Tanaquil and Tullia in Livy as Roman caricatures of Greek mythic and historic Hellenistic queens

This chapter analyzes Livy’s representation of Tanaquil and Tullia, wives of Rome’s Etruscan kings Tarquinius Priscus and Tarquinius Superbus, in Ab Urbe Condita I, as Roman caricatures of Greek mythic and historic Hellenistic queens. We argue that Livy depicts these women as embodying negative aspects of Etruscan rule, and the dangers inherent in hereditary monarchic government.