|
Gallienus – Roman Emperor: 253-268 A.D. –
Bronze Antoninianus 17mm (1.51 grams) Rome mint: 260-268 A.D.
Reference: RIC 214k, C 382
GALLIENVSAVG – Radiate head right.
IOVIPROPVGNAT – Jupiter advancing left, holding thunderbolt.
You are bidding on the exact item pictured,
provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of
Authenticity.
Gallienus (Latin:
Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus Augustus;
c. 218 – 268) was
Roman Emperor
with his father
Valerian
from 253 to 260 and alone from 260 to
268. He ruled during the
Crisis of the Third Century
that nearly caused
the collapse of the empire. While he won a number of military victories, he was
unable to prevent the secession of important provinces.
Life
Rise to power
The exact birth date of Gallienus is unknown. The Greek chronicler
John Malalas
and the Epitome de Caesaribus
report that he was about 50 years old at the time of his death, meaning he was
born around 218. He was the son of emperor
Valerian
and
Mariniana
, who may have been of senatorial
rank, possibly the daughter of
Egnatius Victor Marinianus
, and his brother was
Valerianus Minor
. Inscriptions on coins connect
him with Falerii
in
Etruria
, which may have been his birthplace; it
has yielded many inscriptions relating to his mother’s family, the Egnatii.[3]
Gallienus married
Cornelia Salonina
about ten years before his
accession to the throne. She was the mother of three princes:
Valerian II
, who died in 258;
Saloninus
, who was named co-emperor but was
murdered in 260 by the army of general Postumus; and
Marinianus
, who was killed in 268, shortly
after his father was assassinated.
When
Valerian
was proclaimed Emperor on 22 October
253, he asked the
Senate
to ratify the elevation of Gallienus to
Caesar and
Augustus
. He was also designated
Consul Ordinarius
for 254. As
Marcus Aurelius
and his adopted brother
Lucius Verus
had done a century earlier,
Gallienus and his father divided the Empire. Valerian left for the East to stem
the Persian threat, and Gallienus remained in Italy to repel the Germanic tribes
on the Rhine
and
Danube
.
Division of the empire
had become necessary due
to its sheer size and the numerous threats it faced, and it facilitated
negotiations with enemies who demanded to communicate directly with the emperor.
Early
reign and the revolt of Ingenuus
Gallienus spent most of his time in the provinces of the Rhine area (Germania
Inferior,
Germania Superior
,
Raetia
, and
Noricum
), though he almost certainly visited
the Danube
area and
Illyricum
during 253 to 258. According to
Eutropius and Aurelius Victor, he was particularly energetic and successful in
preventing invaders from attacking the German provinces and Gaul, despite the
weakness caused by Valerian’s march on Italy against
Aemilianus
in 253. According to numismatic
evidence, he seems to have won many victories there, and a victory in
Roman Dacia
might also be dated to that period.
Even the hostile Latin tradition attributes success to him at this time.
In 255 or 257, Gallienus was made Consul again, suggesting that he briefly
visited Rome on those occasions, although no record survives. During his Danube
sojourn (Drinkwater suggests in 255 or 256), he proclaimed his elder son
Valerian II
Caesar and thus official heir to
himself and Valerian I; the boy probably joined Gallienus on campaign at that
time, and when Gallienus moved west to the Rhine provinces in 257, he remained
behind on the Danube as the personification of Imperial authority.
Sometime between 258 and 260 (the exact date is unclear), while Valerian was
distracted with the ongoing invasion of Shapur in the East, and Gallienus was
preoccupied with his problems in the West,
Ingenuus
, governor of at least one of the
Pannonian provinces, took advantage and declared himself emperor. Valerian II
had apparently died on the Danube, most likely in 258. Ingenuus may have been
responsible for that calamity. Alternatively, the defeat and capture of Valerian
at the
battle of Edessa
may have been the trigger for
the subsequent revolts of Ingenuus,
Regalianus
, and
Postumus
.[12]
In any case, Gallienus reacted with great speed. He left his son
Saloninus
as Caesar at
Cologne
, under the supervision of Albanus (or
Silvanus) and the military leadership of Postumus. He then hastily crossed the
Balkans
, taking with him the new cavalry corps
(comitatus) under the command of
Aureolus
and defeated Ingenuus at
Mursa
or
Sirmium
.The victory must be attributed mainly
to the cavalry and its brilliant commander. Ingenuus was killed by his own
guards or committed suicide by drowning himself after the fall of his capital,
Sirmium.
Invasion of the
Alamanni
A major invasion by the
Alemanni
and other Germanic tribes occurred
between 258 and 260 (it is hard to fix the precise date of these
events),probably due to the vacuum left by the withdrawal of troops supporting
Gallienus in the campaign against Ingenuus.
Franks
broke through the lower Rhine, invading
Gaul, some reaching as far as southern Spain, sacking Tarraco (modern
Tarragona
).The Alamanni invaded, probably
through
Agri Decumates
(an area between the upper Rhine
and the upper Danube), likely followed by the
Juthungi
. After devastating Germania Superior
and Raetia (parts of southern
France
and
Switzerland
), they entered Italy, the first
invasion of the Italian peninsula, aside from its most remote northern regions,
since Hannibal
500 years before. When invaders
reached the outskirts of Rome, they were repelled by an improvised army
assembled by the Senate, consisting of local troops (probably prǣtorian guards)
and the strongest of the civilian population.On their retreat through northern
Italy, they were intercepted and defeated in the
battle of Mediolanum
(near present day
Milan
) by Gallienus’ army, which had advanced
from Gaul, or from the Balkans after dealing with the Franks.The battle of
Mediolanum was decisive, and the Alamanni didn’t bother the empire for the next
ten years. The Juthungi managed to cross the Alps with their valuables and
captives from Italy. An historian in the 19th century suggested that the
initiative of the Senate gave rise to jealousy and suspicion by Gallienus, thus
contributing to his exclusion of senators from military commands.
The revolt of
Regalianus
Around the same time,
Regalianus
, a military commander of
Illyricum
, was proclaimed Emperor. The reasons
for this are unclear, and the Historia Augusta (almost the sole resource
for these events) does not provide a credible story. It is possible the seizure
can be attributed to the discontent of the civilian and military provincials,
who felt the defense of the province was being neglected.
