and on the Parthians in the east for the defeat they had inflicted on Rome’s armies;
Augustus celebrated a bloodless “victory” over them in 20 bcand they returned
the Roman army’s standards. With the exception of Apollo’s role in the Secular
Games of 17 bc, this did not lead to increased cultic activities for either god (more
on Augustus’ association with Apollo below). Rather, the splendid architectural
celebration of these deities, which was enhanced by grand pictorial and sculptural
programs, invoked their many associations, such as Mars’ connections with the
beginnings of Rome (he was the father of Romulus and Remus) and Apollo’s with
both victory and peaceful cultural pursuits. The gods’ renewed patronage of Rome
was now literally set in stone.
So was another aspect of Roman religion that reached new heights under
Augustus. From the beginning, Roman religion had been one of appropriations, result-
ing in an ever developing mix of Italic, Etruscan, Greek, and other traditions; the
practice of “evoking” gods (evocatio), described in the previous chapter, from con-
quered territories signified both conquest and integration into the Roman system.
The temple of Mars is a paradigm of the expression of these characteristics in archi-
tecture. In the Italic tradition, it was built on a massive platform; at the same time,
the elaboration of some of the column bases was carefully modeled on precedents
from the Acropolis in Athens, and the exuberance of colored marble in the interior
recalled the orient. All in all, this showcase temple, which was built in the most
lavish of three main architectural orders, the Corinthian one, was a far cry from the
“standard” temple recommended for Mars by the architect Vitruvius (Vitr.1.2.5),
who dedicated his work to Augustus.
There was also an appropriation of a different kind. As I have already mentioned,
the anniversary dates of several rebuilt temples were changed to dates important
for Augustus; the temple of Apollo in the Circus Flaminius is good example (from
June 13 to September 23). Other temples would receive an even more obvious
Augustan coloration. The temple of Concord in the Roman Forum, for instance,
was reconfigured as the temple of Augustan Concord, Concordia Augusta, and
dedicated on the thirty-seventh anniversary of Augustus’ assumption of that name
(January 16,ad10). Indeed “Augustus,” which was chosen for its many associa-
tions (including augur) and therefore can be translated only imperfectly as “The Revered
One,” set the first citizen (princeps) apart from his contemporaries because it hinted
at his being part of more than the human sphere.
Much has been made in this connection of Augustus’ association with Apollo. Its
beginning was not altogether auspicious: at a time when Rome was racked by famine,
the young Octavian and 11 of his friends threw a lavish party dressed as the 12
Olympian gods, with Octavian being Apollo; the event earned him a great deal of
bad publicity (Suet. Augustus70). “Apollo” actually was the watchword of Brutus
and Cassius at Philippi (42 bc); like so much else, Octavian appropriated it. Later,
the god’s new temple on the Palatine, dedicated in 28 bc, became a landmark. We
have already noted its integration with Augustus’ house, but its insertion on the Palatine
into the context of two pre-existing temples of Victory is just as important. It was
the goddess Victory, Victoria Augusta, who became the signal deity of Augustus.
Her image was ubiquitous because warfare was unceasing; the pax Augusta, as Augustus
Continuity and Change 75