Sura

Sura (died 73 BC) was a Thracian woman and the wife of Spartacus. She was sold into slavery after Spartacus was captured by Roman soldiers, and she was murdered by Lentulus Batiatus before she could be reunited with her husband in Capua.

Biography[]

Sura was born into the Maedi tribe in Thrace, and she was known for her extreme beauty and shapely body. She met the womanizing Spartacus, who fell in love with her and decided to marry her, and the two settled down together. She became a Prophetess of the Gods, and the intuitive Sura was able to tell the future and guide Spartacus. In 73 BC, as Spartacus headed out of his village to fight for the Roman Republic against the Getae, she predicted that he would have a dark and painful future; the heathen Spartacus did not believe in the Gods, and he swore to kill all of the Getae to keep Sura and the village safe. While Spartacus was gone, Sura was attacked by several Getae warriors as she gathered fruit, and she attempted to fight them off; a deserting Spartacus returned home to assist her in killing the Getae, and the two found that their village had been razed and massacred by the Getae due to the Romans' repositioning towards the Black Sea. Sura and Spartacus set up a tent and campfire on the outskirts of town, and they passionately made love before a group of Roman soldiers abducted them. Sura was sold into slavery in Syria, while Spartacus was sent to Rome for execution in the amphitheatre. She was later taken to Neapolis (Naples) by a slaveowner, who died shortly after arriving in Italy; she was sold to Lentulus Batiatus, the owner of Spartacus. Batiatus feared that Spartacus might try to escape if he was reunited with his wife, so he had her killed by his servant Aulus as she traveled down a Roman road in a caravan; her road was passed off as a bandit attack, but Spartacus later discovered the truth, and he always saw her in his dreams.