Notes on the Divinization of Roman Emperors
The Case of Ephesos


When Caesar and Pompey embarked on civil war in 49 BCE, Ephesos and
most of Asia Minor remained at peace. After defeat of Pompey at
Pharsalus, Caesar came to Ephesos in late summer of 48 BCE and
received the ambassadors of the Ionians, Aeolians, and other
peoples of lower Asia. During his few weeks in the city Caesar
remitted one-third of the tax Asia had previously paid, abolished
the old method of collecting direct taxes in the province through
contracts let out to corporations of publicani, and replaced it
with a system by which amounts raised by communities were paid to
a quaestor or financial official of the province. Cities, peoples,
and tribes of Asia subsequently honored Caesar with a statue at
Ephesos, which praised him as "the descendant of Ares and
Aphrodite, a god made manifest and the common savior of human
life." It was probably at this time that Pamphylia, along with a
portion of the mountain region of Milyas and Pisidia, was added to
the province of Asia.

After defeat of Brutus and Cassius, assassins of Caesar, at
Philippi, Antony in turn came to  Ephesos in 41, greeted by women
dressed as Bacchants, and men and boys as Satyrs and Pans. At
Ephesos, Antony assembled Greeks and other tribes around Pergamon,
and settled upon nine years' taxes payable in two years as
punishment for their support of Brutus and Cassius.  Exceeding
demands even of his greedy predecessors, Antony demanded payments
not only from fee and subject cities, but also from client kings
and minor rulers as well.  As partial compensation for the
cooperation of the  priests of the Artemision, Antony doubled the
area of asylum surrounding the temple which therefore included a
section of the city itself. This was an invitation to civil discord
which the Roman emperors would find necessary to rectify.
 
During final stages of struggle between Antony and Octavian, Antony
and Cleopatra spent the winter of 33/32 in the city, joined there
by 300 Roman senators and a huge fleet of over 500 warships. After
defeat of Antony at  Actium in 31 BCE, according to Cassius Dio,
Octavian punished the cities of Asia  which had aided Antony by
levying payments of money and suspending their governmental
assemblies.  Inscriptional record indicates, however, that many
cities also had benefits conferred upon them in aftermath of Actium
and Ephesos itself apparently remained at least nominally free. 

Two years later in 27, when Octavian "restored" the Res Publica to
the Roman people, province of Asia reverted to being one of
provinciae populi Romani, governed by proconsuls appointed by lot. 

Responsibility for the mainteance of the cult of the emperor fell
upon the koinon of the Hellenes, which had already conferred honors
upon Scaevola and had served as an intermediary between the cities
of Asia and the Roman government.  Form the foundation of the
imperial cult, the koinon held annual meetings for the worship of
the new deities and for the transaction of business by deputies.
Member cities chose representatives up to three, according to city
size. The koinon also celebrated a festivl with a sacred contest
each year in honor of the deities called the Romaia Sebasta. The
principal official of the cult was known as the chief priest of
Asia, and was chosen annually at the meeting of the assembly for a
one year term. The primary function of this office was to conduct
the worship of the divinities, although the chief priest also
brought proposals before the assembly, arranged for the execution
of its enactments, and might also serve as an agonotheete or
supervisor of the koinon's festivals. 

Activities of koinon, however, were not confined to management of
imperial cult. In 9 BCE the koinon enacted a decree by which member
cities adopted a new calendar proposed by the proconsul, although
Ephesos chose to retain its old Ionian calendar well into second
scentury. Later, the koinon sent embassies to Rome to watch over
interests of Asia in capital and in 22 CE koinon pesented charges
against Roman officials who had abused theiir power in the
province.

Thus koinon gradually assumed a position of dealing with the Roman
government in a corporate capacity on behalf of the province. The
assumption of responsibility in turn led to the creation of a new
provincial nobility. Furthermore, the sons of the chief priests
were admitted to equestrian order, and their sons sometimes became
members of Senate.  

An Augusteum was probably already in place within the temenos or
sacred precinct of the Artemision by 6/5 BCE, and Ephesos gradually
supplanted Pergamon as focus of religious, economic, and political
activity in the province. Augustus, in fact, seems to have devoted
special care to the cult of Artemis, first by nullifying Antony's
extension of the area of asylum of the temple, and then by at least
allowing the transfer of the college of priests known as the

Kuretes, whose responsibility it was to celebrate the mysteries of
Artemis, from the Artemision to the new prytaneion in the upper
city.

