Renaissance Archives - DR. MICKI PISTORIUS

Powerful Princesses and Policial Poisonings

Mar 27 2025

Articles

Powerful Princesses and Policial Poisonings

Where the motive of the 17th-century Spana Prosecution poisoners was to rid themselves of their abusive husbands, there exists another class of poisoners – those who use poison for political advancement. Long before the Renaissance trio of Thofiania d’Adamo, Giullia Tofana and Gironima Spana concocted the arsenic-based Aqua Tofana, Rome’s most famous poisoner was Locusta, […]

by Dr. Micki Pistorius

A Renegade Gang of Roman Renaissance Female Serial Killers?

Mar 20 2025

Articles

A Renegade Gang of Roman Renaissance Female Serial Killers?

Ironically the word ‘arsenic’ originates from Greek folk etymology as ‘arsenikon’, a neuter form of the Greek adjective ‘arsenikos’ meaning “male”, or “virile” and over centuries it was arsenic that women have been using to eliminate the males in their lives. In the mid 1600’s a trio of Renaissance Italian woman with a keen sense […]

by Dr. Micki Pistorius

DR. MICKI PISTORIUS

Psychologist, Author & Profiler

After earning my BA, I worked for eight years in print and television journalism. Then, I was accepted into the University of Pretoria’s psychology program, where I earned a doctorate and became a psychological profiler for the South African Police Service. After resigning from that position, I returned to journalism, writing and producing documentaries before opening my own psychology practice. I continued lecturing internationally and authored seven books, including the bestseller Catch Me a Killer. In 2010, I pursued an Honours degree in Biblical Archaeology…

Tag: Renaissance

Powerful Princesses and Policial Poisonings

A Renegade Gang of Roman Renaissance Female Serial Killers?

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