Roses of Heliogabalus

Alma-Tadema took as a basis for the picture the story of the questionable authenticity "History of Augustus" that during the feast the Roman emperor Heliogabalus ordered to scatter roses from the ceiling in such quantities that his enemies invited to the feast suffocated.

In the foreground of the picture are guests covered with rose petals. In the background, Heliogabalus himself is seen wearing a golden diadem and his mother Julia Soemiya. To the right, behind Heliogabalus, is a woman playing the aulos, and in the distance is a statue of Dionysus painted by the artist from the original kept in the Vatican museums.