Regalianus held power for some six months and issued coins bearing his image.
After some success against the
Sarmatians
, his revolt was put down by the
invasion of Roxolani
into
Pannonia
, and Regalianus himself was killed
when the invaders took the city of
Sirmium
. There is a suggestion that Gallienus
invited Roxolani to attack Regalianus, but other historians dismiss the
accusation.[25]
It is also suggested that the invasion was finally checked by Gallienus near
Verona
and that he directed the restoration of
the province, probably in person.
Capture of Valerian, revolt of Macrianus
In the East, Valerian was confronted with serious troubles. A band of
Scythians
set a naval raid against
Pontus
, in the northern part of modern Turkey.
After ravaging the province, they moved south into
Cappadocia
. Valerian led troops to intercept
them but failed, perhaps because of a plague that gravely weakened his army, as
well as the contemporary invasion of northern
Mesopotamia
by
Shapur I
, ruler of the
Sassanid Empire
.
In 259 or 260, the Roman army was defeated in the
Battle of Edessa
, and Valerian was taken
prisoner. Shapur’s army raided
Cilicia
and
Cappadocia
(in present day
Turkey
), sacking, as Shapur’s inscriptions
claim, 36 cities. It took a rally by an officer
Callistus
(Balista), a fiscal official named
Fulvius Macrianus
, the remains of the Eastern
Roman legions, and
Odenathus
and his
Palmyrene
horsemen to turn the tide against
Shapur. The Persians were driven back, but Macrianus proclaimed his two sons
Quietus
and
Macrianus
(sometimes misspelled Macrinus) as
emperors. Coins struck for them in major cities of the East indicate
acknowledgement of the usurpation. The two Macriani left Quietus, Ballista, and,
presumably, Odenathus to deal with the Persians while they invaded Europe with
an army of 30,000 men, according to the Historia Augusta. At first they
met no opposition. The Pannonian legions joined the invaders, being resentful of
the absence of Gallienus. He sent his successful commander Aureolus against the
rebels, however, and the decisive battle was fought in the spring or early
summer of 261, most likely in Illyricum, although
Zonaras
locates it in Pannonia. In any case,
the army of the usurpers surrendered, and their two leaders were killed.
In the aftermath of the battle, the rebellion of Postumus had already
started, so Gallienus had no time to deal with the rest of the usurpers, namely
Balista and Quietus. He came to an agreement with Odenathus, who had just
returned from his victorious Persian expedition. Odenathus received the title of
dux Romanorum and besieged the usurpers, who were based at
Emesa
. Eventually, the people of Emesa killed
Quietus, and Odenathus arrested and executed Balista about November 261.
The revolt of Postumus
After the defeat at Edessa, Gallienus lost control over the provinces of
Britain, Spain, parts of Germania, and a large part of Gaul when another
general, Postumus
, declared his own realm (usually known
today as the
Gallic Empire
). The revolt partially coincided
with that of
Macrianus
in the East. Gallienus had installed
his son Saloninus and his guardian,
Silvanus
, in Cologne in 258. Postumus, a
general in command of troops on the banks of the Rhine, defeated some raiders
and took possession of their spoils. Instead of returning it to the original
owners, he preferred to distribute it amongst his soldiers. When news of this
reached Silvanus, he demanded the spoils be sent to him. Postumus made a show of
submission, but his soldiers mutinied and proclaimed him Emperor. Under his
command, they besieged Cologne, and after some weeks the defenders of the city
opened the gates and handed Saloninus and Silvanus to Postumus, who had them
killed. The dating of these events is not accurate, but they apparently occurred
just before the end of 260. Postumus claimed the consulship for himself and one
of his associates, Honoratianus, but according to D.S. Potter, he never tried to
unseat Gallienus or invade Italy.
Upon receiving news of the murder of his son, Gallienus began gathering
forces to face Postumus. The invasion of the Macriani forced him to dispatch
Aureolus with a large force to oppose them, however, leaving him with
insufficient troops to battle Postumus. After some initial defeats, the army of
Aureolus, having defeated the Macriani, rejoined him, and Postumus was expelled.
Aureolus was entrusted with the pursuit and deliberately allowed Postumus to
escape and gather new forces. Gallienus returned in 263 or 265 and surrounded
Postumus in an unnamed Gallic city. During the siege, Gallenus was severely
wounded by an arrow and had to leave the field. The standstill persisted until
the death of Gallienus, and the
Gallic Empire
remained independent until 274.
The revolt of
Aemilianus
In 262, the mint in
Alexandria
started to again issue coins for
Gallienus, demonstrating that Egypt had returned to his control after
suppressing the revolt of the Macriani. In spring of 262, the city was wrenched
by civil unrest as a result of a new revolt. The rebel this time was the prefect
of Egypt,
Lucius Mussius Aemilianus
, who had already
given support to the revolt of the Macriani. The correspondence of bishop
Dionysius of Alexandria
provides a colourful
commentary on the sombre background of invasion, civil war, plague, and famine
that characterized this age.
Knowing he could not afford to lose control of the vital Egyptian granaries,
Gallienus sent his general Theodotus against Aemilianus, probably by a naval
expedition. The decisive battle probably took place near Thebes, and the result
was a clear defeat of Aemilianus. In the aftermath, Gallienus became Consul
three more times in 262, 264, and 266.
Herulian invasions, revolt of Aureolus, conspiracy and death
In the years 267–269, Goths and other barbarians invaded the empire in great
numbers. Sources are extremely confused on the dating of these invasions, the
participants, and their targets. Modern historians are not even able to discern
with certainty whether there were two or more of these invasions or a single
prolonged one. It seems that, at first, a major naval expedition was led by the
Heruli
starting from north of the
Black Sea
and leading in the ravaging of many
cities of Greece (among them,
Athens
and
Sparta
). Then another, even more numerous army
of invaders started a second naval invasion of the empire. The Romans defeated
the barbarians on sea first. Gallienus’ army then won a battle in
Thrace
, and the Emperor pursued the invaders.
According to some historians, he was the leader of the army who won the great
Battle of Naissus
, while the majority believes
that the victory must be attributed to his successor,
Claudius II
.
