Emperor Hadrian Research Articles

The Fifth Milestation from Tiberias: A Newly Discovered Milestone in the Gennesaret Valley Illumines the Roman Arterial Network

ABSTRACT Through the prism of a fairly recent discovery of a milestone, the present article sheds light on the Roman road in the Gennesaret Valley, particularly the span connecting Tiberias to Julias. Building on Zvi Ilan's initiative in the 1980s, the author will emphasise two milestones: IMC 694 and IMC 847. Dating to 120 ce, the latter stone’s inscription not only divulges the role of Emperor Hadrian in the artery’s construction, but establishes Tiberias as its caput viae. By delving into historical sources, contemporary research, and the broader context of Hadrian's infrastructure initiatives throughout the province of Judaea, the paper explicates the road network’s purpose and strategic importance during the Roman era.

Göktepe Marble Identification in the Hadrian Portrait of Los Torrejones (Yecla, Murcia) and some Considerations on the Presence of this Marble in Hispania

This work characterises the high-quality white marble used in the bust of Emperor Hadrian found in the Roman villa of Los Torrejones (Yecla, Murcia). The analytical results, compared with the databases pertaining to Hispanic and Mediterranean quarry marbles, reveal its source in the quarries of Göktepe, in Muğla province, Western Turkey. The historical implications of the presence in the villa of an imperial portrait of such quality are discussed. The results also emphasise the importance of undertaking future complete archaeometric analysis of marble materials used in the sculptures of Hispania, only way to certify the provenance of the stone and, in this case, to better understand the distribution reached by the varieties of Göktepe marble in the Iberian Peninsula.

Polemika medzi cisárom Hadriánom a filozofom Epiktétom

The work, Dialogue between the Emperor Hadrian and Epictetus the Philosopher, is a fictional dialogue consisting of seventy-three questions and answers, probably written in the 2nd or 3rd century AD. It features the Roman emperor Hadrian as the questioning pupil and the Stoic philosopher Epictetus as the responding teacher. Most of the questions can be divided into two main categories. The smaller part is written in the form of riddles. The others are definitions. The questions deal with a variety of topics: things to do with death (e.g. gravedigger, funeral pyre), definitions of various metals (gold, silver, iron), useful things (e.g. letter, picture, sword), relationships and emotional terms (e.g. friendship, hope, love), celestial objects (sun, moon, sky, stars, earth), and realities related to seafaring (sea, ship, sailor), nightlife (sleep, night, pillow) or religion (god, sacrifice). This work was particularly influential in the development of medieval dialogue. The most famous adaptation is the Enfant Sage, which originated in the 13th century somewhere in the region of Provence.

Silvanov kult na području istočnog dela rimske provincije Dalmacije / Sylvan cult on the eastern territory of the Roman province of Dalmatia.

On the territory of the eastern part of the Roman Province of Dalmatia, the cult of Roman god Sylvan mostly occurs in votive aras and votive reliefs. In one case, the cult representing young Sylvan occurs in a form of a bronze statuete while the other case refers to an epystole beam with Sylvan involved in a cult symbiosis with the genius of civitas likely to be dated in the period of Emperor Hadrian. All other monuments can be dated in a wider chronological period between the middle of the 2nd century and the 3rd century.

Is There an Acrostic in Balbilla, Epigr. 31 Bernand?

The article presents a critical discussion of the interpretation of one of Balbilla’s epigrams carved on the foot of Memnon’s colossus at Egyptian Thebes (Bernand no. 31) proposed by Marialuigia Di Marzio in her article published in QUCC 2019. According to this interpretation, it contained the acrostic ΕΦΗΩΚΑΕ, which Di Marzio resolves as ΕΦΗ Ω ΚΑΕ(ΣΑΡ), suggesting a direct apostrophe to the emperor Hadrian on the part of the statue. However, there are compelling reasons to reject this intriguing proposal.

