| Locusta | |
|---|---|
 Locusta testing in Nero's presence the poison prepared for Britannicus by Joseph-Noël Sylvestre | |
|
Real Name |
Locusta or Lucusta |
|
Born |
Unknown |
|
Died |
69 |
Origin[]
Locusta or Lucusta, was a notorious maker of poisons in the Roman Empire. She supposedly took part in the assassinations of Claudius and Britannicus. She was a favourite of emperor Nero for several years, and Nero had her provide training to other poisoners in his service. Following Nero's death, Locusta was executed by his successor, Galba.
Locusta served as a poisons expert under empress Agrippina the Younger. According to some historians, in AD 54, already notorious and imprisoned on poisoning charges, Locusta was ordered by Agrippina to supply a poison for the murder of her husband, Claudius. This was sprinkled on a mushroom and given to the emperor by his food-taster Halotus; when this poison appeared to be ineffectual, the doctor Gaius Stertinius Xenophon murdered Claudius with a poisoned feather ostensibly put down his throat to induce vomiting.
She reportedly advised Agrippina to use Atropa belladonna as a poison. Atropa-derived poisons were commonly used in ancient Roman murders, and previous empress Livia reportedly used them to murder her contemporaries.
In 55, while still imprisoned, Locusta was called upon by Agrippina's son, the emperor Nero, to concoct a poison to murder Claudius' son Britannicus. When this poison was slow to work, Nero flogged Locusta with his own hand and threatened her with immediate execution, whereupon she supplied a quicker-acting poison that succeeded. Nero rewarded Locusta with a full pardon and large country estates, where he sent pupils to learn her craft. Before Nero fled Rome in 68, he acquired poison from Locusta for his own use and kept it in a golden box. He eventually died by other means.
After Nero's suicide, Locusta was condemned to die by the emperor Galba during his brief reign, which ended 15 January 69. Along with Nero's favorites Helius, Patrobius, Narcissus and "others of the scum that had come to the surface in Nero's day," she was led in chains through the city and executed.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Locusta before January 1, 1931 are public domain.
Some Notable Appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Satires by Juvenal
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - the poisoner Madame de Villefort is frequently compared to Locusta. Chapter 101 is entitled "Locusta."
Public Domain Movie appearances[]
- Humanity Through the Ages (1908)
- Les fils de Locuste (1911)