In 268, at some time before or soon after the battle of Naissus, the
authority of Gallienus was challenged by
Aureolus
, commander of the cavalry stationed in
Mediolanum
(Milan),
who was supposed to keep an eye on
Postumus
. Instead, he acted as deputy to
Postumus until the very last days of his revolt, when he seems to have claimed
the throne for himself. The decisive battle took place at what is now
Pontirolo Nuovo
near Milan; Aureolus was
clearly defeated and driven back to Milan. Gallienus laid siege to the city but
was murdered during the siege. There are differing accounts of the murder, but
the sources agree that most of Gallienus’ officials wanted him dead.[44]
According to the
Historia Augusta
, an unreliable source compiled
long after the events it describes, a conspiracy was led by the commander of the
guard
Aurelius Heraclianus
and Marcianus.
Cecropius, commander of the Dalmatians, spread the word that the forces of
Aureolus were leaving the city, and Gallienus left his tent without his
bodyguard, only to be struck down by Cecropius.One version has Claudius selected
as Emperor by the conspirators, another chosen by Gallienus on his death bed;
the Historia Augusta was concerned to substantiate the descent of the
Constantinian dynasty
from Claudius, and this
may explain its accounts, which do not involve Claudius in the murder. The other
sources (Zosimus
i.40 and
Zonaras
xii.25) report that the conspiracy was
organized by Heraclianus, Claudius, and
Aurelian
.
According to Aurelius Victor and Zonaras, on hearing the news that Gallienus
was dead, the Senate in Rome ordered the execution of his family (including his
brother Valerianus and son Marinianus) and their supporters, just before
receiving a message from Claudius to spare their lives and deify his
predecessor.
Arch of Gallienus
in Rome, 262 –
dedicated to, rather than built by, Gallienus.
Legacy
Gallienus was not treated favorably by ancient historians, partly due to the
secession of Gaul and
Palmyra
and his inability to win them back.
According to modern scholar Pat Southern, some historians now see him in a more
positive light.Gallienus produced some useful reforms. He contributed to
military history as the first to commission primarily
cavalry
units, the
Comitatenses
, that could be dispatched anywhere
in the Empire in short order. This reform arguably created a precedent for the
future emperors
Diocletian
and
Constantine I
.
The biographer
Aurelius Victor
reports that Gallienus forbade
senators
from becoming military commanders.
This policy undermined senatorial power, as more reliable
equestrian
commanders rose to prominence. In
Southern’s view, these reforms and the decline in senatorial influence not only
helped Aurelian to salvage the Empire, but they also make Gallienus one of the
emperors most responsible for the creation of the
Dominate
, along with
Septimius Severus
, Diocletian, and Constantine
I.
By portraying himself with the attributes of the gods on his coinage,
Gallienus began the final separation of the Emperor from his subjects.A late
bust of Gallienus (see above) depicts him with a largely blank face, gazing
heavenward, as seen on the famous stone head of
Constantine I
. One of the last rulers of Rome
to be theoretically called “Princeps”, or First Citizen, Gallienus’ shrewd
self-promotion assisted in paving the way for those who would be addressed with
the words “Dominus et Deus” (Lord and God).
-
Antoninianus
issued to celebrate
LEG II ITAL VII P VII F, “ItalicaLegio
II seven
times faithful and loyal.”
-
Antoninianus issued to celebrate LEG III ITAL VI P VI F,
“ItalicaLegio
III six times
faithful and loyal.”
-
Antoninianus issued to celebrate LEG VII MAC VI P VI F,
“MacedonicaLegio
VII six
times faithful and loyal.”
-
Antoninianus issued to celebrate LEG VII CLA VI P VI F,
“ClaudiaLegio
VII six
In
ancient Roman religion
and
myth
, Jupiter (Latin:
Iuppiter) or Jove is the
king of the gods
and the
god of sky
and
thunder
. Jupiter was the chief deity of Roman
state religion throughout the
Republican
and
Imperial
eras, until the Empire
came under Christian rule
. In
Roman mythology
, he negotiates with
Numa Pompilius
, the second
king of Rome
, to establish principles of Roman
religion such as sacrifice.
Jupiter is usually thought to have originated as a sky god. His identifying
implement is the
thunderbolt
, and his primary sacred animal is
the eagle,[1]
which held precedence over other birds in the taking of
auspices
[2]
and became one of the most common symbols of the
Roman army
(see
Aquila
). The two emblems were often combined to
represent the god in the form of an eagle holding in its claws a thunderbolt,
frequently seen on Greek and Roman coins.[3]
As the sky-god, he was a divine witness to oaths, the sacred trust on which
justice and good government depend. Many of his functions were focused on the
Capitoline
(“Capitol Hill”), where the
citadel
was located. He was the chief deity of
the
early Capitoline Triad
with
Mars
and
Quirinus
.[4]
In the
later Capitoline Triad
, he was the central
guardian of the state with
Juno
and
Minerva
. His sacred tree was the oak.
The Romans regarded Jupiter as the
equivalent
of Greek
Zeus, and in
Latin literature
and
Roman art
, the myths and iconography of Zeus
are adapted under the name Iuppiter. In the Greek-influenced tradition,
Jupiter was the brother of
Neptune
and
Pluto
. Each presided over one of the three
realms of the universe: sky, the waters, and the underworld. The
Italic
Diespiter was also a sky god who
manifested himself in the daylight, usually but not always identified with
Jupiter.[5]
The
Etruscan
counterpart was
Tinia
and
Hindu
counterpart is
Indra
.
