Die Verlebendigung der Welt

The late antique poet Claudian, who was born in Egypt, which was influenced by Greece at that time, and became a court poet writing in Latin in Rome, also marks the literary birth of various geographical personifications. Starting from the controversial question of how Claudian designed Africa, this study discusses the special features of his female geographical personifications and the goddess Roma against the background of literary and pictorial traditions as well as the political significance of geographical personifications in Rome. This also provides insights into Claudian's view of the empire and the stylistic design of his works.