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Ara Pacis
The Ara Pacis Augustae (Latin for "Altar of Augustan Peace", and
commonly shortened to Ara Pacis) is an altar to Peace envisioned as a
Roman goddess by the Roman Emperor Augustus Cæsar, consecrated on 30
January 9 BC and decreed by the Senate to celebrate the peace
established in the Empire after Augustus's victories in Gaul and Spain.
It had earlier been dedicated on 4 July 13 BC. The altar was meant to be
a vision of the Roman civil religion. It sought to portray the peace and
prosperity enjoyed as a result of the Pax Romana (Latin, "Roman peace")
brought about by the military supremacy of the Roman empire.
The Ara Pacis was elaborately and finely sculpted entirely in gleaming
white marble, depicting scenes of traditional Roman piety, in which the
Emperor and his family were portrayed in the act of offering sacrifices
to the gods. Various figures bring forth cattle to be sacrificed. Some
have their togas drawn over their heads, like a hood; this signifies
that they are representing the role of a priest. Others wear laurel
crowns, traditional symbols of victory. Men, women, and children all
approach the gods.
The Altar is considered a masterpiece of Roman sculpture; the figures in
the procession are not idealised types, as are typically found in Greek
sculpture; they are recognizable portraits of individuals.
The Altar was located on the Campus Martius.
From: www.wikipedia.org
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