{"id":48581,"date":"2018-03-15T09:16:40","date_gmt":"2018-03-15T13:16:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/?p=48581"},"modified":"2019-06-11T15:14:26","modified_gmt":"2019-06-11T19:14:26","slug":"a-comet-gives-birth-to-an-empire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/daily\/ancient-cultures\/daily-life-and-practice\/a-comet-gives-birth-to-an-empire\/","title":{"rendered":"Classical Corner: A Comet Gives Birth to an Empire"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"augustus-comet\"<\/a>

COMET COIN. This silver denarius (19\u201318 B.C.E.) features Caesar Augustus on one side and a comet with the words \u201cDiuus Iulius<\/em>\u201d (Divine Julius) on the other. Photo: Courtesy of Don Yeomans.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

For as long as human beings have existed, surely no part of the natural world has been more enigmatic or influential as the movement of observable celestial objects. Earth\u2019s movement around the sun set the agricultural cycles by which the large majority of humanity lived until our own, very recently arrived, modern era, while the moon\u2019s effect on the ocean\u2019s tides profoundly influenced the day-to-day lives and economies of ancient seafaring nations. In the Greco-Roman world<\/a>, there is ample evidence that celestial objects, their movements and occasional surprise appearances not only inspired awe and wonder, but in some cases directly influenced mythology, elections, wars and imperial propaganda. Eclipses<\/a>, comets and meteorites were particularly mentioned by the ancient writers since their appearances were both startling and, for many, utterly unpredictable.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

Comets especially were associated with portents and omens. The superstitious Roman encyclopedist Pliny the Elder held the view that comets were \u201cterrifying apparitions.\u201d2<\/a><\/sup> He went so far as to categorize them by appearance, location and tail direction, with each \u201ctype\u201d corresponding to sometimes hilariously specific earthly circumstances, for example, noting that \u201ca comet resembling a flute with its tail rays pointing toward the east would indicate a malefic influence on music in the eastern territories.\u201d3<\/a><\/sup> While we may never know of a specific comet appearance that caused musical mayhem in the eastern empire, we do have a varied range of accounts from ancient authors attesting to other cometary occurrences. One such event played an important role in the dying days of the Roman Republic and was to become part of the powerful blend of mythology and propaganda that helped establish Octavian, Caesar\u2019s great-nephew and heir, as Rome\u2019s first emperor, thus forever changing the political landscape of the Roman world.<\/p>\n

Following the death of Julius Caesar, in 44 B.C.E., his great-nephew Octavian (the future emperor Augustus<\/a>) held a series of public games in honor of his great-uncle in July of that year.4<\/a><\/sup> The move was a savvy one; Octavian was at this time by no means assured of his accession to the political power of his uncle. Mark Antony, a Roman consul and one of Caesar\u2019s most esteemed generals, had also been positioning himself as Caesar\u2019s political heir. By holding public games at his own family\u2019s expense in honor of the assassinated Caesar, Octavian was hoping to not only win over Caesar\u2019s loyal military veterans, but also to raise his own image in the eyes of the Roman citizenry. It was, as the ancient writers tell us, a wild success, largely thanks to the unscheduled appearance of a celestial guest. The Roman historian Suetonius reports that during the course of the games, \u201ca comet [stella crinita] shone throughout seven days in a row, rising at about the 11th hour, and it was believed that it was the soul of Caesar who had been taken up into heaven.\u201d5<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\t\t

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FREE eBook: Life in the Ancient World<\/strong>. Craft centers in Jerusalem, family structure across Israel and ancient practices\u2014from dining to makeup\u2014through the Mediterranean world.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t