The Augustan Revolution
front of his tribunal.’’^20 But all of the actualvadimoniaare for appearances
atdifferentsectionsoftheForumofAugustus,eachidentifiedbyitsmost
prominentmonumentalelement:‘‘atRomeintheForumAugustumbefore
thetriumphalstatueofCn.SentiusSaturninus,atthefifthhour;’’‘‘infrontof
thealtarofMarsUltor;’’‘‘beforethestatueofGracchusatthecolumnnearest
tothesteps;’’‘‘beforethestatueofDianaLucifera,atcolumnX.’’Herewego
beyondthemonumentsthemselves,tocatchaglimpseoftheopen-airfunc-
tioningoftheadministrationof justiceasitaffectedthemaninthestreet,
andindeed(potentially)inthestreetsofallthesmalltownsofItaly.Thepub-
licspaceinquestionwasanewone,openedonlyafewdecadesearlier,and
the different parts of it were distinguished by the honorific statues which
stoodthere.
Thisroutinejurisdictionbyannualoffice-holders,whichwasessentialto
theworkingofsociety,onlysurfacesoccasionallyinliterarysources,andusu-
allywhenanemperorisinsomewayinvolved.Thus,earlyinhisreign,so
Tacitussays,Tiberiuswouldtakehisseatonthepraetor’stribunal,butatthe
farend of it, so as not to displace the magistrate from his curule seat; as a
result,theverdictsissuedgavelessweighttoinfluenceandthepleasofthe
powerful.^21 But emperors too followed the model of the roles fulfilled by
theannualrepublicanmagistratesandmadeapointoftakingtheirseatsin
publictogivejurisdiction.WhilehewasgivingjusticeintheForumin
Claudiuswasassailedbyacrowdcomplainingofthepriceofcorn,andonly
justescapedviathenearestdoortothePalatine.^22 Thiswasofcoursetheold
Forum,theForumRomanum.ButhemightdothesameinthenewForum
Augustum.Suetoniustellsthesplendidanecdoteofhow,whenClaudiuswas
givingjusticethere,hewaspowerfullyattractedbythesmellofabanquet
whichwasbeingsetoutforthecollegeofpriestscalledtheSaliiinthenearby
templeofMars(Ultor);sohequittedthetribunal,mountedtothetemple,
andreclinedalongwiththepriestsforthemeal.^23
ThecustomoftheSaliidiningtogetherwaspresumablyancient—butwe
havetobecareful,foranotherfeatureofthehistoryoftheRomanres publica
isthataverylargeproportionofwhatwearetoldof itsearlyhistoryand
institutionsinfactcomesfromsourceswrittenundertheemperors(think
oftheFastiofOvidforastart).Icannotpursuethistopichere,norgointo
thecomplexandvariedformsinwhichcivilandcriminaljurisdictionactu-
. Ibid.,.
.Ann.,,;seeSuetonius,Tib..
.Ann.,,;Suetonius,Div. Claud..
. Suetonius,Div. Claud..