Visualizing Agrippina

Abstract The Representations of Agrippina in the visual sources are conspicuously different from those we have examined in the literary tradition, Gone is the ruthless power-seeker, the wicked stepmother, the seducer turned poisoner of husbands, the mother who commits incest with her son, These constructs are now replaced by much more flattering ones, the products of the culture of the imperial dynasty itself, its supporters, or those wishing to obtain its favour. But the hostile tradition of the literary sources, as we will see, continues to leave its mark on even the most respected scholars as they confront the Agrippina of coins, sculpture, and cameos. My purpose here is to offer a survey of the images of Agrippina found in the visual media and to ask what we might make of them when they are placed in their historical context.