Celestial Inclinations provides a new perspective on the life and career of the first Roman emperor Augustus (63 B.C.-A.D. 14). It presents the case that Augustus used his knowledge of the celestial sphere to confirm for himself and convey to others that the heavens supported his activities on earth and his inevitable greatness. The book is based on fresh assessments of ancient historical, literary, astronomical, astrological, and artistic sources for the years prior to and during the life of Augustus. Anne-Marie Lewis combines these sources with astronomical sky maps and astrological diagrams to offer fresh interpretations of critical events in the life of Augustus at a time when the celestial sphere had come to play an important cultural and political role. Some of those events involve the identification of the celestial object that appeared at the ludi in honor of Caesar in 44 B.C.; the Battle of Actium; the iconography of the Tellus Relief Panel on the Ara Pacis Augustae; the Ludi Saeculares; Augustus' major building projects in Rome; and Augustus' interactions with major figures of the period such as Cicero, Caesar, Agrippa, and Antonius.
List of Figures List of Tables Introduction Chapter 1 Nigidius Figulus and the Birth of a Future Dominus for the World Chapter 2 Celestial Display and Cicero>'s Consular Year Chapter 3 Celestial Venus, Caesar>'s Victories, and the Julian Calendar Chapter 4 Cicero>'s Aratea and the Education of Octavius in the Fixed Constellations Chapter 5 Theogenes of Apollonia and Geniturae of Agrippa and Octavius Chapter 6 Octavianus and the Sidus Crinitum of September 44 B.C. Chapter 7 Conflict, Alliance, and the Stella Comans Chapter 8 Antonius, Octavianus, and the Egyptian Mathematicus Chapter 9 Octavianus, Antonius, and the Banquet of the Twelve Gods Chapter 10 From Naulochus to Actium Chapter 11 Triumphs and Temples after the Battle of Actium Chapter 12 A New Name for Octavianus and the Ludi Saeculares Chapter 13 Deaths in the Family and the Ara Pacis Augustae Chapter 14 Consolidation and Transition in the Final Years of Augustus>' Rule Chapter 15 Honores Caelestes: The Death, Funeral, and Deification of Augustus Bibliography Index
Anne-Marie Lewis is Associate Professor of Ancient Greek and Latin at York University in Toronto, Canada.
Reviews for Celestial Inclinations: A Life of Augustus
[Lewis'] unique approach employs astronomical and astrological works as the foundational evidence for Augustus's actions, resulting in an analysis of the emperor based on astronomical sky maps at an unprecedented level. This analysis yields new interpretations of Augustus's reign and provides a better understanding of the Roman ruler. It offers a novel approach to understanding Augustus and Roman society during his life and provides an opportunity for Roman scholars to reimagine the relationship Roman elites had with Roman religion...Highly recommended. * Choice *
