Popular and Imperial Response to Earthquakes in the Roman Empire A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Christopher M. Higgins June 2009 © 2009 Christopher M. Higgins. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Popular and Imperial Response to Earthquakes in the Roman Empire by CHRISTOPHER M. HIGGINS has been approved for the Department of History and the College of Arts and Sciences by Jaclyn Maxwell Associate Professor of History Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT HIGGINS,CHRISTOPHER M., M.A., June 2009, History Popular and Imperial Response to Earthquakes in the Roman Empire (120 pp.) Director of Thesis: Jaclyn Maxwell This thesis examines popular and imperial response to earthquakes in the Roman Empire period from the reign of Augustus through the reign of Justinian. It examines religious and scientific attitudes towards earthquakes throughout the classical period and whether these attitudes affected the disaster relief offered by Roman emperors. By surveying popular and imperial reactions throughout the time period this thesis shows that Roman subjects reacted in nearly identical manners regardless of the official religion of the Empire. The emperors followed a precedent set by Augustus who was providing typical voluntary euergetism. Their responses showcased imperial philanthropy while symbolizing the power and presence of the Roman state even in far off provinces. The paper also examines archaeological evidence from Sardis and Pompeii each of whose unique archaeological circumstances allows for an illustration of methods of reconstruction following earthquakes of massive and moderate size. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Jaclyn Maxwell Associate Professor of History 4 DEDICATION To Megan D. and Julius C. 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I owe a debt of gratitude to all the specialists in late antiquity at Ohio University. I would like to thank Dr. Jaclyn Maxwell for all her help as my advisor and as my thesis director. Her knowledge of the ancient world, her timely review of drafts, and her ideas for further avenues of inquiry, made this thesis possible. I would also like to thank Dr. Kevin Uhalde for introducing me to many late and post -Roman sources, especially Ammianus Marcellinus, whose descriptive account of the aftermath of the tsunami of 365 C.E. led me to question disaster relief in the Roman Empire. I would also like to thank Dr. Walter Roberts for serving on my thesis defense committee and for his always optimistic reactions to my questions and concerns. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ 3 DEDICATION .................................................................................................................... 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 5 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. 9 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 10 Historiography .............................................................................................................. 12 Limitations of Sources .................................................................................................. 13 Earthquake Science ....................................................................................................... 14 CHAPTER 2: CLASSICAL ATTITUDES TOWARDS EARTHQUAKES ................... 19 Greek Attitudes ............................................................................................................. 20 Greek Religious Attitudes ......................................................................................... 20 Greek Scientific Attitudes ......................................................................................... 21 Roman Attitudes ........................................................................................................... 29 Traditional Roman Scientific Attitudes .................................................................... 29 Traditional Roman Religious Attitudes .................................................................... 30 Roman Christian Scientific Attitudes ....................................................................... 35 Roman Christian Religious Attitudes ....................................................................... 36 Co-Existence ................................................................................................................. 36 CHAPTER 3: FOUR EARTHQUAKES .......................................................................... 38 Asia Minor 17 C.E. ....................................................................................................... 38 Pompeii 62 C.E. ............................................................................................................ 42 7 Pompeii 79 C.E. ............................................................................................................ 45 Antioch 526 C.E. .......................................................................................................... 49 CHAPTER 4: SURVEY OF POPULAR AND IMPERIAL RESPONSES FROM AUGUSTUS TO JUSTINIAN ......................................................................................... 57 Popular Response .......................................................................................................... 57 During an Earthquake ............................................................................................... 57 After the Earthquake ................................................................................................. 63 Imperial Response ......................................................................................................... 69 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 81 CHAPTER 5: ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE ......................................................... 83 Sardis, 17 C.E. .............................................................................................................. 84 Pompeii, 62 C.E. ........................................................................................................... 89 Civic Buildings ......................................................................................................... 94 Leisure Facilities ....................................................................................................... 96 Utilities ...................................................................................................................... 98 Private Dwellings ...................................................................................................... 99 Temples ................................................................................................................... 100 CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................... 103 Reasons for Imperial Response ................................................................................... 103 Practical Euergetism ............................................................................................... 104 Imperial Symbolism ................................................................................................ 108 Understanding Popular Religious Attitudes ............................................................ 109 8 Differences between Pagan and Christian Imperial Response ................................... 111 Implications for Imperial Power ................................................................................. 112 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 115 9 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AE L’Annee Epigraphique CIG Corpus Inscriptionum Graecarum CIL Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum FGrHist Die Fragmente der Griechischen Historiker, hrsg. von F. Jacoby, I-III C 2, Berlin-Leiden 1923-58 HSCP Harvard Studies in Classical Philology IG Inscriptiones Graecae IGR Inscriptiones Graecae ad res Romanas pertinentes ILS Inscriptiones Latinae Selectae JRS Journal of Roman Studies SEG Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 10 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This thesis will survey ancient responses to earthquakes and examine the reasons for imperial relief. From popular religious and scientific attitudes towards earthquakes to imperial political motives for providing assistance for earthquake victims, this elemental force of nature compelled reaction on many fronts. Ordinary people caught in an earthquake responded out of necessity, fear and human nature. Roman Emperors often responded to earthquakes philanthropically to achieve politically practical results. This study begins by describing attitudes and beliefs regarding earthquakes in antiquity. While this paper deals with the Roman Empire from the principate of Augustus through the reign of Justinian, this chapter first examines attitudes towards earthquakes beginning with the Greeks. The pre-Socratic philosophers were the first to rationally inquire into the cause of earthquakes. Their rational theories were absorbed and disseminated