Jupiter and the state
The Romans believed that Jupiter granted them supremacy because they had
honoured him more than any other people had. Jupiter was “the fount of the
auspices
upon which the relationship of the
city with the gods rested.”[6]
He personified the divine authority of Rome’s highest offices, internal
organization, and external relations. His image in the
Republican
and
Imperial
Capitol bore
regalia
associated with
Rome’s ancient kings
and the highest
consular
and
Imperial honours
.[7]
The consuls swore their oath of office in Jupiter’s name, and honoured him on
the annual
feriae
of the Capitol in September. To
thank him for his help (and to secure his continued support), they offered him a
white ox (bos mas) with gilded horns.[8]
A similar offering was made by
triumphal generals
, who surrendered the tokens
of their victory at the feet of Jupiter’s statue in the Capitol. Some scholars
have viewed the triumphator as embodying (or impersonating) Jupiter in
the triumphal procession.[9]
Jupiter’s association with kingship and sovereignty was reinterpreted as
Rome’s form of government changed. Originally,
Rome was ruled by kings
; after the monarchy was
abolished and the
Republic
established, religious prerogatives
were transferred to the patres, the
patrician ruling class
. Nostalgia for the
kingship (affectatio regni) was considered treasonous. Those suspected of
harbouring monarchical ambitions were punished, regardless of their service to
the state. In the 5th century BC, the triumphator
Furius Camillus
was sent into exile after he
drove a chariot with a team of four white horses (quadriga)—an
honour reserved for Jupiter himself. After the
Gallic occupation
ended and self-rule was
restored,
Manlius Capitolinus
took on regal pretensions
and was executed as a traitor by being cast from the
Tarpeian Rock
. His house on the Capitoline was
razed, and it was decreed that no patrician should ever be allowed to live
there.[10]
Capitoline Jupiter finds himself in a delicate position: he represents a
continuity of royal power from the
Regal period
, and confers power on the
magistrates
who pay their respects to him; at
the same time he embodies that which is now forbidden, abhorred, and scorned.[11]
During the
Conflict of the Orders
, Rome’s
plebeians
demanded the right to hold political
and religious office. During their first
secessio
(similar to a
general strike
), they withdrew from the city
and threatened to found their own. When they agreed to came back to Rome they
vowed the hill where they had retreated to Jupiter as symbol and guarantor of
the unity of the Roman res publica.[12]
Plebeians eventually became eligible for all the
magistracies
and most priesthoods, but the high
priest of Jupiter (Flamen
Dialis) remained the preserve of patricians.[13]
Flamen and
Flaminica Dialis
Jupiter was served by the patrician Flamen Dialis, the highest-ranking member
of the flamines
, a
college
of fifteen priests in the official
public cult of Rome, each of whom was devoted to a particular deity. His wife,
the Flaminica Dialis, had her own duties, and presided over the sacrifice of a
ram to Jupiter on each of the
nundinae
, the “market” days of a calendar
cycle, comparable to a week.[14]
The couple were required to marry by the exclusive patrician ritual
confarreatio
, which included a sacrifice of
spelt
bread to Jupiter Farreus (from far,
“wheat, grain”).[15]
The office of Flamen Dialis was circumscribed by several unique ritual
prohibitions, some of which shed light on the sovereign nature of the god
himself.[16]
For instance, the flamen may remove his clothes or
apex
(his pointed hat) only when under a
roof, in order to avoid showing himself naked to the sky—that is, “as if under
the eyes of Jupiter” as god of the heavens. Every time the Flaminica saw a
lightningbolt or heard a clap of thunder (Jupiter’s distinctive instrument), she
was prohibited from carrying on with her normal routine until she placated the
god.[17]
Some privileges of the flamen of Jupiter may reflect the regal nature
of Jupiter: he had the use of the
curule chair
,[18]
and was the only priest (sacerdos)
who was preceded by a
lictor
[19]
and had a seat in the
senate
.[20]
Other regulations concern his ritual purity and his separation from the military
function; he was forbidden to ride a horse or see the army outside the sacred
boundary of Rome (pomerium).
Although he served the god who embodied the sanctity of the oath, it was not
religiously permissible (fas)
for the Dialis to swear an oath.[21]
He could not have contacts with anything dead or connected with death: corpses,
funerals, funeral fires, raw meat. This set of restrictions reflects the fulness
of life and absolute freedom that are features of Jupiter.[22]
Augurs
The augures publici,
augurs
were a college of sacerdotes who
were in charge of all inaugurations and of the performing of ceremonies known as
auguria. Their creation was traditionally ascribed to Romulus. They were
considered the only official interprets of Jupiter’s will, thence they were
essential to the very existence of the Roman State as Romans saw in Jupiter the
only source of statal authority.
Fetials
The
fetials
were a college of 20 men devoted to the
religious administration of international affairs of state.[23]
Their task was to preserve and apply the fetial law (ius fetiale), a
complex set of procedures aimed at ensuring the protection of the gods in Rome’s
relations with foreign states.
Iuppiter Lapis
is the god under whose
protection they act, and whom the chief fetial (pater patratus) invokes
in the rite concluding a treaty.[24]
If a
declaration of war
ensues, the fetial calls
upon Jupiter and
Quirinus
, the heavenly, earthly and
chthonic
gods as witnesses of any potential
violation of the ius. He can then declare war within 33 days.[25]
The action of the fetials falls under Jupiter’s jurisdiction as the divine
defender of good faith. Several emblems of the fetial office pertain to Jupiter.
The silex was the stone used for the fetial sacrifice, housed in the
Temple of Iuppiter Feretrius
, as was their sceptre.
Sacred herbs (sagmina), sometimes identified as
vervain
, had to be taken from the nearby
(arx)citadel
for their ritual use.[26]
Temples
Temple of
Capitoline Jupiter
The temple to
Jupiter Optimus Maximus
stood on the
Capitoline Hill
.[42]
Jupiter was worshiped there as an individual deity, and with
Juno
and
Minerva
as part of the
Capitoline Triad
. The building was supposedly
begun by king
Tarquinius Priscus
, completed by the last king
(Tarquinius
Superbus) and inaugurated in the early days of the Roman Republic
(September 13, 509 BC). It was topped with the statues of four horses drawing a
quadriga
, with Jupiter as charioteer. A large
statue of Jupiter stood within; on festival days, its face was painted red.
[43]
In (or near) this temple was the
Iuppiter Lapis: the
Jupiter Stone
, on which oaths could be sworn.
Jupiter’s Capitoline Temple probably served as the architectural model for
his provincial temples. When Hadrian built
Aelia Capitolina
on the site of
Jerusalem
, a temple to Jupiter Capitolinus was
erected in the place of the destroyed
Temple in Jerusalem
.
