ARA PACIS AUGUSTAE

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ARA PACIS AUGUSTAE

• Historical Relief and Roman Mythmaking

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Facts about the ARA PACIS

• Altar of Augustan Peace
• Located in the Campus Martius, Rome
• Decreed by the Senate to celebrate Augustus
  return from Spain and Gaul
• Foundation stone laid on 4th July 13 BCE
• Dedicated by the Senate in honor of Augustus
  creation of the Pax Romana in 30 January 9 BCE
  (Livias birthday)
• Part of a complete architectural program with the
  Mausoleum of Augustus, his ustrinum, an obelisk
  that acted as the central arm of a sundial
• One of the great Roman historical reliefs others
  include Trajans column, arch of Septimius
  Severus in Leptis Magna.

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Res Gestae Divi AugustiThe Accomplishments and
Achievements of the Divine Augustus

• Res Gestae 12
• On my return from Spain and Gaul, after
  successfully restoring law and order to these
  provinces, the Senate decided under the
  consulship of Tiberius Nero and Publius
  Quintilius to consecrate the Ara Pacis Augustae
  on the Campus Marius in honor of my return, at
  which officials, priests, and Vestal Virgins
  should offer an annual sacrifice.

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Plan of Ara Pacis Augustae

• The building is a marble precinct wall that
  surrounds a grand and elaborate altar, on a high
  podium.
• Doors face east and west - symbolic of the
  extent of empire
• Shadow of sundial on Augustus birthday

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Decorative Scheme I

• Mythology
• East side
• Pax (Venus or Tellus)
• Roma
• Sun rises on new Roman Empire
• West side
• Aeneas
• Romulus and Remus
• Sun sets on legendary hero-founders

• History
• North side
• senators
• priests
• piety
• South side
• imperial family
• Augustus, Agrippa
• family

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Decorative Scheme II

• Exterior lower half
• exuberant floral motif
• combination of extraordinary flowers and fruits
• vegetation climbing the walls
• Apollo symbolism

• Interior relief
• garlands of an abundance of fruits, leaves, and
  flowers
• bucrania of sacrificed cows
• imitation of rustic shrine
• Altar
• Sacrifice
• Vestal virgins

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West Side Aeneas

• Sacrificing as in Aeneid III.389
• White sow, 30 piglets
• Temple to Penates in background
• Iulus (aka Ascanius) - gens Julius
• Camilli, attendants at the sacrifice

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Aeneas Sacrificing
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West Side Romulus and Remus

• Very fragmentary
• Faustulus
• Mars - fig tree, woodpecker
• Suckling of twins at wolf

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East SideVenus, Tellus, Pax

• Controversial identification of female figure
• Her crown of corn and pomegranate
• Cupidesque babies in lap
• Reclining cow, sheep
• Aurae
• swan
• sea monster

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PAX ROMANA

• Images of abundance, fertility, fecundity,
  pastoralism, golden age

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North Side Religious Personnel

• Camilli
• acerra, pitcher
• others might be priests
• Four priestly colleges pontifices, augures, XV
  viri sacris faciundis, VII viri epulones.
• Leading in Julia and Lucius Caesar (b. 12 BCE)

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Senators

• Heavily restored IDs invalid
• Mixture of piety and politics

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South Side Julio-Claudian Family

• Moving from East to West
• More fragmentary on west side
• Recognizable portraits

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Augustus and the Flamines

• Augustus. Partially destroyed.
• Not marked out. Primus inter pares. Princeps.
• 4 Flamines galena, laena.

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Julio-Claudians I Marcus Agrippa

• Gaius Caesar (b. 20 BCE)
• Ludus Troiae (Vergil, Aen. V.556 - 559)
• Livia, Tiberius, Antonia Minor, Drusus.

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Agrippa, Gaius Caesar, Livia, Tiberius, Antonia
Minor, Germanicus, Drusus, Antonia Maior, Gnaeus
Lucius Ahenobarbus
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Julio-Claudians II The Children

• Germanicus
• Antonia Maior
• Domitia
• Gnaeus

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Exterior Frieze

• Vine tendrils develop into volutes
• Mix of acanthus flower, ivy, vine leaves and
  grapes
• Hidden frogs, birds, lizards, snakes in the grass
• Allusion to the saeclum aureum, Golden Age.
  (Vergil, Eclogue IV)
• Deliberate branching and balancing to reflect
  Julio-Claudian family.

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Swan

• Swan is Apollos bird
• Symbolism validates Augustus reign

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Hidden Animals

• Bird and lizard
• Lizard and snake attacking nest of birds.
• Anguis in herbis Snake in the grass

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Interior Swags

• Imitation of rustic shrine
• Bucrania - skulls of sacrificed cattle
• Swags
• each one is different
• grapes, figs, apples, pears, olives, plums, pine
  cones, and pomegranates - and vegetation - oak,
  ivy, laurel, and poppies

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Altar

• Ends of the altar are scrolls supported by
  griffins (winged lions)
• Sacrifice
• Vestal Virgins
• Enactment in stone of yearly sacrifice to Pax
  Romana

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Conclusions

• Symbolic themes family, piety, peace, fertility
  and abundance
• First relief with presence of children
• Setting up of a dynasty
• Placing it and justifying it with mythological
  precedents