United States, (contemporary)
Agrippina the Younger, Age Thirteen
Rome
- Domitius gives her iron – a ring
- Agrippina fingers it under her robes
- while her hair is woven with flowers
- gold placed on her neck and wrists
- She thinks of the man older
- than her father ever was
- At the ceremony a pregnant sow is brought forward
- dark and wreathed in leaves wine and crumbs
- from holy cake are dusted on its brow
- For the goddess Ceres for Terra Mater
- for this marriage A man raises his ax
- blunt-side down strikes the sow
- slices the stunned animal’s throat opens
- her belly The priest pushes fetal piglets aside
- handles the entrails close to his eyes
- looking for flaws Once signaled another man
- places the insides on an altar for burning
- Domitius watches Agrippina while the men
- butcher the pig char the guts She does not look away
- The priest steps into the blood face covered prays
- in whispers a flute drowning out any ominous sounds
Diana Arterian describes the wedding ceremony of Agrippina the Younger, Empress of Rome and mother to the infamous Emperor Nero.
About the Poet:
Diana Arterian, United States, (contemporary) is a poet, writer, literary critic, editor and translator. She is also an Asst. Professor of Practice & Creative Writing at Merrimack College in North Andover, MA.
Arterian is also Poetry Editor at Noemi Press, and Assistant Director for Los Angeles Poet Laureate Robin Coste Lewis’ Poetic Truths & Reconciliation Commission.
Her creative work has been recognized with fellowships from the Banff Centre, Caldera, Millay, Vermont Studio Center, and Yaddo. Arterian’s poetry, criticism, conversations, and translations have been featured in BOMB, Denver Quarterly, LitHub, Los Angeles Review of Books, NPR, The New York Times Book Review, and The Poetry Foundation website. [DES-12/21]
Additional information:
- Diana Arterian at https://dianaarterian.com/