building project

building project

1. Ara Pacis

   • 13 BC
   • 'the altar of peace'
     • four panels with scene of the empire carved into it
       • Terra Mater
         • seated amid pastoral scene of fertility and beauty
       • Arrival of Aeneas in Italy
       • Romulus and remus
       • Augustus offering a libation to the gods followed by his family and a long line of senators
       • Visual reminder
         • historical event of the peace in 13BC with Parthia
         • politcal
           • Augustus as 'first among equals'
         • Propaganda
           • golden age of of Aeneas/ romulus and remus and now augustus
         • international
           • greeks and Roman elements
             • reminder of the harmony of the empire

2. Arch of Augustus

   • inscribe with list of chief magistrates and thriumphant general s of the Republic who'd made Rome great
     • Augustus trying to associate his name with their past glories

3. Family

   • Agrippa
     • Campus Agrippae
       • Park
     • Baths of Agrippa
     • Built a number of Aquaducts
     • Pantheon in 27BC dedicated to Mars and Venus
   • Octavia
     • built a portico and library to her son marcellus

4. Temples

   • Temple of Apollo
     • vowed this in 36 BC when part of Pallatine hill was struck by lightening
     • rebuilt in 30BC in honour of Apollo at actium
     • later furnished with porticoe and 2 libraries
   • Temple of Mars Ultor
     • vowed to build this as a result of Avenging Caesar's death to Philippi by killing liberators
     • in niches on the back wall stood statues of those who'd celebrated triumphs in the past
     • Temple became centre for military affairs
     • met to debate war or peace
     • commandars started and ended (if victorious) campagins there

5. Other buildings

   • Imperial household/ Domus Imperialis
     • Augustus purposefully lived in a house of modest size
       • all part of the image not to look conspicuouly powerful
   • Forum Romanum
     • Less of a building, and more of a grand public space

6. Plebs

   • Many urban plebs had no steady employment, so by introducing a massive building programme this provided a wealth of employment opportunities