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

 The Augustan Revolution

immediatetestimonytotheconfusedandhesitantprocessbywhichTiberius
tookupthe‘‘reinsofempire’’—thosesame‘‘reins’’whichValeriusMaximus,
perhapswritingnotlongafter,recordedashavingnearlybeenseizedfrom
Tiberiusbyaconspirator.^46 Ovidwritesasfollows(–):

nampatrisAugustidocuimortalefuisse

corpus,inaetheriasnumenabissedomos:

esseparemvirtutepatri,quifrenarogatus

saeperecusaticeperitimperii:

essepudicarumteVestam,Livia,matrum,

ambiguumnatodignioranneviro:

esseduosiuvenes,firmaadiumentaparentis,

quidederintanimipignoracertasui.

ForItaughthow,thoughfatherAugustushadbeenmortal/inbody,

hisspirithaddepartedfortheheavenlyabodes;/thatonematched

hisfatherinvirtue,who,offeredthereins/ofempire,tookthem

afterfrequentrefusal;/thatyou,Livia,weretheVestaofchaste

matrons,/whetherworthierofsonorhusbandnonecantell;/that

thereweretwoyoungmen,firmpropsfortheirparent,/whohad

givensureguaranteesoftheirspirit.

ThelanguagewhichOvidusesis,notsurprisingly,veryclosetothatofare-
visedpassagewhichappearsinbookoftheFasti,againaspartofaprophecy
oftheruleoftheAugusti,putinthemouthofCarmentis(–):^47

tempuserit,cumvosorbemquetuebituridem,

etfientipsosacracolentedeo,

etpenesAugustospatriaetutelamanebit:

hancfasimperiifrenateneredomum.

indeneposnatusquedei,licetipserecuset,

ponderacaelestimentepaternaferet;

utqueegoperpetuisdimsacraborinaris,

sicAugustanovumIulianumenerit.

Timewillbe,whenthesameonewillprotectyouandtheglobe,/

andsacrificewillbeofferedbythegodhimself,/theguardianshipof

thelandwillremainwiththeAugusti:/itisthegod’swillforthis

housetoholdthereinsofempire./ Hencethegrandsonofagod

andsonofagod,thoughhemayhimselfrefuse,/willcarryhis

.Textton..

. Cf.n.andrelateddiscussionintext.