The Slave-girl from Jerusalem
- The Slave-girl from Jerusalem
infobox Book |
name = The Slave-girl from Jerusalem
image_caption = First edition, 2007
author = Caroline Lawrence
illustrator = Richard Russell Lawrence (maps)
cover_artist = Peter Sutton,
Fred van Deelan
country = United Kingdom
language = English
series = The Roman Mysteries
genre = Historical novel
publisher = Orion Books
pub_date = 2 April 2007
media_type = Print (Hardback, Paperback)
pages = 240pp
isbn = ISBN 1842551884
preceded_by = The Charioteer of Delphi
followed_by = The Beggar of Volubilis
"The Slave-girl from Jerusalem" is a children's historical novel by Caroline Lawrence. The novel, the thirteenth in the Roman Mysteries series, was published in 2007. It is set in December A.D. 80 in and around Ostia, and deals with death, slavery and the Roman legal system.
Plot introduction
The death of Dives, a wealthy citizen, leads to a dispute over the manumission of a slave which escalates into murder and leads to a trial. The accused girl is a former slave and an old friend of Miriam's from Jerusalem. Flavia and her friends investigate the case and call on Pliny and Flaccus to defend her in court.
Themes
Death is a major theme in the novel. It opens with Jonathan's premonition of death and his chance encounter with the mourners at Dives's funeral. The trial revolves arounds Dives's will. All four of the main characters make their wills during the course of the story, as do Jonathan's sister, Miriam, and Marcus's patron, Cordius. Papillio the decurion dies in Nubia's arms, and Mercutor the freedman is found dead in Hephzibah's room. The book ends with Miriam's death in childbirth and her funeral.
Historical references
The novel contains many references to the first Jewish-Roman War of A.D. 66-73. Dives had been a soldier in Judaea, several of the characters are Jews who were enslaved at that time and Hephzibah, the slave-girl of the title, is one of the few survivors of the siege of Masada. Before the events of the book, she and her mother were questioned by Josephus, who wrote "The Jewish War".
Roman laws with respect to property, slavery, children and the prosecution of crime are described. Court procedure and the practice of rhetoric are portrayed during the murder trial. Quintilian the rhetorician appears as a minor character.
External links
[http://www.romanmysteries.com/books/slavegirl.htm "The Slave-girl from Jerusalem" at the Roman Mysteries website]
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