Temple of Caesar

Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C. and died a sudden and violent death in 44 B.C.. Unfortunately, his funeral reflected the confusion the Empire had been thrown into.  Ancient accounts of Caesar’s funeral say that Marc Antony stirred the crowd by reading a proclamation of the Senate that granted Caesar all the honors of both man and deity. Antony also displayed a wax figure of the emperor, complete with the knife wounds of his assassination.

Roused by the show Antony put on, the crowd rioted, carrying Caesar’s body to a makeshift funeral pier of haphazardly stacked benches, treasures, and other items the mob threw in. The fire burned through the night, but failed to cremate the emperor. Cicero called the funeral a mockery, blaming Mark Antony for starting the flames that left Caesar “half burnt” (Cicero, Philippics 2.90-1).

In 42 BC, Augustus began building the Temple of Caesar to honor his predecessor. It was completed, renovated, and repaired through the height of the Roman Empire. After the fall of the Empire, the decorative marble was stolen or repurposed for other state projects, and all we have left today is the dilapidated concrete base.

We know very little of the building’s original architecture. Historians have to piece together ancient historical accounts, images on coins, and findings of modern archeology. An account by Vitruvius says that the porch of the temple was in pycnostyle, meaning it had six columns on the front spaced close together. The type of column is not known, though Corinthian scrolls have been recovered close to the site.  While ancient coins depict Ionic columns on the temple, some historians make it out to be poor artistry. However, the temple was destroyed in a fire after the coins were minted, so it is possible that the architecture was changed in the rebuilding.

One depiction of many possibilities

Though we do not know the placement of the altar or steps, there is a theory that the temple was modeled after the Temple of Venus Genetrix that sits nearby. If this is true, the staircase would have been to the sides and rear of the podium, a backwards model from traditional buildings with steps in front.

The remains of what is thought to be the altar, and the spot where Caesar was cremated, can still be seen today. Flowers and candles are still left by modern Romans to honor their great ruler.

• "The Burial of Caesar." Julius Caesar: His Burial. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014. http://www.livius.org/caa-can/caesar/caesar_t10.html.     
• "Temple of Caesar." , Forum Romanum (Photo Archive). René Seindal, n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014. http://sights.seindal.dk/sight/171_Temple_of_Caesar.html.                   
• "Temple of Caesar." Temple of Caesar. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.