She was born in the purple of the Roman imperial household. The empire will never know what to do with her. Set in the early Principate under Emperor Claudius (~45 AD), Porphyra follows Aurelia Claudiana, 24, a Black woman raised within the imperial household itself — brought to Rome as an infant from the province of Mauretania when Emperor Claudius expanded his personal retinue of educated provincials and chose specific children to be raised as part of the imperial family's extended household. Aurelia has been given the full education and standing of an imperial ward: she speaks Latin and Greek, has been tutored by the finest minds of Rome, participates in the intellectual life of the Palatine Hill, and bears the name Claudiana in recognition of her standing. She is arranged to marry Marcus Aemilius Scaurus, a senator of old Republican family who initially approaches the marriage with the patrician's belief that he is managing something unusual and discovers instead a woman whose mind reshapes every conversation she enters. Two seasons track the marriage, the political turbulence of Claudius's reign, the constant threat of Messalina and then Agrippina's court politics, and Aurelia's emergence as one of Rome's most significant female political minds — all without ever holding an official position. S1E1 — The Palatine Aurelia's world on the Palatine Hill. The marriage arrangement. Her first meeting with Marcus, who immediately underestimates her, and the look on his face when she corrects his Greek. S1E7 — Messalina's Game Messalina's political intrigues force Aurelia into a choice between imperial loyalty and her husband's safety. S2E10 — The Principate's Promise Series finale: Claudius's reign in its final phase. Aurelia's political legacy — unofficial, unacknowledged, and permanent. Marcus's public acknowledgment of who she is.
