ancient families « Alison Morton's Thrillers

Julia's dilemma – Roman families, marriage and divorce in Late Antiquity

Detail from 2nd century sarcophagus© Trustees of the British Museum

Our heroine Julia Bacausa’s problem in JULIA PRIMA is that she is caught between Roman law and Christian dogma; divorced legally under the first, but bound to her unpleasant (ex-) husband under the second.

The late Roman family inherited […]

Confession time: Descent from antiquity is a non-starter

The family of Drusus, National Museum of Civilisation, Rome (Author photo)

Some Roma Novans, particularly the founding Twelve Families, pride themselves on their descent from named Roman ancestors such as Mitelus, Julia Bacausa, Apulius. As a small colony determined to survive in an unstable world, the children of those founders made a decision […]