Place names commemorating Hadrian – an attempt to approximate the scale of the phenomenon

According to Historia Augusta (Vita Hadriani 20, 4), many cities in the Roman Empire were named Hadrianopolis after the emperor Hadrian. The aim of this article is to approximate the number of places named after Hadrian not only Hadrianopoleis mentioned. Cities were named after Roman emperors to commemorate the rulers’ role as the founders or benefactors of localities. This practice deserves special attention. The extent to which Hadrian had been commemorated in place names has not been researched extensively to date, but the approximate number of cities and towns named or possibly named after the emperor was relatively high. The exact number of localities named after Hadrian cannot be determined based on historical sources for a number of reasons, as discussed on the examples of localities such as Turris Tamalleni or Bisica Lucana. However, regardless of these difficulties, research suggests that Hadrian could have been commemorated in the names of up to 15 colonies, 19 municipalities (municipia), 4 localities that were most likely colonies or municipalities, and 43 other localities (mainly peregrine towns), which gives a total of more than 80 place names (the colonies and municipalities whose names commemorate the emperor should be distinguished from those that had been founded by Hadrian). In this article, the localities named after Hadrian were classified based on their legal status and are presented in tables. Particular attention has been paid to the controversies surrounding some of the cities thought to have been named after Hadrian (such as the colonial titulature of Avennio, the modern-day Avignon). The estimated number of localities named or possibly named after Hadrian indicates that these toponyms may have played a significant role in shaping the emperor’s public image.

EARLY TRACES OF THE GREEK QUESTION MARK

AbstractAccording to the standard view on the issue, the habit of marking questions with a particular typographical sign in Greek and Latin script does not arise prior to the eighth or ninth century. This period is generally credited with the ‘invention’ of the question mark (excepting Syriac evidence, which points to the fifth and sixth centuries). The purpose of the present article is to correct this view. It argues that the first indication for the use of a typographical sign that marks questions can actually be detected no later than during the reign of Emperor Hadrian (a.d. 117–38), that is, more than half a millennium before the traditional date of the invention. The chief witness is Nicanor of Alexandria, who does not seem to have used question marks himself, but criticizes the misappropriation of another punctuation mark to that purpose. He thus indirectly testifies to the existence of question marks. Comparable traces can also be found later in the exegetical works of some Christian commentators.

Особенности провинциальной политики императора Адриана

The provincial policy of the Roman emperor Hadrian (117-138 AD) is considered. It is noted that the distinctive feature of Hadrian's policy, in comparison with previous emperors, was his travels, which allowed him to carry out reforms directly on the ground. It is assumed that Hadrian solved various tasks in the provinces of the East and West of the Empire. So, if in the East Hadrian paid more attention to his Philhellenic policy, then in the West to the military structure and strengthening of the borders of the empire. In addition, the features of the Hellenization of parts of the Roman Empire and the reasons for the spread of the cult of Antinous in the East are considered, as well as the most important events of Hadrian in the provinces during his travels. To study the issue, the works of foreign researchers were involved.

Aristide's apology, its form and addressee

The object of the study is early Christian apologetics as a socio-cultural phenomenon. In modern science, the issue related to the audience of early Christian apologies is actively discussed. A number of apologies of the second century, as is known, are addressed directly to the rulers of the Roman Empire themselves. But is such an addressee genuine? Or is there a masterfully executed literary stylization in front of us? The subject of our research is the apology of Aristide. Aristide, according to ancient church historians, was the first apologist of Christianity who submitted his work to the Emperor Hadrian. However, the Syriac translation of the apology indicates the Emperor Antoninus Pius as the addressee. Thus, we are faced with two questions: 1) which of the two emperors was the addressee in the original apology; 2) is the imperial addressee real or is he a literary fiction? In the course of the study, the author came to the following conclusions. Firstly, we have no reason to prefer the Syriac version of the apology to all the data of the church-historical tradition. This data is confirmed by the Armenian translation of the apology. It should also be pointed out that the Syrian addressee contains a number of errors and resembles, rather, a later interpolation. Secondly, the content of the apology convinces that it is designed for an educated pagan, and not for a Christian. And there is every reason to believe that the Emperor Hadrian really acted as such an addressee. At the same time, it should be noted that the apology does not represent an official petition addressed to the emperor, we have before us a literary work written in the protreptic genre.

Procurators of Dacia Inferior During the Reigh of Emperor Hadrian

The article examines the official path of the procurators of Dacia Inferior during the reign of Hadrian on the basis of epigraphic materials, specifies the dates of their stay in the province. Also, the epigraphy data on the investigated procurators reflect only part of their direct responsibilities in the province. It is concluded that in the 20—30s of the 2nd century AD the procurators of Dacia Inferior, upon reaching the end of their term of office, held similar posts in other provinces, but by the 60s of the 2nd century AD, due to the personnel crisis in the highest level of the administrative system of the Roman Empire, the career opportunities of equites are expanding up to the most important government posts.

