Beyond the Boundaries of Fantasia: An ancient imagining of the future of leadership

Deeper Cuts One: Members of the Augustan Family on Coins

In this unit, we will explore the introduction of living members of the domus Augusti (house of Augustus – the Julio Claudians: http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/files/2014/03/tiberius_family_tree.png) into the typological inventory of Roman numismatic iconography.  Not only do types related to the domus Augusti  show a point of convergence between Roman “mainstream” and “provincial” coinage, but they become a permanent fixture on post-Augustan coinage.

Some general questions for consideration and discussion:
  1. Which Augustan family members are depicted on coins?  How are they portrayed (e.g. what type of leadership roles and/or virtues are represented?)?
  2. What impact do you think these images of Augustan family members had (as well as on other visual media as we will see in the next unit) in Rome and throughout the Empire?
  3. How do images of his family members reflect back on Augustus as a leader?
 
Read:
Burnett, A. (2011) ‘The Augustan revolution as seen from the mints in the provinces’, JRS 101: 1-30.

Listening for Leadership

Possible Group Activity


 

This page has paths: