Roman Ludi Saeculares from the Republic to Empire by Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto © Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning 2016 Roman Ludi Saeculares from the Republic to Empire Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto 2016 Abstract This dissertation provides the first comprehensive analysis of the Roman Ludi Saeculares, or “Saecular Games”, from their mythic founding in the sixth century bce until their final celebration in 248 ce. The Ludi Saeculares were a series of religious celebrations held at Rome every saeculum (“age”, “generation”), an interval of 100 or 110 years. The argument contains two major threads: an analysis of the origins and development of the Ludi Saeculares themselves, and the use of the term saeculum in imperial rhetoric in literary, epigraphic, and numismatic sources from early Republic to the fifth century ce. First, an investigation into Republican sacrifices that constitute part of the lineage of the Ludi Saeculares reveals that these rites were in origin called “Ludi Tarentini”, and were a Valerian gentilician cult that came under civic supervision in 249 bce. Next, it is shown that in his Saecular Games of 17 bce, Augustus appropriated the central rites of the Valerian cult, transforming them into “Ludi Saeculares” through a new association with the concept of the saeculum, and thereby asserting his role as restorer of the Republic and founder of a new age. The argument then turns to the development of saeculum rhetoric throughout the imperial period, intertwined with the history of the Ludi Saeculares. The fragmentary evidence for the Games of Claudius, Domitian, Antonius Pius, Septimius Severus, and Philip is analysed in greater detail and in the context of the wider history of the Ludi Saeculares. At the same time, a close study of saeculum references across various media demonstrates that in years in which the Saecular Games could not be held, an emperor could refer to the saeculum of his reign in official coinage and inscriptions as an expression of imperial identity and authority over time. The study ends with an investigation of the cessation of these Games ii under Constantine I, likely due to the influence of Christianity, and shows that the Ludi Saeculares ceased to be held after 248 ce: references to the Saecular Games in the reigns of later emperors are shown to be misinterpretations of ancient texts or coin legends. iii Acknowledgements It is a happy task to thank the many people who have assisted me with the creation of this dissertation. Andreas Bendlin has been a superlative advisor, and I cannot express properly my gratitude to him for years of wise and patient guidance. Jarrett Welsh and Christer Bruun have offered much helpful feedback, as have Harriet Flower and Seth Bernard. Jonathan Kirkpatrick sparked my interest in the Ludi Saeculares years ago. Owen Ewald, Luke Reinsma, and Kathryn Bartholomew oversaw my undergraduate education in Classics and ancient languages. The generosity of various institutions made my research possible: the University of Toronto’s School of Graduate Studies provided funding for a period of study with the Faculty of Classics at Oxford University, and I am grateful to Nicholas Purcell and Jerome Mairat for access to the Heberden Coin Room at the Ashmolean Museum. The Gerda Henkel Stiftung and the Elise und Annemarie Jacobi-Stiftung enabled a period of study at the Kommission für Alte Geschichte und Epigraphik inMunich; I thank Christof Schuler and Rudolf Haensch for their hospitality and expertise. My parents have long supported and encouraged my passion for old things. I am indebted to many others – family, friends, and colleagues, but most of all to Andrew, whose typesetting of this dissertation is but an outward sign ofthe selflessness that sustained me through the whole endeavour. iv Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 The Ludi Saeculares in the Republic 5 2.1 Ancient sources for Ludi Saeculares in the Republic . 5 2.2 Chronologies of Republican Ludi Saeculares . 15 2.3 Textual problems in Censorinus and Zosimus . 17 2.4 Modern scholarship on Republican Ludi Saeculares . 22 2.5 Re-evaluation of the origin of the rites at the Tarentum: The Valerian connection . 26 2.6 Re-evaluating the Ludi Saeculares in the Republic . 32 2.7 Conclusion . 36 3 The Ludi Saeculares of Augustus 37 3.1 Ancient sources for the Ludi Saeculares of 17 bce ....................... 38 3.2 Augustus and saeculum rhetoric . 38 3.3 The gens Valeria in the age of Augustus . 44 3.4 Recreating the Republican tradition . 47 3.5 Constructing the ritual sequence of the Ludi Saeculares . 49 3.6 Officiating the Augustan Ludi Saeculares . .55 3.7 Commemorating the Augustan Ludi Saeculares . 59 3.8 Conclusion . 60 4 The Development of Saeculum Rhetoric and the Ludi Saeculares of Claudius 62 4.1 Discussion of methodology and evidence for saeculum rhetoric . 