MÉMOIRES D’HADRIEN DE MARGUERITE YOURCENAR : ENTRE AUTOBIOGRAPHIE FICTIVE ET ÉCRITURE DE L’HISTOIRE

The current paper focuses on the literary mechanisms that Marguerite Yourcenar used to (re)construct the historical personality of the Roman emperor Hadrian in the fictional autobiography, Memoirs of Hadrian. We analyze how M. Yourcenar represents an effort to reconstruct a historical period and a historical personality through the intersection of true events and fiction in the form of a fictional autobiography, supported by documentary work, in this particular novel. Hadrian’s imaginary letter to his protégé and student, the future emperor Marcus Aurelius, is not only a writing of ancient history, but also a modern chronicle of one man’s efforts to free himself from the constraints of human destiny. The mechanisms of writing a memoir provide the main character with the opportunity to (re)write History, his personal biography. Different narrative forms (“I”, “he”, “we”) allow the author of the novel not only to give voice to the main character, but also to follow the development of the initial intention - from writing a letter to his heir to thinking about existence, i.e. from the individual to the general plan of humanity. Therefore, through the reconstruction of Hadrian’s life and his age, we show that Marguerite Yourcenar’s ambition is not only to illuminate the gallery of masks of a powerful historical figure, but also to overcome them and to capture in words the fragility of a man who enters death with his eyes open.

Evil and Complicated Queers through History

Evil and Complicated Queers through History

The Latin сorrespondence between F. E. Korsch and G. E. Saenger

This paper is a publication of the Latin correspondence between two prominent classical philologists of the late 19th — early 20th centuries, Fyodor E. Korsch and Grigory E. Saenger. Being only a part of their epistolary legacy, it is of undisputable interest both for the history of classical education in Russia and for the history of philological scholarship. The publication includes personal letters and letters discussing textual problems of various works of ancient literature. The Latin correspondence, which is not a voluminous part of the entire academic correspondence of these two authors, is mostly located in the Archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow), while separate letters have also been preserved in the Russian State Library (Moscow) and the National Library of Russia (Saint Petersburg). In the correspondence, the two scholars discuss general issues of philological studies and ancient culture, as well as some practical issues related to their professional activities. A prominent place is occupied by the letters in which they discuss possible conjectures to the poetic response of Emperor Hadrian to the poet Florus, as well as to Virgil’s Aeneid and the works of Horace. A significant feature of this correspondence is that some of the letters are in verse, and both Korsch and Saenger were certainly among the best masters of Latin versification of their time in the Russian Empire. For letters in Latin, paper of a smaller format was chosen (generally postcards). All materials are published for the first time. Brief footnotes are offered for each letter allowing a reader to have a more comprehensive understanding of both the specific features of the correspondence and the personalities and issues that are mentioned in them.

Emperor hadrian cult in ancient architecture: Zeus Olympius Temple in Athens (Tomsk)

Purpose : A study of the ancient monument, which embodies the best traditions of ancient art and is associated with the Roman Emperor Hadrian cult; the history of Zeus Olympius Temple construction in Athens, its architecture, and the current state. Methodology: The critical analysis of the literature, architectural and structural analyses and system-structural analysis of information, creative synthesis in conclusions. Research findings: Despite the fact that the Olympius Temple was dedicated to the God Zeus, the true center of worship was the Emperor Hadrian, who promoted the Athenian temple and its territory as the main base of the imperial cult in the Greek East, the region of his empire, which he sought to unite through the his power, progressive reputation and generous public charity. Practical implications: The use of the obtained results in lectures, reports, and communication on the history of world architecture. The study is important to understand the present based on the traditions of the deep past. Originality: Collection and analysis of the literature, including foreign, scientifically substantiated conclusions. The methodological and theoretical bases are theoretical works of historians and architects in the field.

Recovery of an Undue Payment by a Manumitted Slave in Ancient Rome

In his comment on the Pretorian edict the ancient Roman jurist Ulpian (+228) refers to a case where positive law (ius civile) and natural justice (aequitas naturalis) came into collision. A slave was manumitted in a will under the condition of paying 10 to the heir. Subsequently the owner of the slave made a second informal will (codicillus) where he manumitted the slave without mentioning any condition. After his masters dead the slave being ignorant of the second will paid 10. The question arose whether he could recover the money. The case was decided first by the elder Celsus who hold that the slave could not recover the money. On the contrary, the younger Celsus stated that the recovery of the money was possible. This latter jurist made his decision – as Ulpian stated – influenced by a feeling of natural justice. In the present paper we analyse the case will be also analysed from the perspective of theory of social acts developed by Adolf Reinach, one of the most outstanding members of the realistic branch of phenomenological school. Furthermore, a relationship is established between the present case and the Rescript of the Emperor Hadrian according to which a demand for operae could not be reinforced in case that the patronus was obliged to free the slave through a fideicommissum.

