Teaching in Mediolanum: images of death in the stela of Orensia Obsequente (1st century AD) ¹

Abstract

Mortuary representations in the Roman Mediterranean and their iconographic nature are vital for reflecting on the social experience of death and its cultural and anthropological implications. Grounded on the stela of Orensia Obsequente (1st century AD), most likely a domestic preceptor, inferences may be made concerning the act of teaching in Mediolanum amidst the reigning tradition of pedagogical thinking, as well as concerning women’s social status, regarded as significant for female emancipation in the period. Such analysis reveals that women’s role, from both a political and labour-related perspective, enabled them to acquire social leadership in the Mediterranean context.

Keywords:
Orensia Obsequente; pedagogical thinking; women’s emancipation; Mediolanum