Ara Pacis (the Altar of Peace) in Rome

The English version of this guide to Ara Pacis (the Altar of Peace) in Rome is published by the Italian publishing house Electa: first edition 2006; second edition 2007; third expanded edition 2012 (143 pages). The format is 23 x 26 cm, i.e. larger than a typical book. The English translation is done by Stefano Fox and Sylvia Notini.

The text is written by Orietta Rossini, who is the director of the new Ara Pacis museum – known as Museo dell’Ara Pacis Augustae - which opened in April 2006. The text is divided into 14 chapters. Here is the table of contents (some headings have been modified):

CHAPTER 01 - The Ara Pacis in antiquity
CHAPTER 02 - From oblivion to reassembly
CHAPTER 03 - The architecture of the altar

CHAPTER 04 - Panel # 1: Aeneas (4 pages)
CHAPTER 05 - Panel # 2: Lupercal (2 pages)
CHAPTER 06 - Panel # 3: Tellus (10 pages)
CHAPTER 07 - Panel # 4: The goddess Rome (2 pages)

CHAPTER 08 - The procession (more than thirty pages)
CHAPTER 09 - The great vegetal frieze (more than ten pages)
CHAPTER 10 – The residual fragments
CHAPTER 11 - Reliefs of an altar of the age of Claudius: from the so-called Ara Pietatis to the Ara reditus Claudii

CHAPTER 12 - The Res gestae divi Augusti
CHAPTER 13 - The Ara Pacis from Morpurgo to Meier
CHAPTER 14 - The colours of the Ara Pacis

At the end of the book there is a bibliography. Most of the works listed here are in Italian, but there are a few items in German and in English, for instance The Ara Pacis Augustae by David Castriota (1995) and Artists of the Ara Pacis by Diane Atnally Conlin (hardcover 1997, paperback 2011).

Among the English works I also want to mention Art and Architecture in the Service of Politics edited by Henry Armand Millon and Linda Nochlin (1978). A chapter in this book written by Spiro Konstantine Koslof (1936-1991) is called “The Emperor and the Duce: The Planning of Piazzale Augusto Imperatore in Rome,” pp. 270-325.

The text is illustrated with numerous photos, maps and drawings; many of them are quite large: one picture often gets one page. Some illustrations are new, while others are old. All the new ones are in colour, as they should be, while the old ones are in black-and-white, which is not surprising.

Some of the old pictures are very interesting, because they show an important moment in time, for instance the picture on page 18 which was taken in Rome in 1903. The caption says: “Excavation of the Ara Pacis, rescue of a large slab with scrolls.” Another example is the picture on page 116 which was taken in Rome on 23 September 1938. The caption says: “Inauguration of the Ara Pacis.” In this picture we can see Benito Mussolini and other fascist leaders as they inspect the monument on the day the old museum was opened.

Some of the new pictures show the new museum from the outside and from the inside. In short: the quality of the illustrations is extremely high.

Now a few words about the monument and its history:

The decision to build an altar for peace was announced in a decree issued by the Roman Senate on 4 July 13 BC. The altar was dedicated on 30 January 9 BC. It took more than three years to complete it. Obviously, a considerable amount of time and energy was invested in this monument (page 6).

Surprisingly, the ancient literary evidence about this monument is very limited (page 12).

The monument was discovered in modern times and re-assembled in the 1930s. The restored monument was inaugurated by Mussolini on 23 September 1938, the closing day of the Augustan year (1937-1938). Augustus was born on 23 September 63 BC. The fascist leader wanted to celebrate the 2000-year anniversary of Augustus, in order to show the connection between himself and the famous emperor (page 17).

The base of the monument almost forms a square: the western and eastern facades measure 11.6 m; while the southern and northern facades measure 10.6 m.

The western façade features an entrance flanked by two panels. On the right we have panel # 1 with Aeneas (chapter 4). On the left we have panel # 2 with Lupercal (chapter 5). Outside there are 10 steps and inside there are 8 steps, which lead to the interior table (mensa).

The eastern façade also features an entrance flanked by two panels. On the left we have panel # 3 with Tellus (chapter 6). On the right we have panel # 4 with the Goddess Rome (chapter 7). Outside there are no steps, but inside there are 4 steps, which lead to the lower level of the monument. There is no direct access to the interior table from this side.

The northern and southern façades feature a procession with 46 persons: both men and women, both adults and children. Some of these persons we can identify by name, in particular Augustus and Agrippa (chapter 8).

The exterior decoration is divided into a lower and an upper register. The four panels and the two processions are all located in the upper register. The lower register on all four sides of the monument is decorated with a vegetal frieze (chapter 9).

Augustus did something surprising and very brave when he decided to build the Ara Pacis: he tried to turn peace into something respectable in a society that was based on war; a society in which war was the normal thing and peace was the exception. That is why this monument is so significant. There is almost nothing like it anywhere in the ancient world.

