He was one of Rome's most capable emperors. He is remembered as one of its most sinister.
This Tiberius canvas wall art features a dramatic portrait of Rome's second emperor, part of the Bad Boys of Rome collection. A distinguished piece for the home, office, or classroom - and a compelling gift for history enthusiasts, classics lovers, and students of Roman power.
ABOUT TIBERIUS (42 BC – 37 AD)
Tiberius Claudius Nero was born into the chaos of the late Republic, his early life shaped by civil war, political upheaval, and his mother Livia's fateful second marriage to the man who would become Augustus. He grew up in the imperial household, trained alongside Augustus's own heirs, and spent decades as Rome's most reliable military commander - crushing rebellions in the Alps, along the Danube, and in the forests of Germany. He was austere, disciplined, and effective. He was also, by most accounts, deeply unhappy.
Augustus had not wanted Tiberius as his successor. He was the last option standing after a string of preferred heirs died young. Tiberius knew this, and it colored his entire reign. He came to power in 14 AD at fifty-five, having already lived a full career of service, and he approached the role with a weary reluctance that the Senate mistook for weakness and the people mistook for contempt. His early years were nonetheless competent -— he maintained the borders Augustus had established, kept the treasury in order, and governed with restraint.
The unraveling was gradual. The death of his son Drusus in 23 AD left him grief-stricken and increasingly suspicious. He allowed his Praetorian prefect Sejanus to accumulate dangerous levels of influence, and when he finally moved against him in 31 AD, the treason trials that followed consumed the Roman aristocracy. In 26 AD he had retired to the island of Capri, never returning to Rome. He governed the empire from there until his death in 37 AD - remote, paranoid, and by the end almost entirely disconnected from the city he ruled.
The stories of debauchery on Capri come largely from Suetonius and should be read with appropriate skepticism. What is less contested is that Tiberius left the treasury full, the borders intact, and the empire stable - and was met with public celebration when he died. He remains one of Roman history's most genuinely tragic figures: a man of real ability and real damage, whose reign began in reluctance and ended in isolation.
PRODUCT FEATURES
- Available in 3 sizes in vertical orientation (300 dpi)
- Museum-quality printing with Greenguard Gold certified inks
- Non-toxic latex inks, safe and eco-friendly
- Made from FSC certified sustainable materials
- Anti-slip rubber dot backing to secure canvas when hung
- Wipe clean gently with a damp cloth if needed
- Arrives ready to hang