Zenobia di Palmira

The prosperity of Palmyra depends exclusively on trade, with its merchants collecting riches from the mysterious and fabled East at the mouth of the Euphrates so as to send them back to the great cities of the Roman Empire. But the sporadic hostilities between Rome and Persia, the ruler of Mesopotamia, lends uncertainty to the situation; trade is often interrupted by war, and Palmyra risks suffocating. The far-sighted Palmyrene queen, Zenobia, agrees to marry Prince Odaenathus – not just to become the first lady of a wealthy city, but to ensure that Palmyra – by ruling and guiding her husband by virtue of her superior capabilities – holds the balance between Rome and Persia. This volume describes the amazing story of the emblematic Zenobia, the Palmyrene queen who dared to defy Rome. The text is accompanied by the enigmatic portraits carved in sandstone.