During reign of Claudius, the apostle Paul spent two full years in
city of Ephesos, and caused famous riot of the silversmiths led by
Demetrios. (Acts 19. 23-41)  Incident generally interpreted in
light of economic threat to silversmiths -- better understood
against debate over Jewish civic status within Greek provincial
cities.  Paul's message that gods made by human hands were not gods
at all, presented an immediate threat to the peace and security of
the Jewish community at Ephesos, which had lived for centuries on
the razor's edge of pagan tolerance.  Also during the riot, the
Jews of the city put forward a cerain Alexandros, to make an
apology to the Greeks of Ephesos-- probably an attempt to
disassociate the Jewish commuinty of Ephesos from words and deeds
of Paul, a Jew from Tarsos.

Foundation

Unlike other foundations involving processions or distributions on
birthdays during the imperial period, e.g. foundation of C. Iulius
Demosthenes from Oinoanda during reign of Hadrian, while legal term
used to describe the proposal throughout the seven documents of the
Salutaris foundation was diataxis, text of the foundation and the
letter of the legatus, Afranius Flavianus, refer to Salutaris as a
dedicator. What he did under terms of his proposal was to dedicate
certain type statues and images and money to Artemis and to various
civic bodies and individuals.  Statues and images called sacred in
the text. 
   Next Salutaris consecrated landed property in order to guarantee
the revenues which made dedications possible.  Practice paralleld 
in similar foundations at Oinoanda, Nysa and Philadelpia during
second and third centuries and seems to have been preferred method
of financing foundations generally.  Explicit purpose of Salutaris'
dedications was to adorn and exalt the sacred and public
possessions of Ephesos, and to honor and reverence "the most mighty
goddess Artemis and the imperial family." Capital sum donated
officially designated as an endowment of the goddess.

Sanctions meant to ensure execution of terms of foundation brought
it under jurisdiction of temple law. If Salutaris died, his heirs
were charged to fulfil terms of the foundation, and were liable to
terms of contracts for loans applicable in sacred affairs of the
goddess and in business with the gerousia.  Any attempt to make
changes in administration of dedicated statues was subject to
prosecution for temple robbery and sacrilege. Double fine on
transgressors: 25,000 denarii for adornment of Artemis and another
25,000 to fiscus of Caesar. (Remember 50,000 denarii or 200,000
sesterces equaled onehalf minimum wealth for an eques or twice the
minimum for a town council at Comum)

Salutaris' endowment, which consisted of 21,500 silver denarii for
lotteries and distributions, and at least 124 pounds, 1/2 ounce and
8 gramamaes of gold and silver for statues and images, would appear
to fall into middle range of expenditure among foudnations from
Asia Minor during imperial period. 
Proconsul of Asia, Aquillius Proculus, and his legatus, Afranius
Flavianus, confirmed foundation in separate leters. 
Important is the relentlessly sacred language used to describe
every step of legislative process. From proposal to promulgation,
the language of process of founding belonged to the semantic
context of dedications, sacrilege, and sacred law (sphere of the
divine).  The foundation becomes a sacred, public act, embodied in
law, and displayed on stone. Social and historical and theological
discrimination represented attitudes of the demos of Ephesos. 


Studies of distributions thus far show that donors included
prominent men in the city, such as T.Aelius Alkibiades from Nysa
during the Antonine period, who organized distributions to be made
every year on the birthday of the god Hadrian, but also women, such
as Cornelia, from Philadlephia, who set aside land so that the
boule could make a distribution on the birthday of her brother. 

Members of larger civic bodies, such as boule and gerousia, often
benefited from distributions at Thyateira or Philadelphia, although
entire citizen body seems to have received money for sacrifices to
celebrate birthday of the emperor Antoninus Pius at Ephesos in 138
C.E. The money for the sacrifices of 138 probably came from public
revenues, but individual donors also spent thousands of denarii as
well. 


Unlike example from quattrocento Florence (confraternities of
youth), Salutaris' scheme did not separate the youth associations
of Ephesos from public life: rather, lotteries and distributions
forced paides and ephebes to act out a civiic hierarchy along with
their elders. Acting out hierarchy of the scheme taught the young
men, as well as fathers, to look (metaphorically) to institutional
structure of their city, to its Ionian foudnation, and to birth of

Artemis for their sense of social and historical identity in the
complex and changing Roman world.  If they played roles properly,
would become, not male "saviors" of society, but good and true
Ephesians, sons of Androklos and Artemis.

