Rome, the Greek World, and the East, Vol. 1 - The Roman Republic and the Augustan Revolution

 The Augustan Revolution

joinittomyownedict,fromwhichitwillbecleartoallwhodwellin

theprovinceshowmuchconcernisexercisedbymyselfandtheSenate

thatnoneofthosesubjecttousshouldendureanyimproperinjuryor

exaction.

ThisisinfacttheearliestknownRomanpronouncementwhichexplicitly
addressesitselftotheattentionofalltheinhabitantsoftheempire.Though
thebodyofthedocumentisadecreeoftheSenate,itisAugustus’nameand
titleswhichoccupythefirsttwolines,andAugustus’wordswhichmakeup
thefirstparagraph.Thosewhocouldreadwouldreadthemfirst.Thosewho
couldnot,couldhaveseenastatueoftheemperor;thesecondedictrecords
thattheremovalofsuchastatue,alongwithothers,frompublicplaceshad
alreadybeenthesubjectofaccusationswithinthecity(SEGIX,,ii).
Withthatwecomebacktoourstartingpoint,thesymbolicpresenceof
theemperor,inwordandphysicalrepresentation,intheprovincialcommu-
nity;orratherinthoseGreekorLatincitieswherethe‘‘epigraphichabit,’’as
RamseyMacMullenhascalledit,^39 wasentrenched,andwherestatueswere
made.Thatshouldbringusinitsturntotheimperialcult,ortothecon-
fusingnexusofdifferentactsandceremonialswhichgounderthatheading.
Buttheevidenceistoocomplex,andanywaymaywellevoke‘‘tediumand
distaste.’’Letmethereforemakeafewbriefpoints.
Firstly,thenotionthatthecultsdirectedtoemperorsevolvedfromthose
forHellenistickingsishardlyevenahalf-truth.Thereisnothinganywhere
tosuggestthatthescaleofcultactsforHellenistickingshadeverapproached
thatwhichimmediatelyappearedforAugustus.FewcultsofdeceasedHel-
lenistickingsstilllingeredon,andonlyamodestrangeofevidenceattests
cultsorgamesorshrinesforeventhemajorRomanfiguresofthelateRepub-
lic.ThesuddenoutburstofthecelebrationofOctavian/Augustuswasanew
phenomenon.^40 Nicolaus’remarksonthetemplesandsacrificesforAugustus
bycitiesandprovinces(FGrHF)areallthemoreimportantbecause
writteninthes..Itwasnewfirstinitswidediffusionatthecitylevel
andaboveallinthecreation,from/..onwards,ofprovincialcults,
withcommontemplesofRomaandAugustus,commonannualgamesasso-
ciatedwiththem,andannualhighpriesthoods.Everyoneknowsthatthese
arrangementswereformallypermittedtotheprovincesofAsiaandBithynia
byOctavianin/..(Dio,,–).Whatdeservesequalemphasisis
thefactthathesubsequentlytookadetailedinterestinthepracticalarrange-

. R.MacMullen,‘‘TheEpigraphicHabitintheRomanEmpire,’’AJPh():.
. See esp. K. Tuchelt,Frühe Denkmäler Roms in KleinasienI:Roma und Promagistrate
(),andPrice(n.,).