‘This Lotus Spell is Intenser’: sources and selections in Emma Stebbins’s The Lotus-Eater

Emma Stebbins’s untraced statue The Lotus-Eater (c.1857–60) purports to illustrate Alfred Tennyson’s poem of the same title, in turn derived from an episode in the Odyssey of Homer. This essay addresses the tension between Stebbins’s sculpture and Tennyson’s text. It brings to the discussion a body of antique visual and literary material to which Stebbins had access, images of and references to Antinous, the youthful and tragic lover of the Emperor Hadrian. Although the great flowering of Antinous scholarship and critique for queer men developed later in the nineteenth century, this study argues that the material was readily available for Stebbins, particularly through the writings of Johann Joachim Winckelmann and the objects in Rome, where she worked; later authors, such as John Addington Symonds, developed their commentary and fiction on Antinous from the same sources. The article brings together the thematic and visual resonances, references, and overlaps between the texts and images. It uses close attention to the formal qualities of the sculpture and the content of Tennyson’s poem to consider roads not taken, and how those options demonstrate the ambiguity in Stebbins’s finished sculpture: that is, its lack of clear moral or didactic content through its selection of the lotus-eater and Antinoan imagery, rather than a martial or moralizing figure from the poem. It demonstrates the complexity and subtlety of Stebbins’s selection of sources for her sculpture, and her rich, multivalent play between texts and images.

Continuïteit in het heiligdom van Asklepios in Epidauros

Continuity at the sanctuary of Asklepios in Epidauros. Exploring ideas of decline after 146 BC After Rome defeated the Achaean League in 146 BC, Rome’s interactions in Greece changed, with more direct contact with Greek poleis and their sanctuaries. For Epidauros, a polis in the Argolid with a famous sanctuary to Asklepios, it has been argued that this was a period of decline. The sanctuary was in decay, according to some scholars, until the second century AD, when it was saved from decline with the intervention of the emperor Hadrian. This article argues for continuity in cult practice and significant activity in the first centuries BC and AD, without ignoring the evidence commonly presented for decline. It thereby offers a more nuanced picture of the Epidaurian Asklepieion in this period.

Acerca de una posible estatua de Hércules hallada en las Islas Canarias en 1341

Some manuscripts from the 14th and 16th centuries pointed out the presence of several stone statues of a naked man in some of the Canary Islands. Thus far, it has not been possible to confirm the origin of these statues, nor whether they represented a man or a god. Several hypotheses are analysed in this article, but it is considered that the most probable is that these statues were those of Hercules, carrying in his hand the golden apples stolen from the Garden of the Hesperides. Their establishment in the Canary Islands would go back to the time of the first Roman emperors, in particular the Emperor Hadrian

Wood analyses helped to determine the location and approximate construction period of the Roman bridge over the Drava River in ancient Poetovio (Ptuj, Slovenia)

We present the results of a dendrochronological study and radiocarbon dating of the wooden piles of the bridge over the Drava River in Ptuj. The piles, together with stone elements (a fragment of an imperial building inscription and parts of the architectural decoration) were retrieved from the riverbed in 1913 and are now in the Regional Museum Ptuj - Ormož. Using dendrochronology, radiocarbon dating of carefully selected annual rings in the wood and calibration with the wiggle-matching method, the date of the last (outermost) annual ring on the pile was determined to be 161 ± 27 cal AD (1σ) or 160 ± 32 cal AD (2σ). Since the pile contained no sapwood, the dating approximately agrees with the date of the building inscription on the stone slab, which attributes the commission for the reconstruction or construction of the bridge to Emperor Hadrian in the last years of his reign (117-138 AD). The dating of the wood has thus confirmed that the remains examined do indeed belong to a Roman bridge, probably built or renovated during the reconstruction of the road network in the area of the colony of Poetovio under Hadrian or one of his successors.

THE PHENOMENON OF THE "GREEK RENAISSANCE" IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF IMPERIAL ROME

The article analyzes the phenomenon of borrowing forms of Greek architecture in the architecture of Ancient Rome of Emperor Hadrian's era (II century AD). This phenomenon is interpreted as the first representation of historicism in architecture – the use of elements of the former culture in actual project creativity to convey certain ideas and meanings. The article shows that the "Greek Renaissance" in the architecture of imperial Rome was an organic component of the general process of hellenophilism, characteristic of the general cultural development of that time.