Other temples in Rome
There were two temples in Rome dedicated to Iuppiter Stator; the first
one was built and dedicated in 294 BC by
Marcus Atilius Regulus
after the third Samnite
War. It was located on the Via Nova, below the Porta Mugonia,
ancient entrance to the Palatine.[44]
Legend has attributed its founding to Romulus.[45]
There may have been an earlier shrine (fanum),
since the Jupiter’s cult is attested epigraphically.[46]
Ovid places the temple’s dedication on June 27, but it is unclear
whether this was the original date,[47]
or the rededication after the restoration by Augustus.[48]
A second temple of Iuppiter Stator was built and dedicated by Quintus
Caecilus Metellus Macedonicus after his triumph in 146 BC near the
Circus Flaminius
. It was connected to the
restored temple of Iuno Regina with a
portico
(porticus Metelli).[49]
Iuppiter Victor had a temple dedicated by
Quintus Fabius Maximus Gurges
during the third
Samnite War in 295 BC. Its location is unknown, but it may be on the Quirinal,
on which an inscription reading D]iovei Victore[50]
has been found, or on the Palatine according to the Notitia in the
Liber Regionum (regio X), which reads: aedes Iovis Victoris. Either
might have been dedicated on April 13 or June 13 (days of Iuppiter Victor
and of Iuppiter Invictus, respectively, in Ovid’s Fasti).[51]
Inscriptions from the imperial age have revealed the existence of an
otherwise-unknown temple of Iuppiter Propugnator on the Palatine.[52]
Capitoline Triad
Capitoline Triad
The Capitoline Triad was introduced to Rome by the Tarquins. Dumézil[168]
thinks it might have been an Etruscan (or local) creation based on Vitruvius’
treatise on architecture, in which the three deities are associated as the most
important. It is possible that the Etruscans paid particular attention to
Menrva
(Minerva) as a goddess of destiny, in
addition to the royal couple Uni (Juno) and Tinia (Jupiter).[169]
In Rome, Minerva later assumed a military aspect under the influence of
Athena Pallas
(Polias). Dumézil argues that
with the advent of the Republic, Jupiter became the only king of Rome, no longer
merely the first of the great gods.
Jupiter and Minerva
Apart from being protectress of the arts and craft as Minerva Capta, who was
brought from Falerii, Minerva’s association to Jupiter and relevance to Roman
state religion is mainly linked to the
Palladium
, a wooden statue of Athena that could
move the eyes and wave the spear. It was stored in the penus interior,
inner penus of the aedes Vestae, temple of Vesta and considered the most
important among the
pignora imperii
, pawns of dominion, empire.[170]
In Roman traditional lore it was brought from Troy by Aeneas. Scholars though
think it was last taken to Rome in the third or second century BC.[171]
Juno and Fortuna
The divine couple received from Greece its matrimonial implications, thence
bestowing on Juno the role of tutelary goddess of marriage (Iuno Pronuba).
The couple itself though cannot be reduced to a Greek apport. The association
of Juno and Jupiter is of the most ancient Latin theology.[172]
Praeneste
offers a glimpse into original Latin
mythology: the local goddess
Fortuna
is represented as milking two infants,
one male and one female, namely Jove (Jupiter) and Juno.[173]
It seems fairly safe to assume that from the earliest times they were identified
by their own proper names and since they got them they were never changed
through the course of history: they were called Jupiter and Juno. These gods
were the most ancient deities of every Latin town. Praeneste preserved divine
filiation and infancy as the sovereign god and his paredra Juno have a mother
who is the primordial goddess Fortuna Primigenia.[174]
Many terracotta statuettes have been discovered which represent a woman with a
child: one of them represents exactly the scene described by Cicero of a woman
with two children of different sex who touch her breast. Two of the votive
inscriptions to Fortuna associate her and Jupiter: ” Fortunae Iovi puero…” and
“Fortunae Iovis puero…”[175]
In 1882 though R. Mowat published an inscription in which Fortuna is called
daughter of Jupiter, raising new questions and opening new perspectives
in the theology of Latin gods.[176]
Dumezil has elaborated an interpretative theory according to which this
aporia would be an intrinsic, fundamental feature of Indoeuropean deities of
the primordial and sovereign level, as it finds a parallel in Vedic religion.[177]
The contradiction would put Fortuna both at the origin of time and into its
ensuing diachronic process: it is the comparison offered by Vedic deity
Aditi
, the Not-Bound or Enemy of
Bondage, that shows that there is no question of choosing one of the two
apparent options: as the mother of the
Aditya
she has the same type of relationship
with one of his sons,
Dakṣa
, the minor sovereign. who represents the
Creative Energy, being at the same time his mother and daughter, as is
true for the whole group of sovereign gods to which she belongs.[178]
Moreover Aditi is thus one of the heirs (along with
Savitr
) of the opening god of the Indoiranians,
as she is represented with her head on her two sides, with the two faces looking
opposite directions.[179]
The mother of the sovereign gods has thence two solidal but distinct modalities
of duplicity, i.e. of having two foreheads and a double position in the
genealogy. Angelo Brelich has interpreted this theology as the basic opposition
between the primordial absence of order (chaos) and the organisation of the
cosmos.[180]
Janus
The relation of Jupiter to Janus is problematic. Varro defines Jupiter as the
god who has potestas (power) over the forces by which anything happens in
the world. Janus, however, has the privilege of being invoked first in rites,
since in his power are the beginnings of things (prima), the appearance
of Jupiter included.[181]
Saturn
The
Latins
considered Saturn the predecessor of
Jupiter. Saturn reigned in
Latium
during a mythical
Golden Age
reenacted every year at the festival
of Saturnalia
. Saturn also retained primacy in
matters of agriculture and money. Unlike the Greek tradition of
Cronus
and Zeus, the usurpation of Saturn as
king of the gods by Jupiter was not viewed by the Latins as violent or hostile;
Saturn continued to be revered in his temple at the foot of the Capitol Hill,
which maintained the alternative name Saturnius into the time of Varro.[182]
A. Pasqualini has argued that Saturn was related to Iuppiter Latiaris,
the old Jupiter of the Latins, as the original figure of this Jupiter was
superseded on the Alban Mount, whereas it preserved its gruesome character in
