Nicopolis (born c.150 BC) was a Roman ''

hetaira Hetaira (plural hetairai (), also hetaera (plural hetaerae ), ( grc, ἑταίρα, "companion", pl. , la, hetaera, pl. ) was a type of prostitute in ancient Greece, who served as an artist, entertainer and conversationalist in addition to pro ...

'' possibly of Greek origin. She was likely a former slave from Greece, who earned her fortune as a prostitute. Ernst Badian suggests that Nicopolis was not her real name. She is foremost known as the lover and benefactor of the young

Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force. Sulla had ...

. She was an indepdentently rich woman by the time Sulla became her lover. They had a long term relationship. After her death, she left him her fortune. Their relationship, and the benefit of her fortune on his career, has often been referred to in the history of Sulla. Her fortune in combination with that of his stepmother, helped Sulla on his way in his political career. She is a character ''The First Man in Rome'' by

Colleen McCullough Colleen Margaretta McCullough (; married name Robinson, previously Ion-Robinson; 1 June 193729 January 2015) was an Australian author known for her novels, her most well-known being ''The Thorn Birds'' and ''The Ladies of Missalonghi''. Life ...

.
The First Man in Rome
'

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Ernst Badian Ernst Badian (8 August 1925 – 1 February 2011) was an Austrian-born classical scholar who served as a professor at Harvard University from 1971 to 1998. Early life and education Badian was born in Vienna in 1925 and in 1938 fled the Nazis wit ...

, ''Lucius Sulla, The Deadly Reformer'', Sydney University Press, 1970. {{DEFAULTSORT: 2nd-century BC Greek women 2nd-century BC Roman women Hetairai Ancient Roman courtesans Sulla

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