Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics Volume 3 Issue 1 Article 3 June 2013 Whose Forum? Imperial and Elite Patronage in the Forum of Pompeii Joseph V. Frankl Macalester College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/classicsjournal Recommended Citation Frankl, Joseph V. (2013) "Whose Forum? Imperial and Elite Patronage in the Forum of Pompeii," Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics: Vol. 3 : Iss. 1 , Article 3. Available at: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/classicsjournal/vol3/iss1/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Classics Department at DigitalCommons@Macalester College. It has been accepted for inclusion in Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Macalester College. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Whose Forum? Imperial and Elite Patronage in the Forum of Pompeii Cover Page Footnote Thanks to Beth Severy-Hoven and the rest of the Research Forum for their generous support. Special thanks to my parents who patiently read my drafts even if they "didn't get it." This article is available in Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/ classicsjournal/vol3/iss1/3 Frankl: Whose Forum? Beginning in the principate of Augustus and continuing to 79 C.E., the forum of Pompeii communicated with Rome by displaying social, political, and religious connections as well as architectural allusions to the Imperial Family. This relationship with the capital and the Imperial Family has intrigued scholars and generated significant debate. Yet beyond a general sketch of the forum’s history during the Imperial era, creating an exact chronology of the forum’s associations to the Imperial Family proves difficult. This is because materials visible today preserve only the forum’s appearance at the time of eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 C.E. The current study seeks to examine Pompeii’s connection to the Imperial Family as reflected in building projects on the east side of the forum and the ways in which this connection changed. From the reign of Augustus until 62 C.E., elite Pompeians dedicated buildings to glorify and define themselves as local parallels to members of the Imperial Family. After an earthquake in 62 C.E., the east side of the forum underwent a rebuilding project. This included repairs to three existing structures (Eumachia Building, Sanctuary of Augustus, and Macellum), the installation of the Imperial Cult Building, and a façade linking all four buildings on the east side. This rebuilding project standardized the Imperial presence at Pompeii emphasizing dynasty and creating visual continuity among the four structures. As it will be argued in this paper, Nero provided the relief for this rebuilding, exerting direct control over Pompeian public space. Thus, a chronology of construction on the east side of the forum can be formulated indicating a transition from elite, individual patronage to direct Imperial control over a unified space. ELITE PATRONAGE AT POMPEII: FROM AUGUSTUS TO THE EARTHQUAKE At Pompeii, a model of patronage emerged during the reign of Augustus essential for the perpetuation of Imperial image and ideology. In this model, elite members of society dedicated Published by DigitalCommons@Macalester College, 2013 1 Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics, Vol. 3, Iss. 1 [2013], Art. 3 structures honoring the Imperial Family while promoting their own prestige. The three buildings on the east side of the forum (Eumachia Building, Sanctuary of Augustus, and the Macellum) built before the 62 C.E. earthquake, as well as the large theater renovated during this time period, display this model. This model of patronage emerged due to Augustus’ assumption of absolute power and the establishment of the Imperial Cult. During the reign of Augustus, emperor worship became widespread throughout Italy and the provinces. Citizens made sacrifices and dedicated temples to the living emperor.1 Prominent citizens in the municipalities played essential roles for the administration of the Imperial Cult.2 No central authority dictated the practices of these cults. Rather, individuals holding the titles flamen or sacerdos served as leaders of these cults, distinguishing themselves in their respective communities.3 One such elite patron was Marcus Holconius Rufus. During the early Imperial period, he held the titles of sacerdos and flamen.4 Rufus’ well-documented restoration of the large theater of Pompeii provides an excellent case study of the model of elite Pompeian patronage. Rufus’ addition of marble facing, tribunal, and a stage backdrop (scaenae frons) transformed the structure from a Hellenistic to a Roman Theater.5 During the reign of Augustus, theaters served as spaces for civic renewal.6 The theater at Pompeii draws strong comparisons to Augustus’ restoration projects in which he famously turned Rome into a city of marble. Viewers would 1 Ittai Gradel, Emperor Worship and Roman Religion (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002), 77. 