Becoming a God; the Deification of the Roman Emperor

Throughout the Mediterranean, people worshipped their rulers as gods; it's enough to think of the pharaohs of Egypt and a number of rulers in the Greek world. What about Rome? Romans did worship their city founder, Romulus, deified as Quirinus, but what about their own leaders? By the end of the Republic, with the rise of the strongmen statesmen/generals, the idea was trending. Julius Caesar was the first Roman ruler deified in the Late Republic, quickly followed by Augustus. Then, imperial family members were added. Over time, the entire process of deification (apotheosis) became an elaborate event in Rome. We will look at the pageantry in Rome through ancient sources as well as a series of monuments and reliefs depicting apotheosis that underline the deification and worship of the emperor and his family: Mausoleum of Augustus, Pantheon, Arch of Titus, Column of Trajan, Mausoleum of Hadrian, and more.
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[@Skedaddlemahgaggle]

Thanks for this! I'm currently writing an essay on Roman deification; a comparative source analysis of Pliny the younger and a coin of Domitian. This has given me a nice overall picture of deification and its significance, as well as my study materials. I watched this on my study break, just to keep the juices flowing. Cheers!

[@isobellemcghie3465]

Great to listen to and enjoy again and again . Thank you 🎉

[@AncientRomeLive]

Thank you very much!

[@lauraberretta741]

Thank you Darius!

[@AncientRomeLive]

Thank you! Please send topic ideas- tweet us!

[@lauraberretta741]

American Institute for Roman Culture I was thinking about: ways of future telling the emperors used to deal with crucial decisions

[@WildMen4444]

Hail to the Divii and Divae of the Roman Imperial Cult!

[@smokingandtolkien3674]

This was incredibly helpful to me!

[@Breakfast_of_Champions]

Pretty much the ultimate oligarchic hubris: the senate creating actual gods.

[@usergiodmsilva1983PT]

Yeah, imagine some guys in the backwaters of the empire doing that some years later! XD

[@ayushmaanchakraborty9636]

How do I attend these live seminars? On what platform do they take place?

[@ciaobella_ericafirpo]

Go to ancientromelive.org and sign up

[@ciaobella_ericafirpo]

mailchi.mp/romanculture/ancient-rome-live-online-seminars

[@ayushmaanchakraborty9636]

Thanks

[@usergiodmsilva1983PT]

"JC died and ascended to the heavens to be at the side of the Father in Heaven" ;P

[@86thrasher]

So this is the “Mark of the Beast” that John of Patmos was talking about in Revelation? 🤔

[@logos3522]

No Christians allowed you worship a Jewish god

[@Texasmade74]

Nonsense

[@86thrasher]

Not really, if you have a basic understanding of Roman culture and history. The book of Revelation is obviously a written revenge fantasy directed towards the Roman Empire. I’ve heard every apologetic argument on the interpretation of Revelation and I find them unconvincing.

[@Texasmade74]

@86thrasher so you're not some post-apocalyptic nonsense Christian ?

[@Texasmade74]

@86thrasher I can assure you I know quite a bit about Roman religion and culture, but I'm not a monotheist at all