THE ROLE OF THE POMERIUM

Abstract

decision to take his project down to 146 BC was driven by the sad awareness that Rome’s seemingly balanced politeia was now succumbing to the inevitable cycle of decline. D. concludes by fast forwarding to the early Principate, where Augustan ideology successfully resolved the mutual misunderstandings that had plagued the earlier era (and also reversed the narrative of decline detected by Polybius), although in the interest of brevity she focuses largely on the gemma Augustea as a case study. Here we see the creative embrace of old solutions, including the goddess Roma seated beside Augustus. Augustan ideology mobilised the Roman concept of imperium, now conveniently embodied in a monarchic figure rather than in the Republican-era magistrates, in a way that exploded old Greek confusions about Rome as a polis or kingdom, and belatedly produced a coherent and legible vision of Roman power. This excellent study transcends many of the well-worn debates about Roman imperialism. It will be of great use to historians of both the Roman Republic and the Hellenistic world as well as those working on Greek historiography, especially Polybius.