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.

Lotteries 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.