the ceremony held at the sanctuary of the Latiar Hill in Rome which involved a
human sacrifice and the aspersion of the statue of the god with the blood of the
victim.[183]
Fides
The abstract
personification
Fides (“Faith, Trust”) was one
of the oldest gods associated with Jupiter. As guarantor of public faith, Fides
had her temple on the Capitol (near that of Capitoline Jupiter).[184]
Dius Fidius
Dius Fidius is considered a
theonym
for Jupiter,[185]
and sometimes a separate entity also known in Rome as
Semo Sancus
Dius Fidius. Wissowa argued that
while Jupiter is the god of the Fides Publica Populi Romani as
Iuppiter Lapis (by whom important oaths are sworn), Dius Fidius is a deity
established for everyday use and was charged with the protection of good faith
in private affairs. Dius Fidius would thus correspond to Zeus Pistios.[186]
The association with Jupiter may be a matter of divine relation; some scholars
see him as a form of Hercules.[187]
Both Jupiter and Dius Fidius were wardens of oaths and wielders of lightning
bolts; both required an opening in the roof of their temples.[188]
The functionality of Sancus occurs consistently within the sphere of fides,
oaths and respect for contracts and of the divine-sanction guarantee against
their breach. Wissowa suggested that Semo Sancus is the
genius
of Jupiter,[189]
but the concept of a deity’s genius is a development of the Imperial
period.[190]
Some aspects of the oath-ritual for Dius Fidius (such as proceedings under
the open sky or in the compluvium of private residences), and the fact
the temple of Sancus had no roof, suggest that the oath sworn by Dius Fidius
predated that for Iuppiter Lapis or Iuppiter Feretrius.[191]
Genius
Augustine quotes Varro who explains the genius as “the god who is in
charge and has the power to generate everything” and “the rational spirit of all
(therefore, everyone has their own)”. Augustine concludes that Jupiter should be
considered the genius of the universe.[192]
G. Wissowa advanced the hypothesis that Semo
Sancus
is the genius of Jupiter.[189]
W. W. Fowler has cautioned that this interpretation looks to be an anachronism
and it would only be acceptable to say that Sancus is a Genius Iovius, as
it appears from the Iguvine Tables.[193]
Censorinus cites
Granius Flaccus
as saying that “the Genius was
the same entity as the Lar” in his lost work De Indigitamentis.[194][195]
Dumézil opines that the attribution of a Genius to the gods should be earlier
than its first attestation of 58 BC, in an inscription which mentions the
Iovis Genius.[196]
A connection between Genius and Jupiter would be apparent in
Plautus
‘ comedy
Amphitryon
, in which Jupiter takes up the
looks of Alcmena
‘s husband in order to seduce her: J.
Hubeaux sees there a reflection of the story that
Scipio Africanus
‘ mother conceived him with a
snake that was in fact Jupiter transformed.[197]
Scipio himself claimed that only he would rise to the mansion of the gods
through the widest gate.[198]
It is noteworthy that among the Etruscan Penates there is a Genius
Iovialis who comes after Fortuna and Ceres and before Pales .[199]
Genius Iovialis is one of the earthly Penates and not one of the Penates
of Jupiter though, as these were located in region I of Martianus Capella’ s
division of Heaven, while Genius appear in regions V and VI along with Ceres,
Favor (possibly a Roman approximation to an Etruscan male manifestation of
Fortuna) and Pales.[200]
Summanus
The god of nighttime lightning has been interpreted as an aspect of Jupiter,
either a chthonic
manifestation of the god or a separate
god of the underworld. A statue of Summanus stood on the roof of the Temple of
Capitoline Jupiter, and Iuppiter Summanus is one of the epithets of
Jupiter.[201]
Dumézil sees the opposition Dius Fidius versus Summanus as complementary,
interpreting it as typical to the inherent ambiguity of the sovereign god
exemplified by that of Mitra and Varuna in Vedic religion.[202]
The complementarity of the epithets is shown in inscriptions found on puteals
or bidentals reciting either fulgur Dium conditum[203]
or fulgur Summanum conditum in places struck by daytime versus nighttime
lightningbolts respectively.[204]
This is also consistent with the etymology of Summanus, deriving from
sub and mane (the time before morning).[205]
Liber
Iuppiter was associated with
Liber
through his epithet of Liber
(association not yet been fully explained by scholars, due to the scarcity of
early documentation). In the past, it was maintained that Liber was only a
progressively-detached
hypostasis
of Jupiter; consequently, the
vintage festivals were to be attributed only to Iuppiter Liber.[206]
Such a hypothesis was rejected as groundless by Wissowa, although he was a
supporter of Liber’s Jovian origin.[207]
Olivier de Cazanove[208]
contends that it is difficult to admit that Liber (who is present in the oldest
calendars—those of Numa—in the Liberalia and in the month of Liber
at Lavinium)[209]
was derived from another deity. Such a derivation would find support only in
epigraphic documents, primarily from the Osco-Sabellic area.[210]
Wissowa sets the position of Iuppiter Liber within the framework of an
agrarian Jupiter. The god also had a temple in this name on the Aventine in
Rome, which was restored by Augustus and dedicated on September 1. Here, the god
was sometimes named Liber[211]
and sometimes Libertas.[212]
Wissowa opines that the relationship existed in the concept of creative
abundance through which the supposedly-separate Liber might have been connected[213]
to the Greek god
Dionysos
, although both deities might not have
been originally related to
viticulture
.
Other scholars assert that there was no Liber (other than a god of wine)
within historical memory.[214]
O. de Cazanove[215]
argues that the domain of the sovereign god Jupiter was that of sacred,
sacrificial wine (vinum inferium),[216]
while that of Liber and Libera was confined to secular wine (vinum spurcum);[217]
these two types were obtained through differing fermentation processes. The
offer of wine to Liber was made possible by naming the mustum (grape
juice) stored in amphoras
sacrima.[218]
Sacred wine was obtained by the natural fermentation of juice of grapes free
from flaws of any type, religious (e. g. those struck by lightning, brought into
contact with corpses or wounded people or coming from an unfertilised grapeyard)
or secular (by “cutting” it with old wine). Secular (or “profane”) wine was
obtained through several types of manipulation (e.g. by adding honey, or
mulsum; using raisins, or passum; by boiling, or defrutum).
