued outside the Archaeological Museum, patiently waiting to visit the newly opened exhibition Roman Empresses. Myths & Realities. This is how our story begins…

Alex is looking at the flyer the teacher has given them, filled with busts and images of these ancient women. One picture catches their attention: that of a small golden coin with two people on it facing each other. The description reported that they were “Nero and his mother Agrippina”. Alex has surely heard of Nero before, but who was Agrippina exactly? And what did their odd pose mean? It seemed to suggest a rather close relationship but, at the same time, it gave quite a bad vibe too. Alex was mesmerized by that coin, when suddenly they were brought back to reality as the teacher announced the start of the visit.