63 4.2 Saeculum rhetoric in the Augustan period . 71 4.3 Claudius’s new saeculum and the Ludi Saeculares of 47 ce .................. 74 4.4 Conclusion . 80 5 The Ludi Saeculares of Domitian 82 v 5.1 Literary sources for Domitian’s Ludi Saeculares and their chronology . 83 5.2 Numismatic evidence for Domitian’s Ludi Saeculares . 87 5.3 Domitian’s Ludi Saeculares and creation of imperial identity . 91 5.4 Commemorating Domitian’s Ludi Saeculares . 93 5.5 Domitian and saeculum rhetoric . 94 5.6 Conclusion . 96 6 Saeculum Rhetoric in the Second to Fourth Centuries ce and the Ludi Saeculares of Septimius Severus 98 6.1 Development of saeculum rhetoric in the early second century ce .............. 99 6.2 The celebration of Antoninus Pius in 148 ce ..........................100 6.3 Saeculum rhetoric in the later second century ce ....................... 103 6.4 The Ludi Saeculares of Septimius Severus . 104 6.5 Planning the Games: saeculum rhetoric and the Severan building programme . 105 6.6 Reinventing the Augustan Ludi Saeculares . 109 6.7 Officiants in the Severan Ludi Saeculares . 112 6.8 Severan saeculum rhetoric in epigraphic evidence . 116 6.9 Conclusion . 116 7 The Ludi Saeculares of Philip I, Saeculum Rhetoric in the Third and Fourth Centuries ce, and the Reception of the Ludi Saeculares Tradition 119 7.1 Philip I’s Ludi Saeculares of 248 ce ............................... 119 7.2 Saeculum rhetoric of the late third century ce ......................... 125 7.3 Saeculum rhetoric in the reign of Constantine and later . 129 7.4 Saeculum rhetoric after Constantine . 136 7.5 The invention of the Ludi Saeculares of Honorius . .136 7.6 Conclusion . 140 8 Conclusion 142 Appendix 1: Literary References to the Ludi Saeculares and the Saeculum 145 Appendix 2: Epigraphic References to the Ludi Saeculares and the Saeculum 155 Appendix 3: Numismatic References to the Ludi Saeculares 166 Appendix 4: Numismatic References to the Saeculum 174 Bibliography 190 vi List of Tables 2.1 Dating of early Ludi Saeculares in surviving sources . 16 4.1 References to/surviving from the Ludi Saeculares . 64 4.2 Occurrences of saeculum without direct reference to the Ludi Saeculares . 65 4.3 Ludi Saeculares and saeculum references, combined . 66 4.4 Dating of saecula/Ludi Tarentini/Ludi Saeculares, Augustan and Claudian calculations . 77 vii List of Figures 3.1 Denarius of Augustus, 17 bce (ric 1².338) . 43 3.2 Aureus of Augustus, 18–16 bce (ric 1².138) . 58 4.1 Literary references to the Ludi Saeculares and the saeculum ................. 67 4.2 Epigraphic references to the Ludi Saeculares and the saeculum ................ 68 4.3 Numismatic references to the Ludi Saeculares . 69 4.4 Numismatic references to the saeculum ............................ 70 5.1 Sestertius of Domitian, 88 ce (ric 2.1².615) . 88 5.2 Quinarius of Domitian, 88 ce (ric 2.1².599) . 89 5.3 Sestertius of Domitian, 88 ce (ric 2.1².613) . 90 6.1 Aureus of Hadrian, 119–122 ce (ric 2.136) . 100 6.2 Denarius of Antoninus Pius, 159–160 ce (ric 3.309) ..................... 102 6.3 Aureus of Clodius Albinus, 194–195 ce (ric 4.10)....................... 106 6.4 Aureus of Septimius Severus, 202 ce (ric 4.181b)....................... 107 7.1 Sestertius of Philip I, 248 ce (ric 4.3.157a) .......................... 124 7.2 Double Sesterius of Trajanus Decius, 249–251 ce (ric 4.3.115) . 126 7.3 Coin of Philip the Arab, 248 ce (ric 4.3.20).......................... 127 7.4 Antoninanus of Gallienus, 264–265 ce (ric 5.1.656) ..................... 128 7.5 Solidus of Constantine, 314–317 ce (ric 7.185) ........................ 132 7.6 Porfyrius, C. 19. ......................................... 134 viii Chapter 1 Introduction The Ludi Saeculares, or “Saecular Games”, are unique among the religious performances of ancient Rome. From their mythic founding in the sixth century bce until their final celebration in 248 ce, the Ludi Saeculares took place in the city of Rome once every saeculum. No other Roman festival was celebrated at such wide intervals – or underwent so dramatic a transformation in its history. Succeeding generations altered the character of the Games radically: a ritual once performed by the gens Valeria as an act of propitiation to chthonic deities became a civic celebration of Rome’s prosperity under the emperors, until the Games ceased to be held under Constantine I. The term saeculum, from which the name of the festival was derived during the Augustan period, came to function as form of rhetoric that allowed for the creation of imperial authority and identity, first in the context of the Saecular Games, and then in epigraphic and numismatic formulas. This dissertation will offer a comprehensive analysis of the history of the Ludi Saeculares, bringing to light the religious frameworks and political attitudes underlying their development, and demonstrating in turn how the Games themselves help us to better understand religious experiences and socio-political change at Rome.