However, the sacrima used for the offering to the two gods for the
preservation of grapeyards, vessels and wine[219]
was obtained only by pouring the juice into amphors after pressing.[220]
The mustum was considered spurcum (dirty), and thus unusable in
sacrifices.[221]
The amphor (itself not an item of sacrifice) permitted presentation of its
content on a table or could be added to a sacrifice; this happened at the
auspicatio vindamiae for the first grape[222]
and for ears of corn of the praemetium on a dish (lanx) at the
temple of
Ceres
.[223]
Dumézil, on the other hand, sees the relationship between Jupiter and Liber
as grounded in the social and political relevance of the two gods (who were both
considered patrons of freedom).[224]
The Liberalia of March were, since earliest times, the occasion for the
ceremony of the donning of the toga virilis or libera (which
marked the passage into adult citizenship by young people). Augustine relates
that these festivals had a particularly obscene character: a phallus was
taken to the fields on a cart, and then back in triumph to town. In
Lavinium
they lasted a month, during which the
population enjoyed bawdy jokes. The most honest matronae were supposed to
publicly crown the phallus with flowers, to ensure a good harvest and
repeal the fascinatio (evil eye).[209]
In Rome representations of the sex organs were placed in the temple of the
couple Liber Libera, who presided over the male and female components of
generation and the “liberation” of the semen.[225]
This complex of rites and beliefs shows that the divine couple’s jurisdiction
extended over fertility in general, not only that of grapes. The etymology of
Liber (archaic form Loifer, Loifir) was explained by Émile Benveniste
as formed on the IE theme *leudh- plus the suffix -es-; its original meaning is
“the one of germination, he who ensures the sprouting of crops”.[226]
The relationship of Jupiter with freedom was a common belief among the Roman
people, as demonstrated by the dedication of the Mons Sacer to the god
after the first secession of the plebs. Later inscriptions also show the
unabated popular belief in Jupiter as bestower of freedom in the imperial era.[227]
Veiove
Scholars are puzzled by Ve(d)iove (or
Veiovis
, or Vedius) and unwilling to discuss
his identity, claiming our knowledge of this god is insufficient.[228]
Most, however, agree that Veiove is a sort of anti-Iove or an underworld
Jupiter.[229]
This conclusion is based on information provided by Gellius,[230]
who states his name originates by adding the prefix ve (here denoting
“deprivation” or “negation”) to Iove (whose name Gellius posits as rooted
in the verb iuvo “I benefit”). D. Sabbatucci has stressed the feature of
bearer of instability and antithesis to cosmic order of this god, who threatens
the kingly power of Jupiter as Stator and Centumpeda and whose
presence occurs side by side with Janus’ on January 1, but also his function of
helper to the growth of the young Jupiter[231]
Preller suggests that Veiovis may be the sinister double of Jupiter.[232]
In fact, the god (under the name Vetis) is placed in the last case
(number 16) of the outer rim of the Piacenza Liver—before Cilens
(Nocturnus), who ends (or begins in the Etruscan vision) the disposition of the
gods. In
Martianus Capella
‘s division of heaven, he is
found in region XV with the dii publici; as such, he numbers among the
infernal (or antipodal) gods. The location of his two temples in Rome—near those
of Jupiter (one on the Capitoline Hill, in the low between the arx and
the Capitolium, between the two groves where the
asylum
founded by Romulus stood, the other on
the Tiber Island near that of Iuppiter Iurarius, later also known as
temple of Aesculapius)[233]—may
be significant in this respect, along with the fact that he is considered the
father[234]
of Apollo, perhaps because he was depicted carrying arrows. He is also
considered to be the unbearded Jupiter.[235]
The dates of his festivals support the same conclusion: they fall on January 1,[236]
March 7[237]
and May 21,[238]
the first date being the recurrence of the
Agonalia
, dedicated to Janus and celebrated by
the king with the sacrifice of a ram. The nature of the sacrifice is debated;
Gellius states capra, a female goat, although some scholars posit a ram.
This sacrifice occurred rito humano, which may mean “with the rite
appropriate for human sacrifice”.[239]
Gellius concludes by stating that this god is one of those who receive
sacrifices to refrain from causing harm.
The arrow is an ambivalent symbol; it was used in the ritual of the
devotio
(the general who vowed had to stand on
an arrow).[240]
It is because of the arrow that Gellius considers Veiove as a god who must
receive worship to obtain his abstention from doing harm, along with
Robigus
and
Averruncus
.[241]
Maurice Besnier has remarked that a temple to Iuppiter was dedicated
by praetor Lucius Furius Purpureo before the
battle of Cremona
against the
Celtic Cenomani of Cisalpine Gaul
.[242]
An inscription found at
Brescia
in 1888 shows that Iuppiter Iurarius
was worshipped there[243]
and one found on the south tip of Tiber Island in 1854 that there was a cult to
the god on the spot too.[244]
Besnier speculates that Lucius Furius had evoked the chief god of the enemy and
built a temple to him in Rome outside the pomerium. On January 1, the
Fasti Praenestini record the festivals of Aesculapius and Vediove on the
Island, while in the Fasti Ovid speaks of Jupiter and his
grandson.[245]
Livy records that in 192 BC, duumvir Q. Marcus Ralla dedicated to Jupiter
on the Capitol the two temples promised by L. Furius Purpureo, one of which was
that promised during the war against the Gauls.[246]
Besnier would accept a correction to Livy’s passage (proposed by Jordan) to read
aedes Veiovi instead of aedes duae Iovi. Such a correction
concerns the temples dedicated on the Capitol: it does not address the question
of the dedication of the temple on the Island, which is puzzling, since the
place is attested epigraphically as dedicated to the cult of Iuppiter
Iurarius and Vediove in the Fasti Praenestini and to Jupiter
according to Ovid. The two gods may have been seen as equivalent: Iuppiter
Iurarius is an awesome and vengeful god, parallel to the Greek Zeus
Orkios, the avenger of perjury.[247]
A. Pasqualini has argued that Veiovis seems related to Iuppiter Latiaris,
as the original figure of this Jupiter would have been superseded on the Alban
Mount, whereas it preserved its gruesome character in the ceremony held on the
sanctuary of the Latiar Hill, the southernmost hilltop of the
Quirinal
in Rome, which involved a human
sacrifice. The
gens Iulia
had gentilician cults at
Bovillae
where a dedicatory inscription to
Vediove has been found in 1826 on an ara.[248]
According to Pasqualini it was a deity similar to Vediove, wielder of
lightningbolts and chthonic, who was connected to the cult of the founders who
first inhabited the Alban Mount and built the sanctuary. Such a cult once
superseded on the Mount would have been taken up and preserved by the Iulii,
private citizens bound to the sacra Albana by their Alban origin.[249]
Victoria
Coin with
laureate
head of Jupiter (obverse)
and (reverse) Victory, standing (“ROMA” below in
relief
)
Victoria was connected to Iuppiter Victor in his role as bestower of
military victory. Jupiter, as a sovereign god, was considered as having the
power to conquer anyone and anything in a supernatural way; his contribution to
military victory was different from that of
Mars
(god of military valour). Victoria appears
first on the reverse of coins representing Venus (driving the quadriga of
Jupiter, with her head crowned and with a palm in her hand) during the first
Punic War. Sometimes, she is represented walking and carrying a trophy.[250]
A temple was dedicated to the goddess afterwards on the Palatine, testifying
to her high station in the Roman mind. When
Hieron of Syracuse
presented a golden statuette
of the goddess to Rome, the Senate had it placed in the temple of Capitoline
Jupiter among the greatest (and most sacred) deities.[251]
Although Victoria played a significant role in the religious ideology of the
late Republic and the Empire, she is undocumented in earlier times. A function
similar to hers may have been played by the little-known
Vica Pota
.
