Historia Augusta: Heliogabalus, the practical joker.

Heliogabalus (or Elegabalus) (c. 203 – 11 March 222) was undoubtedly one the emperors with the worst press. He was barely 14 when in 218 he was made emperor by all kinds of intrigues on instigation of his mother Julia Soaemias Bassiana (180–March 11, 222), a Syrian princess married to a Roman nobleman. He named himself after the Syrian god Heliogabalus and introduced his cult at Rome and also all kinds of oriental decency like wearing silken cloth only, that is if we my trust the Historia Augusta, a collection of biographies of emperors written at the end of the fourth century. However, the Historia Augusta is noteworthy unreliable and is more resembling British newspapers, like the Sun with a page 3 pinup girl, than the Independent or the New York Times. Still, though the Historia Augusta is often exaggerating, there may be more than a kernel of truth in its description of Heliogabalus: he is depicted as a boy full of sexual licence, erratic behaviour and - worst of all - he showed no respect for Roman religion and customs. In his short life he married and divorced 5 girls and a man, something only few of us can say to have done especially before having reached the age of 20! Sick and disgusted of his behaviour the Romans killed Heliogabalus and his mother on 11 March 222.

Especially around 1900, the fin du siècle, Heliogabalus was the protagonist in various literary works, no doubt because his decadence.

In the following excerpt some of his jokes on friends are related.

Historia Augusta, Heliogabalus, 25, 1-3.

 XXV. 1 Ebrios amicos plerumque claudebat et subito nocte leones et leopardos et ursos exarmatos immittebat, ita ut expergefacti in cubiculo eodem leones, ursos, pardos cum luce vel, quod est gravius, nocte invenirent, ex quo plerique exanimati sunt. 2 Multis vilioribus amicis folles pro accubitis sternebat eosque reflabat prandentibus illis, ita ut plerumque subito sub mensis invenirentur prandentes; 3 primus denique invenit simma in terra sternere, non in lectulis, ut a pedibus utres per pueros ad reflandum spiritum solverentur.

ebrius: drunken

claudebat: the writer is rather unclear about the situation, but it appears friends having had a party at the palace, slept there. Subsequently  animals were sent into the bedrooms (cubicula)  of the drunken friends while sleeping and then the doors were locked.

subito nocte: as soon as night had come

exarmatos: i.e. without teeth and claws

immittebat: he sent (into their rooms)

experfacio: to wake up

pardus: a male panther

exanimati sunt: died (from fear)

viliores amici: friends of very low rank

follis follis: (Inflatable) bag

accubitum: cough to recline on while dining

sterno stravi stratum: spread out

reflo: (here) to let air out

prandeo  prandi pransum: eat one's morning or midday meal

simma (sigma): the Greek ς and so  half a circle. The idea is that his friends were sitting on felles in half a circle around a table and that then the slaves could let the air out. The translation in the link says `by slaves who stood at the feet of the guests’ but I think that is wrong: a pedibus suggests that the slaves (hidden under the table?) could open the valve at the front of the bag.

lectulus: a small cough

uter utris (f.): leather bag

puer: slave

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elagabalus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustan_History

Translation:

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Elagabalus/2*.html

The Roses of Heliogabalus, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, 1888.