Lotteris and Distributions

In decree of demos and boule, total capital endowment was 20,000
denarii. This yielded 1800 denarii yearly for lotteries and
distributions at standard 9 percent interest. In addenddum, 15000
denarii was total capital endowment; 9 percent yielded 135 denarii
yearly for additional lotteries and distribuions.

Most distributions took place on 5, 6 Thargelion (ninth month of
Ephesian year), which probably began on 23 September, birthday of
Augustus.  At beginning of second century CE Ephesians celebrated
birthday of Artemis on 6 Thargelion.


First group of beneficiaries Salutaris enjoined to care for
dedicated statuary. From main endowment, Salutaris gave 30 denarii
to individual who cleaned statues of goddess each time they were
carried back to temple of Artemis before they were put back into
pronaos of temple. 
Money distributed to neokori perhaps subsized purchase of wine or
incense for sacrifices before images of Trajan and Plotina on the
birthday of goddess. 

Since only 3% for care of statues, Salutaris did not organize
lotteries and distributions simply to take care of statues. 

Second group comprise beneficiaries directed to spend allotments on
specific ritual tasks during celebration of the mysteries. Through
lottery of the registered asiarchs Salutaris provided money for
sacrifice by provincial officals of imperial cult during
celebration of mysteries. These priests of imperial cult came from
elite of province and were among most important individuals in
Asia.  So 7% for ritual purposes during celebration of mysteries. 

Third group were beneficiaries who were not ordered to take care of
statues or to perform any ritual tasks. 90 % so earmarked. Citizens
of tribes received greatest percentage (43%) : functionaries of
imperial cult, functionaries of Artemision, members of youth
associations, and adult members of civic institutions. 

Salutaris further associated foundation with imperial cult through
the lottery of the nine theologi, organized by the archiereus in
the temple of Artemis on her birthday. Theologoi at Ephesos
composed a sunhedrion, and could include Roman citizens.
Inscriptions from outside Ephesos indicate theologoi should be
associated with herophants and declaimers of sacred litanies at
celebrations of mysteries. Although theologi originally were
servants of gods or goddesses particular to Asia Minor, later were
attached to imperial cult at Smyrna, Pergamon, and Ephesos. May be
guessed that nine thoelogoi prayed at festival, though there is no
evidence. While capital endowment of theologi was only fifth
largest, at 275 denarii, individual shares, 2 3/4 was third
laragest, and so theologi important in Salutaris' scheme. 

The fourteen thesmodoi received 7 denarii in temple of Artemis on
birthday of the goddess. At Ephesos, thesmodoi comprised a
sunhedrion of special singers for emperor, attached to provincial
temple of emperors. 

Provision of 18 denarii fro priestess of Artemis on her birthday
brought endowment back into center of temple hierarachy. Is no sign
of ancient eunuch priest of Artemis, the megabyzos. Rather,
priestess of Artemis appears as chief official of cult of 104CE. 
She was in charge of liturgy of official cult, and several
different priestesses claimed to have celebrated mystries during
first and second centries CE. Priestesses also appear frequently at
beginning of Kuretes' lists, and one from third century claimed to
have renewed all mysteries of the goddess and reestablished them on
old customary basis. These priestesses came from prominent local
families of wealth, and were represented in inscritpions throughout
city as daughters and wives of asiarchs, neopoi, and Roman
citizens, often for generations. 


Lottery of the six tribes of Ephesos clearly expanded numerical
scope of Salutaris' foundation; must also have evoked Hellensitic
past, and indeed the Ionian foundation of the city, since five of
the tribes, those of the Ephesians, Karenaeas, Teians, Euonumo, and
Bembinaeans, originated during period of foundation of the city by
Androklos, according to  Ephoros.

Provision that it is endowment of goddess. This  should mean
endowment was possession of Artemis, or the Artemision in her
place. 

Processions

Processions meandered through narrow streets of Roman world almost
daily. In these processions, celebrants often carried statues or
ritual objects of honored deity along a prescribed route in city,
stopping at certain points for specific acts of ritual, heading
toward god's temple or sacred precinct. 