Terminus
Juventas and Terminus were the gods who, according to legend,[252]
refused to leave their sites on the Capitol when the construction of the temple
of Jupiter was undertaken. Therefore, they had to be reserved a sacellum
within the new temple. Their stubbornness was considered a good omen; it would
guarantee youth, stability and safety to Rome on its site.[253]
This legend is generally thought by scholars to indicate their strict connection
with Jupiter. An inscription found near
Ravenna
reads Iuppiter Ter.,[254]
indicating that Terminus is an aspect of Jupiter.
Terminus is the god of boundaries (public and private), as he is portrayed in
literature. The religious value of the
boundary marker
is documented by Plutarch,[255]
who ascribes to king Numa the construction of temples to Fides and Terminus and
the delimitation of Roman territory. Ovid gives a vivid description of the rural
rite at a boundary of fields of neighbouring peasants on February 23 (the day of
the
Terminalia
.[256]
On that day, Roman pontiffs and magistrates held a ceremony at the sixth mile of
the Via Laurentina
(ancient border of the Roman
ager, which maintained a religious value). This festival, however, marked
the end of the year and was linked to time more directly than to space (as
attested by Augustine’s
apologia
on the role of Janus with respect to
endings).[257]
Dario Sabbatucci has emphasised the temporal affiliation of Terminus, a reminder
of which is found in the rite of the regifugium.[258]
G. Dumézil, on the other hand, views the function of this god as associated with
the legalistic aspect of the sovereign function of Jupiter. Terminus would be
the counterpart of the minor Vedic god Bagha, who oversees the just and fair
division of goods among citizens.[259]
Iuventas
Along with Terminus, Iuventas (also known as Iuventus
and Iuunta) represents an aspect of Jupiter (as the legend of her refusal
to leave the Capitol Hill demonstrates. Her name has the same root as
Juno
(from Iuu-, “young, youngster”);
the ceremonial litter bearing the sacred goose of Juno Moneta stopped before her
sacellum on the festival of the goddess. Later, she was identified with
the Greek
Hebe
. The fact that Jupiter is related to the
concept of youth is shown by his epithets Puer, Iuuentus and
Ioviste (interpreted as “the youngest” by some scholars).[260]
Dumézil noted the presence of the two minor sovereign deities Bagha and
Aryaman
beside the Vedic sovereign gods Varuna
and Mitra (though more closely associated with Mitra); the couple would be
reflected in Rome by Terminus and Iuventas. Aryaman is the god of
young soldiers. The function of Iuventas is to protect the iuvenes
(the novi togati of the year, who are required to offer a sacrifice to
Jupiter on the Capitol)[261]
and the Roman soldiers (a function later attributed to Juno). King Servius
Tullius, in reforming the Roman social organisation, required that every
adolescent offer a coin to the goddess of youth upon entering adulthood.[262]
In Dumézil’s analysis, the function of Iuventas (the personification
of youth), was to control the entrance of young men into society and protect
them until they reach the age of iuvenes or iuniores (i.e. of
serving the state as soldiers).[263]
A temple to Iuventas was promised in 207 BC by consul
Marcus Livius Salinator
and dedicated in 191
BC.[264]
Penates
The Romans considered the Penates as the gods to whom they owed their own
existence.[265]
As noted by Wissowa Penates is an adjective, meaning “those of or from
the penus” the innermost part, most hidden recess;[266]
Dumézil though refuses Wissowa’s interpretation of penus as the storeroom
in a household. As a nation they honoured the Penates publici: Dionysius
calls them Trojan gods as they were absorbed into the Trojan legend. They
had a temple in Rome at the foot of the Velia, near the Palatine Hill, in which
they were represented as a couple of male youth. They were honoured every year
by the new consuls before entering office at
Lavinium
,[267]
because the Romans believed the Penates of that town were identical to their
own.[268]
The concept of di Penates is more defined in Etruria:
Arnobius
(citing a Caesius) states that the
Etruscan Penates were named Fortuna, Ceres, Genius Iovialis and Pales; according
to
Nigidius Figulus
, they included those of
Jupiter, of Neptune, of the infernal gods and of mortal men.[269]
This complex concept is reflected in Martianus Capella’s division of heaven,
found in Book I of his De Nuptiis Mercurii et Philologiae, which places
the Di Consentes Penates in region I with the Favores Opertanei;
Ceres and Genius in region V; Pales in region VI; Favor
and Genius (again) in region VII; Secundanus Pales, Fortuna
and Favor Pastor in region XI. The disposition of these divine entities
and their repetition in different locations may be due to the fact that
Penates belonging to different categories (heavenly in region I, earthly in
region V) are intended. Favor(es) may be the
Etruscan
masculine equivalent of Fortuna.
g another usurper, Aureolus, at the hands of
his own despairing soldiers.
|
