According to a legend in the Talmud, Nero converted to Judaism!
The passage is b. Gitten 56a.
No, I'm not proposing that this really happened. But it's entertaining to look at the ancient stories about Nero that don't fit the narrative. I noted another one here.
The question of the historical Nero is instructive, because it confronts us with how little we actually know about ancient history. The recent British Museum exhibition on Nero was sympathetic to the idea that he may not have been as bad as the mainstream narratives (all in sources hostile to him) portrayed him. And the narrative about his death is not credible. Did he really kill himself? Or did he go into hiding and later try and fail to make a comeback? Who knows?
Cross-file under Talmud Watch.
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