Tom briefly mentioned that Hasdrubal the Handsome was assassinated by a servant, which sounded far too intriguing for us to ignore. We thought we’d delve a little to get some detail and thankfully, the details delivered. Get ready for some gore.
The story is narrated in Silius Italicus’ Punica, an epic poem written more than 250 years after the event, so get your pinch of salt ready to take. We also looked into what Silius Italicus was like to get an overall picture of the author and his preferences. He was apparently regarded by Pliny – friend of the show – as a “fortunate man and happy down to the last day of his life”, despite losing one of his two sons. That may be because “the survivor was the more satisfactory son of the two”. Who knows. The poem Punica, however, was written during his retirement and he’d often read from it when entertaining guests. Incidentally Pliny didn’t like it and believed that it was “painstaking but lacked genius”. With that in mind then, let’s look at how Italicus recounts old Hasdrubal’s death.
The downfall began when Hasdrubal battled Tagus, “a man of ancient race”. With “savage cruelty”, he apparently killed King Tagus by fastening him “high on a wooden cross”. He then “displayed in triumph” the king’s body to the “sorrowing natives”. Unfortunately for Hasdrubal, Tagus had been well-loved. Probably because he was “ever first to enter the battle and last to lay down the sword; when he sat high on his steed and urged it on with loosened reins, no sword could stop him nor spear hurled from afar … the golden arrow of Tagus was well known throughout both armies.” As a result, as Tom told us, when King Tagus was murdered, “a servant stole his master’s favourite sword and rushed into the palace, where he smote the savage breast again and again”. And that was the end of Hasdrubal the Handsome. But what happened to the servant? Now things get juicy.
The Carthaginian army “made haste to bring the tortures”. Apparently, “every device was used” – and Silius Italicus gives us the minutiae – “fire and white-hot steel, scourges that cut the body to ribbons with a rain of blows past counting.” Following that “the limbs were expanded by the torturers’ ingenuity and grew as much as the torment required.” Finally, “when all the blood had gushed forth, the bones still smoked and burned on after the limbs were consumed”. What did the servant make of it? Well apparently “the man’s spirit remained unbroken” and he even told the torturers that they were “flagging in their task”. Brilliant back-chat that. We’d have let him off on the spot.
Tom briefly mentioned that Hasdrubal the Handsome was assassinated by a servant, which sounded far too intriguing for us to ignore. We thought we’d delve a little to get some detail and thankfully, the details delivered. Get ready for some gore.
The story is narrated in Silius Italicus’ Punica, an epic poem written more than 250 years after the event, so get your pinch of salt ready to take. We also looked into what Silius Italicus was like to get an overall picture of the author and his preferences. He was apparently regarded by Pliny – friend of the show – as a “fortunate man and happy down to the last day of his life”, despite losing one of his two sons. That may be because “the survivor was the more satisfactory son of the two”. Who knows. The poem Punica, however, was written during his retirement and he’d often read from it when entertaining guests. Incidentally Pliny didn’t like it and believed that it was “painstaking but lacked genius”. With that in mind then, let’s look at how Italicus recounts old Hasdrubal’s death.
The downfall began when Hasdrubal battled Tagus, “a man of ancient race”. With “savage cruelty”, he apparently killed King Tagus by fastening him “high on a wooden cross”. He then “displayed in triumph” the king’s body to the “sorrowing natives”. Unfortunately for Hasdrubal, Tagus had been well-loved. Probably because he was “ever first to enter the battle and last to lay down the sword; when he sat high on his steed and urged it on with loosened reins, no sword could stop him nor spear hurled from afar … the golden arrow of Tagus was well known throughout both armies.” As a result, as Tom told us, when King Tagus was murdered, “a servant stole his master’s favourite sword and rushed into the palace, where he smote the savage breast again and again”. And that was the end of Hasdrubal the Handsome. But what happened to the servant? Now things get juicy.
The Carthaginian army “made haste to bring the tortures”. Apparently, “every device was used” – and Silius Italicus gives us the minutiae – “fire and white-hot steel, scourges that cut the body to ribbons with a rain of blows past counting.” Following that “the limbs were expanded by the torturers’ ingenuity and grew as much as the torment required.” Finally, “when all the blood had gushed forth, the bones still smoked and burned on after the limbs were consumed”. What did the servant make of it? Well apparently “the man’s spirit remained unbroken” and he even told the torturers that they were “flagging in their task”. Brilliant back-chat that. We’d have let him off on the spot.
Tom briefly mentioned that Hasdrubal the Handsome was assassinated by a servant, which sounded far too intriguing for us to ignore. We thought we’d delve a little to get some detail and thankfully, the details delivered. Get ready for some gore.
The story is narrated in Silius Italicus’ Punica, an epic poem written more than 250 years after the event, so get your pinch of salt ready to take. We also looked into what Silius Italicus was like to get an overall picture of the author and his preferences. He was apparently regarded by Pliny – friend of the show – as a “fortunate man and happy down to the last day of his life”, despite losing one of his two sons. That may be because “the survivor was the more satisfactory son of the two”. Who knows. The poem Punica, however, was written during his retirement and he’d often read from it when entertaining guests. Incidentally Pliny didn’t like it and believed that it was “painstaking but lacked genius”. With that in mind then, let’s look at how Italicus recounts old Hasdrubal’s death.
The downfall began when Hasdrubal battled Tagus, “a man of ancient race”. With “savage cruelty”, he apparently killed King Tagus by fastening him “high on a wooden cross”. He then “displayed in triumph” the king’s body to the “sorrowing natives”. Unfortunately for Hasdrubal, Tagus had been well-loved. Probably because he was “ever first to enter the battle and last to lay down the sword; when he sat high on his steed and urged it on with loosened reins, no sword could stop him nor spear hurled from afar … the golden arrow of Tagus was well known throughout both armies.” As a result, as Tom told us, when King Tagus was murdered, “a servant stole his master’s favourite sword and rushed into the palace, where he smote the savage breast again and again”. And that was the end of Hasdrubal the Handsome. But what happened to the servant? Now things get juicy.
The Carthaginian army “made haste to bring the tortures”. Apparently, “every device was used” – and Silius Italicus gives us the minutiae – “fire and white-hot steel, scourges that cut the body to ribbons with a rain of blows past counting.” Following that “the limbs were expanded by the torturers’ ingenuity and grew as much as the torment required.” Finally, “when all the blood had gushed forth, the bones still smoked and burned on after the limbs were consumed”. What did the servant make of it? Well apparently “the man’s spirit remained unbroken” and he even told the torturers that they were “flagging in their task”. Brilliant back-chat that. We’d have let him off on the spot.