For more information about this topic, see War and Society in the Roman World edited by John Rich and Graham Shipley (1993, 1995), in particular chapters 6 and 7. See also Rome and the Sword: How Warriors and Weapons Shaped Roman History by Simon James (2011, 2012)

When the monument was inaugurated in 1938, it was housed in a pavilion that was designed by the Italian architect Vittorio Ballio Morpurgo (1890-1966). From the outset this pavilion was intended as a temporary solution, but as it happened it was allowed to stand for a long period.

Around 1990, it was clear that the old pavilion from 1938 had outlived its time, and something had to be done. In 1996 the city of Rome decided to hire the US architect Richard Meier (born 1934) to design a new pavilion, which could replace the old one and at the same time turn the location into a modern museum.

The project was controversial and for this reason it was delayed several times, but finally in April 2006 the new museum was opened and the ancient monument was once again accessible to the public (chapter 13).

Electa has published an excellent guidebook about the ancient monument which is now housed in a modern pavilion. The author gives us the history of the altar; she analyses the four panels, the two processions and the vegetal frieze. But this is not all. She also covers several related issues, such as:

** The residual fragments (chapter 10)
** An altar from the time of Claudius (chapter 11)
** The Res gestae divi Augusti (chapter 12)
** The colours of the altar (chapter 14)

I like this book, I really do, but I have to mention that the English translation is flawed in several ways.

THE FIRST PROBLEM: the bibliography. One of the works listed here is a book by the German scholar Paul Zanker. The book is highly relevant, but the translators give us the Italian version that was published in 1989. They should list the English version: The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus (hardcover 1988, paperback 1990).

THE SECOND PROBLEM: the Italian version of ancient names is not always translated. This seems to be a common problem when books about ancient Rome are translated from Italian to English. The publisher looks for an Italian person who knows some English. What they should do is to look for an English person who knows some Italian. In addition they should find a translator who is familiar with the history of the ancient world. Here are some examples:

** Page 12 – “Atti Arvales” – instead of “Acta Arvales.”

** Page 30 – “pater Enea” – instead of “pater Aeneas.”

** Page 48 – “littores” instead of “lictores.”

** Page 51 – “Cneus Domitius Ahenobarbus” who is person # 41 in the procession on the southern façade – but his first name is spelled “Gnaeus.” The same mistake appears on pp. 59, 66, 71 and 74. In fact, this name is always misspelled in this book.

** Page 57 – “Giulia” – but the Latin form of this name is Iulia, while the English form is Julia. The translators know the English form: on page 66 we find both forms, the Italian and the English, almost side by side!

THE THIRD PROBLEM: the translators seem to have difficulties with the order of words and with prepositions. Here are some examples:

** Page 12 – “… that actually Strabo did not describe…” – it should be: that Strabo actually did not describe…

** Page 12 – “Only in the Renaissance… the Ara Pacis was again recognized” – it should be: Only in the Renaissance… was the Ara Pacis recognized again…

** Page 17 – “Only in 1954 this item was donated by Pope Pius XII…” – it would be better to say: This item was not donated until 1954 when Pope Pius XII…

** Page 22 – “The Ara Pacis basically consists in a precinct…” – it should be: The Ara Pacis basically consists of a precinct…

** Page 36 – “This interpretation eventually prevailed…” – it should be: The latter interpretation eventually prevailed…

** Page 105 – “In one and only occasion the author seems to betray himself…” – it would be better to say: There is only one case where the author seems to betray himself…

** Page 118 – “Only when the Ministry of the Public Education definitely abandoned the idea of moving the Ara Pacis, the Town Administration began to work on the pavilion…” – it should be: Only when the Ministry of Public Education definitely abandoned the idea of moving the Ara Pacis, did the Town Administration begin to work on the pavilion…

** Page 118 – “On the contrary, new problems emerged since the mid-nineties.” – It would be better to say: On the contrary, new problems emerged in the mid-nineties.

These flaws are minor, i.e. they do not disturb the meaning or the message of the book. But they mar this work; they spoil the appearance and the impression of a volume that is, in so many other ways, a perfect product: excellent text, outstanding illustrations, and reader-friendly layout.

While this guidebook deserves a rating of five stars, I hope Electa will publish a fourth edition where these embarrassing blemishes have been corrected.

PS # 1: the following articles about the Ara Pacis are all available online: Alan Riding, “Richard Meier’s Home for the Ara Pacis, a Roman Treasure, Opens,” New York Times, 24 April 2006; Carolyn Lyons, “The Empire’s New Clothes,” Financial Times Magazine, 25 August 2007; Paulette Singley, “Roma Macchiata: The Stain of White,” LOG (observations on architecture and the contemporary city), Summer//Fall 2007, pp. 129-136; Maria Josè Strazzulla, “War and Peace: Housing the Ara Pacis in the Eternal City,” American Journal of Archaeology, vol. 113, no. 2, April 2009.

PS # 2: “Ara Pacis Augustae” is the title of an excellent website where you can find not only text and illustrations, but also links to some old newsreels recorded in the 1930s. The site was established on 15 April 2011 by Charles S. Rhyne (1932-2013), who taught Art History at Reed College for many years (1960-1997).

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Orietta Rossini,
Ara Pacis Guide,
Electa, first edition 2006, second edition 2007,
Third expanded edition 2012, 143 pages

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