The foundation of C. Vibiius Saltuaris was a sacred public act
embodied in law and displayed on stone. This public act created two

civic rituals which whole demos ratified and Roman governors
confirmed. Through repeated performance of these civic rituals,
Ephesians established and mantained the sacred identify of their
city. Birth of goddess Artemis at Ephesos defined that sacred
identity and empowered those adult male Greeks who celebrted it. 
    First civic ritual involved individuals and civic bodies in a
scheme of lotteries and distributions of cash doled out inside
temple of Artemis each year during mysteries. One typical ritual
included ephebes in a praocession of 31 gold and sivler type
statues and images along a circular route from temple of Artemis at
least once every two weeks during the year.
   Behind performance of two rituals lay conceptual blueprints of
a contemporary social hierarchy and a version of the history of
Ephesos. Salutaris and city fathers intended the paides and ephebes
of the city to learn abut the social hierarachy and history of
Ephesos through physical participation in civic rituals, but,
except for slaves and foreigners, virtually whole adult male
population either took part in or watched these public rituals.
      Social hierarchy implied in scheme stressed importance of
membership in the tribes, the boule, and the gerousia of Ephesos.
Oldest of these predominatly adult male institutions, five original
tribes of Ephesos, traced origins back to time of Ionian
foundation.  Boule and gerousia dated to classical period.
     When young men joined in scheme of lotteries and
distributions, they learned that the institutional roles they would
play, which began when they officially entered into tribes, and
even the order in which they would play those roles, were fixed at
time of Ionian foundation of city. Ephebes could not have failed to
recognize that adult males of local Greek birth filled most of
those institonal roles in 104 CE.
    Social hierarchy of city grounded in same ancient, but still
human event which loss presupposed the reconstruction of the past
woven into the procession of statues.  A thousand years after that
boar led Ionian colonists to the thickets of Koressos, Salutaris'
procession still drew upon Ionian foundation story for narrative
theme of successive foundations. 


Our own tradition has made us not only intolerant but also
uncomprehending of other systems of belief. By dismissing a
spiritual leader schu as the late Ayatollah Khomeini as a sinister
old hand chopper, we deprive ourselves of a strategy for explaining
why a quarter of a million mourners should risk being crushed to
death for a glimpse of the Imam's refrigerated remains.  Our
inability to take the Olympian gods seriously puts us at a
comparable disadvantage in undertaking a study of Greek mythology
and religion, since we tend to assume a priori that the Olympians
are and never were "real" gods.  
Bear in mind that gravitation does not exist either, even if we
seem to feel its effects, for Einstein's theory of General
Relataivity now postulates that what Newton desribed as gravitation
is actually the consequences of a geometricl configuration which
directs lesser bodies toward larger ones. Yet belief in the
Olympian gods and the theory of gravitation have in their different
ways assisted the human mind in accounting for its experience of
the world, and the fact that they have only proved provisional in
no way diminishes their usefulness.  Goal of Greek religion, like
that of post classical physics, was at bottom relatively modest: it
signified an attempt to achieve a limited understanding of the
constrained randomness of Chaos. 







Cyprus: Kourion and Apollo
Kourioin was one of the three most important sanctuaries in Cyprus
in Roman times.Roman buildings of first two ceneturies CE confused
and destroyed earlier structures particularly south of the temonos
boundaries. However, it is obvious tht Roman interest revived and
continued the religious traditions which made this sanctuary
important in archaic times. Its form and the nature of the finds in
the precinct suggest an even longer history of continuity of
tradition which began in the Bronze Age if not earlier.
    The sancutary was not associated with any habitation or
settlement. Neolithic Sotira Teppes, some three to four miles to
the north, and the Chalcolithic settlement of Sotira Kaminoudhia,
which lies at bottom of eastern slope of same hill, not connected
with santuary. 
Long history in Minoan and Mycenaean period with many changes

