A Guest in the Gallery: All About Augustus

Hi there, my name is Weston Dowey and I'm the Social Outreach Coordinator here at the Museum of Antiquities, and today I'm going to be telling you a little bit about the artwork and the reign of the first Roman Emperor, Augustus. Born as Octavian, the first Roman Emperor Augustus was born in 63 BCE to a noble family. He was the great nephew of the famous Roman general and statesman, Julius Caesar. When Caesar was brutally assassinated by members of the Senate in 44 BCE, Octavian was named Caesar's son and heir in his will, and was launched on a path that would see him crowned as the first Emperor of Rome. Like Caesar, young Octavian was the member of a triumvirate, a league of three rulers, and shared power with Marc Antony and Lepidus at the behest of the Senate. This bust, known as the Augustus Bevel artwork, was completed sometime in the first century CE, and shows Augustus wearing a civic crown, which was awarded to him by the Senate in 27 BCE for having rescued Rome from a constant state of war and crisis. This replica was produced by Louvre, and the marble original is today found in the Bevilacqua Palace in Verona. The civic crown that he wears was an oaken wreath awarded to those who saved the lives of other Romans in battle, and was associated with the god King Jupiter, one of the principal deities of Rome. These types of religious symbols added to Augustus' legitimacy as sole ruler of Rome and the Empire. Augustus' monumental statuary represented him as idealized and youthful, even into his old age. Augustus associated this youthful image with that of the sun god Apollo, one of his patron deities. Augustus' successes were celebrated with a variety of monuments, one being the Ere Pacis Augusti, or the Altar of Augustan Peace, which still survives in Rome. The monument consists of a central altar surrounded by a square-shaped structure of four walls, decorated in stunning sculptural reliefs. You can find a replica of one of the panels here at the Museum of Antiquities. This one was produced by the Louvre, and shows Roman figures taking part in a religious procession. The Ere Pacis was dedicated in 9 BCE, and paid tribute to the goddess of peace, who was known as Pax, and the tranquility of Augustus' rule, which effectively ended decades of civil war. The altar shows a mixture of mythical and historical scenes, including figures from Rome's legendary past, while a sacred procession of the members of Augustus' family and regime figure prominently on the monument. In one panel, the legendary hero Aeneas, touted by Augustus to be his ancestor, is shown giving sacrifice to the penantes, or the household gods, while another shows the armed manifestation of Rome, the goddess Roma. Most of the original monument has been restored in Rome, at the Museum of the Ere Pacis, but this panel is a replica of an original that you can still view at the Louvre in Paris. The artistic form of the altar carries motifs inspired by classical Greek art, as can be seen in the elegant folds of the drapery upon each figure. This particular panel from the procession scene depicts seven adult figures, and two children, who may be members of Augustus' family. One scholar has proposed that the central female figure holding the laurel leaves could be Augustus' sister, Octavia, with her stepson, Iulius Antonius, and possibly Augustus' granddaughter at her sides. Another has argued that the woman could be Augustus' daughter, Julia, with two of her children. The male figure, with his face still intact, may be Tiberius, son of Augustus' wife, Livia, from her first marriage. Note the laurel crown, which he and other family members on the monument are wearing. Tiberius would go on to succeed Augustus as the second emperor of Rome. Depicting women and children in monumental sculpture was uncommon in Rome before Augustus, but he was building a dynasty, and so included his family as symbols of his power. This is only one example of the beautification of Rome that took place under Augustus, who is said to have once declared, I have found Rome built of brick and left it covered in marble. Roman coins bearing the image of Augustus can help us learn more about the emperor, his reign, as well as his legacy. This bronze coin in the Museum of Antiquity's collection was minted during the time of Augustus' successor, Tiberius, and shows Augustus wearing a radiant crown, a symbol that some scholars believe was associated with Augustus' deified status. The Latin upon the obverse also refers to Augustus as divine. A thunderbolt appears to the right of the emperor's profile, a symbol most often associated with the god-king Jupiter, the head of Rome's pantheon. Augustus was deified after his death in 14 CE, and was honored as a god in temples built in his name. The trend of deifying emperors continued for centuries after. Minted between 16 and 37 CE in what is now modern Spain, this coin shows the power of Augustus' legacy, as his image and authority are still actively used as symbols of the Roman state in this time. Tiberius gains political legitimacy and religious authority from the idea that the divine Augustus, approves of his successor's empire. Augustus established many institutions and traditions that would last for hundreds of years in the Roman Empire. The names Caesar and Augustus would both become synonymous with imperial rule, and many emperors would continue to take these names long after Augustus had died. Although he preferred the title princeps, or first citizen, Augustus would be remembered forevermore as the first emperor of Rome.