But in one of his lighter moments, Elagabalus apparently pulled a genuine prank.

It's said that he once suffocated his dinner guests under a mountain of rose petals. The Emperor’s New CushionsĪccording to historical accounts, the teenage Roman Emperor Elagabalus, who ruled from 218 to 222 A.D., was a murderous tyrant who indulged in endless debauchery. Here are some of the oldest pranks on record. No one knows who pulled the first prank, but it’s safe to say that humans have been hoaxing each other for well over 1000 years.

Julie Winterbottom is the former editor in chief of Nickelodeon magazine, where she fulfilled her childhood dream of getting paid to write jokes her book, Pranklopedia: The Funniest, Grossest, Not-Mean Pranks on the Planet! is on sale now. Julie lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she pulls pranks on her boyfriend and cat.