Vitellius | ©Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commons
Emperor Vitellius was perhaps one of Rome’s most obese rulers. He feasted all the time. He ate at least three times a day. He often vomited so that he could eat more and more.
The variety and quantity of the dish exceeded the concept of an ordinary Roman. One of the records is a feast at which 2,000 of the finest fish and 7,000 of various birds were served. Moreover, his rule was characterized by great extravagance in the field of palace life.
Vitellius wanted to live like no one before him. The Golden House built by Nero, full of ornament and splendor, he found poor. It has been calculated that during his entire reign about 900,000,000 sesterces were spent on the personal interests of the ruler.
- Krawczuk Aleksander, Poczet cesarzy rzymskich, Warszawa 2004