2 Ittai Gradel, “Mamia’s Dedication: Emperor and Genius,” Analecta Romana Istituti Danici 20 (1992): 47. 3 Ibid., 86. 4 John D’Arms, “Pompeii and Rome in the Augustan Age and Beyond: the Eminence of the Gens Holoconia,” in Romans on the Bay of Naples and Other Essays on Roman Campania, edited by Fausto Zevi (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1970), 422. 5 John Dobbins, “Problems of Chronology, Decoration, and Urban Design in the Forum at Pompeii,” American Journal of Archaeology 98.2 (1994): 654. 6 Paul Zanker, Pompeii: Public and Private Life, trans. Deborah Lucas Schneider (Cambridge: University of Harvard Press, 1998), 112. https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/classicsjournal/vol3/iss1/3 2 Frankl: Whose Forum? make the connection between Rufus’ distinctive use of marble in the renovated theater and marble structures built by the Imperial Family in Rome. Rufus further demonstrates a connection to the Imperial Family through a set of inscriptions in the theater. The first inscription honors Rufus himself. It reads: M Holconio M.f. Rufo/ IIvir(o) i(ure) d(icundo) quiquiens/iter(um) quinq(uennali), trib(uno) mil(itum) a p(opulo),/ flamini Aug(usti), part(ono) colo(niae) d(ecurionum) d(decreto) To Marcus Holconius Rufus son of Marcus, duumvir with legal power five times and twice again quinquennial, military tribune by the people, flamen of Augustus, patron of the colony, having been decreed by the decurions.7 The inscription dates from between 1 B.C.E. to 14 C.E. and includes Rufus’ formal titles.8 Among the titles is patronus coloniae (“guardian of the colony”) – a designation held by only one individual in municipal towns. In the large corpus of inscriptions and graffiti at Pompeii, Rufus is the only individual documented to have held the title.9 Thus, it would be viewed as notable in comparison to Rufus’ other distinctions. Additionally, the title patronus coloniae is relevant when viewed alongside another inscription engraved in the theater. This inscription is a dedication to Augustus presumably initiated by Rufus himself.10 It reads: [Imp(eratori) Caesari] Augusto patri/[patriae imp(eratori) XIV co(n)]s(uli) XIII pontif(ici) max(imo) trib(unica) [pot]est(ate) XXII [To Imperator Caesar] Augustus, father of [the fatherland, imperator thirteen times, consul] thirteen times, pontifex maximus and in the twenty-second year of tribunician [po]wer.11 7 CIL X 838. All translations by author unless otherwise specified. This is in fact one of two inscriptions honoring Rufus in the theater. CIL X 837 is contemporaneous to CIL X 842 below and lists Rufus’ titles and honors. 8 D’Arms, “Pompeii and Rome in the Augustan Age and Beyond,” 431. 9 Ibid., 432. 10 D’Arms, “Pompeii and Rome in the Augustan Age and Beyond,” 426. D’Arms convincingly argues that Marcus Holconius Rufus’ was the “instigator” of this inscription. 11 CIL X 842. Published by DigitalCommons@Macalester College, 2013 3 Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics, Vol. 3, Iss. 1 [2013], Art. 3 As scholars have noted, the title “patri [patriae]” (“father of the fatherland”) is carved in larger script than any other of Augustus’ titles.12 The inscription’s emphasis on the title “father of the fatherland” draws parallels to Rufus’ designation patronus coloniae. Thus, Rufus’ dedicatory inscription honors the emperor Augustus while positioning him as a local analog to Augustus. This model of elite patronage is also observed in the dedication of the three buildings built before 62 C.E. on the east side of Pompeii’s forum. This includes the forum’s largest building, the Eumachia Building. It demonstrates architectural and ideological allusions to Rome and dates to either the reign of Augustus or Tiberius.13 Based on evidence discussed below, a late Augustan date seems plausible. Despite a plethora of physical evidence (the building’s structure, several inscriptions, and multiple portraits) scholars have failed to reach a consensus on the building’s function, though the argument for its function as a mixed purpose space has gained general acceptance.14 The building’s patron, Eumachia, dedicated the structure to display her prominence as one of the wealthiest women in Pompeii. She did this while honoring Imperial Rome. Niches displayed statues of Romulus, Aeneas, and Augustan Concord – figures essential to Augustan imagery that were included in the Forum of Augustus in Rome.15 Eumachia’s dedication itself exhibits a connection to the capital. As the dedicatory inscription in the building notes, Eumachia built the structure at her own expense, with her son, and consecrated a portion of the building to Augustan Concord and Piety.16 Scholar Lawrence Richardson first compared Eumachia’s patronage to the benefaction of the empress Livia. He proves that the Eumachia Building shared 12 D’Arms, “Pompeii and Rome in the Augustan Age and Beyond,” 424. 13 John Dobbins, “The Forum and Its Dependencies,” in The World of Pompeii, ed.