Emily Graupner
My historical figure is from the 3rd century. Zenobia, a Syrian woman, was the Queen of the Palmyrene Empire in 269 AD. She proclaimed herself the Queen of Egypt after expelling the Roman prefect of Egypt. After several years in power she was defeated by Aurelian and sent back to Rome. Although Zenobia was captured, Aurelian was quite taken to her and allowed her to freedom. She spent the rest of her years in luxury as a socialite and Roman matron, and became a philosopher as well (information taken from Wikipedia).
Zenobia was known for her beauty and strength as a strategic leader. I think I’m going to use several types of media for this project to capture her beauty and her strength. This is just a sketch of her (inspired by a portrait bust) and possible positions I might put her in.