{"id":4071,"date":"2016-08-16T16:09:28","date_gmt":"2016-08-16T16:09:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/latin\/?p=4071"},"modified":"2016-08-16T16:09:28","modified_gmt":"2016-08-16T16:09:28","slug":"2045th-anniversary-of-octavians-3-triumphs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/latin\/2045th-anniversary-of-octavians-3-triumphs\/","title":{"rendered":"2045th Anniversary of Octavian’s 3 Triumphs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Salvete Omnes! I hope it has been a pleasant weekend. Well, 2045 years ago it was a very busy weekend for the ancient Romans!<\/p>\n

\"Peter

Peter Paul Rubens “A Roman Triumph” (1630). Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

As of this year, it has been 2,045 years since Imper\u0101tor Caesar D\u012bv\u012b F\u012blius Augustus<\/em>, or Gaius Octavian<\/strong>, as he was known at the time, held 3 consecutive triumphs on August 13th, 14th, and 15th. Its a nice extra detail that this month, thousands of years later, still commemorates Augustus and his rule as the first Emperor of the Roman Empire.<\/p>\n

But what exactly is a \u201ctriumph\u201d? Or rather, a \u201ctriumphus<\/em>\u201d?<\/h2>\n

A triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the success of a military commander who led Roman forces to victory.<\/p>\n

\"Emperor

Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD) at his triumph Bas-relief from the Arch of Marcus Aurelius. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

It was an incredibly elaborate and extravagant affair. Citizens could hardly have seen anything more spectacular!<\/p>\n

The general, the vir triumphalis<\/em> (\u201cman of triumph\u201d), who was being honored would don a toga picta<\/em> (\u201cpainted toga\u201d), which was dyed a solid, rich purple and was embroidered in gold that identified his elevated and heroic status.<\/p>\n

\"Contemporary

Contemporary Toga picta in a wall painting from the Fran\u00e7ois Tomb at Vulci. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

He would traditionally wear a crown of laurel and would ride a four-horse chariot, sometimes with a face painted crimson like Jupiter Capitolinus<\/em>. He would lead a pompa<\/em> (\u201cprocession\u201d) of his army, who would have been chanting and singing \u201cio triumphe!\u201d<\/em> and such. Following behind his army were his captives, and the loot he gathered from war. At the end,\u00a0he would offer\u00a0a sacrifice at Jupiter\u2019s temple on Capitoline Hill.<\/p>\n

\"Capitoline_Hill,_Temple_of_Jupiter\"

Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD) and members of the Imperial family offer sacrifice in gratitude for success against Germanic tribes. In the backgrounds stands the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitolium (this is the only extant portrayal of this Roman temple<\/strong>). Bas-relief from the Arch of Marcus Aurelius, Rome, now in the Capitoline Museum in Rome. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

Most of what we know of triumphs comes from the source called the Fasti Triumphales<\/em> (or also known as Acta Triumphalia<\/em>). Fasti<\/em> is the plural of fastus<\/em>, which is commonly used as a substantive. Fastus<\/em> is derived from fas<\/em>, which\u00a0meant \u201cthat which is permitted,\u201d or \u201cthat which is legitimate in the eyes of the gods.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"By

Segment XX of the Fasti triumphales, a portion recording triumphs during the First Punic War By Rossignol Beno\u00eet – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=17155354<\/p><\/div>\n

The fasti triumpahles<\/em>\u00a0was a list of the triumphs, listing\u00a0these\u00a0days that had been seen as religiously legitimate. They are a collection of stone tablets that were erected in the Forum Romanum<\/em> around 12 BCE, during the reign of Emperor Augustus. They give the general’s formal name, his father\u2019s name, the details of the place and date of the procession. There were over 200 recorded before the record stops.\u00a0Evidently, triumphs were a very big deal for the Ancient Romans.<\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s look back at what this towering figure of history was doing at this time only 2 years before the beginning of his reign.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Early August 29 B.C.E.<\/strong>, Octavian returned to Rome from quelling a civil war with the Dalmatian tribes as a victor. The Romans celebrated his return with immense vigor. Each day of a triumph was dedicated to one of his feats. The first day was to celebrate his victory over the Dalmatian tribes, the second day was for his victory at Actium, and the third day was for his victory over Egypt.<\/p>\n

Octavian must have had a flare for spectacle (or was it ambition) because these triumphs were quite extravagant and somewhat nontraditional.<\/p>\n

According to Jochen Bleiken in \u201cAugustus: The Biography\u201d:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe last procession in particular outdid anything ever seen before. Setting out from the Campus Martius<\/em> (\u201cField of Mars\u201d), it traversed the Flaminian Road and the Circus Maximus<\/em> and then passed through the triumphal arch of the Servian Wall, which lay between the Capitol and the Tiber. It now entered the city, went on eastward around the Palantine to the Via Sacra<\/em>, and so reached the entrance of the Capitol, which the triumphator<\/em> ascended in order to dedicate his laurel wreath to the principal god of the city, Jupiter Optimus Maximus<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Today's

Today’s view of the Circus Maximus and the palace on Palantine. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

However, Octavian did some things differently:<\/h3>\n