In archaic times (700-475 BCE) when sanctuary received its wall and
altars. Numerous cemeteries in sourronding district from the
Yerokarka region to At Meydan to the west and Kaloriziki south of
the modern road to Limassol and nearer the sea testify to the
density of contemporary settlement without revealing its exact
whereabouts. Perhaps there were several, and the earlier practice
of frequent moves to new sites continued without affecting common

boound of cultural tradition which had united entire area near
sanctuary since Bronze Age.  Remarkaly no settlement seems ever to
have covered the actual site of the sanctuary.
    In the middle, between the Kourion bluff, one mile west of the
villge of Episkopi, and the sanctuary a mile further west, lies the
Roman stadium. If you walk up there from the Kourion bluff and
continue to the sanctuary you can detect parts of the anciet way
which by the second century CE connected all three elements: city,
stadium, and sanctuary of Apollo. East of the stadium and slightly
above it the small Christian Basilica arose around a large ancient
water cistern.  Amongst remains there was a fourth century BCE
marble statue base with a dedicatory inscription to Demeter and
Kore, whose cult in the area appears confirmed by find of a number
of terracotta votives of women. 
    Literary tradition records that Kourion was an Argeion ktisma
(Strabo 14, 683) Herodotus spoke of Kourians as Argive settlers
(5.113.1). These came in second wave of Achaean arrivals, i.e.,
some two or three hundred years after main body of colonists
bringing with them practice of cremating dead.
   In 1983 was uncovered the solid limestone blocks, on bedrock, of
first archaic peribolos wall at northern end of temenos. Thus this
boundary, and perhaps original eastern limit near, but west of, the
later Roman water pipes, seem clearly defined. To west, wide Roman
street leading to temple of Apollo effectively obliterated any
trace of archaic peribolos.  Same applies south of the temenos
where the so called East Complex may have covered over a part of
archaic precinct. Structures of this complex comprise the East
Building, a house and stoa. According to excavators, these were
erected in late fourth or third century BCE and so constituted
oldest extant post archaic buildings. Form and function of East
Complex have been much debated. Perhaps included house of priest
who administered cult and the sacred treasury. The impressive
buildings no doubt reflect an upsurge of interest at the time. At
southern end of East Complex and adjoining Kitchen McFadden
dsicovered a semicircular pit filled with hundreds of discarded
earlier terracotta votives which came from temenos during 8th and
7th centuries BCE. Such pits with deconsecrated votives can be
paralleled in most other sancturies. Frequently they were placed
just within or outside at the end of the first century CE.
    Modern visitor sees sanctuary as it might have appeared in last
phase in 4th century CE. Remains of major Roman buildings to the
east, south and southwest dominate the site which hinges on the
street as its central axis leading to the temple.  Roman temple of
Apollo stands out as most prominenet focal point of sanctuary.
Probably built under Augustus, though extant remains which are
being used in reconstruction came from a second temple half a
century latur during principate of Nero. 

    Romans preserved and respected past sacred traditions by
keeping archaic precinct as major feature of their own planning and
design and redefining its dimension by building a new perbolos wall
on top of the old in the north and possibly east, and partly by
constructing new walls at eastern edge of the street. Even the
conduits for water of early second century CE, which supplied the
Trajanic Baths east of the East Complex, were carefully laid to run
outside the temenos to east and north.
     By end of first and early second century CE, if not earlier,
cult had expanded from that of the protecting city god to involve
figure of Roman emperor. Then Apollo was worshipped not only as
Hylates but also as Kaisar.  Reached most resplendent period in
Cyprus under Trajan  Venue for sports and chariot racing in honor
of Apollo and emperor. Evidence of this survives in an uncommon
number of lead defixiones from 3rd century CE disovered in a well
at Kourion. Curses inscribed on them and directed against unpopular
competitors record lively partisanship of the many sports
supporters who came to watch the races.

Sacrificial victims mostly young sheep and goats. God at Kourion
specially favored the right hind leg of goats as an offering
(curiously at the circular temple of Apollo in Nettleton,
Wiltshire, the god favored the right forelimb of a lamb(W.J.
Wedlake, The Excavation of the Shrine of Apollo at Nettleton,
Wilts., 1956-71, London 1982), 178)

Alongside one wall many broken offerings including bronze and iron
knives which may have been used for sacrifice and then dedicated to
the god. South of the altar small votive jugs came to light and
fragments of other archaic ware. 


Meaning of Templum
Varro, De Ling. Lat (VII.8-10)  Like Greek temenos, Latin templum
is understood as a sacred area rather than a building.

"In the sky, which is Jove's temple, there are four quarters, East,
West, South, North; but on earth templum means a place set apart by

the appropriate specific form of words for the purpose of augury or
of taking auspices or observations of the birds. The language of
the formula is not everywhere the same. On the Citadel it runs:
Temples and wild lands (i.e. sacred and secular areas) shall be
mine as far as I have declared them to be such by solemn
pronouncement.