Bloodthirsty, ruthless and mad – Roman emperors have often been perceived as highly unsavoury individuals, writes Gabriel Berner.
There was the tyrannical Nero, who is said to have murdered his mother, Caligula who tried to reinstate his favourite horse as consul and Commodus, a passionate follower of gladiatorial combat.
But some were also revered. Succeeding the notorious emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty was Trajan, who ruled the empire for 19 years, between 98-117AD. He presided over pioneering public projects and bought relative peace and stability to the empire, while overseeing the greatest military expansion in Roman history.