Page - 113 - in The Power of Urban Water - Studies in premodern urbanism

7 Aquatic Pasts& theWateryPresent:Water andMemory in the Foraof Rome 113 The final lacus to consider in the ForumRomanum is the Lacus Servilius. We know that thisstructurestoodat thenorthwestcornerof theBasilica Julia,at theendof theVicusIugarius, acting as a fountain basin, not a spring source.46 The name Servilius probably derives from a Republican figurewhogavehisname for the fountain,whetherCn. ServiliusCaepio (consul in 141BC) or aServiliusCaepius,whomighthavegiven the structure as amunus, or public bene- faction, in 125BC, in connection with the construction of the Aqua Tepula.47 We know that during the Sullan proscriptions, the heads of senatorswere displayed in some fashion on the lacus.48 It is reported that Agrippa added a statue of a Hydra to the fountain.49 In fact, this involvement byAgrippa is not out of the ordinary, becausewe knowhewas responsible for a numberofwater-relatedprojects throughout thecityasaedile in33BC,whenhecommissioned the constructionof theAqua Julia (and its incorporationof theAquaTepula, the original cata- lyst for the lacus). Further, he added statues to thepublic fountains throughout the city.50 The monument survived into theAugustan period, and itwas destroyed in the 12BC fire that con- sumed theBasilica Julia, butnot rebuilt in the subsequent restorationof theBasilica. It is difficult to evaluate fully the Lacus Servilius, given that it is lost to us. The fact that the fountainwas gone by the early Imperial period is also crucial: those in the Empirewould haveonlyknownof themonument inmemory.Perhaps theyremembered theeponymousServi- lius, theHydradecorationon top,or theheadsof theunluckysenatorsofSulla’sproscriptions, possibly from stories told to them about the forum’s past. We can perhaps read a little more into thefountainthroughthefigureofAgrippa.Becauseweknowthathe incorporatedtheAqua Tepula into the largerAquaJuliaand thatheaddedastatue to thisparticular fountain,Agrippa could have potentially beenmaking his own connection to a Republican predecessor. If the Servilius Caepius of 125 gave the fountain as amunus, hemayhave done so as an aedile, just asAgrippabuiltwaterworksduringhis ownaedileship. Across the forum, in front of theBasilicaAemilia,was the sacellumofVenusCloacina. The figure of Cloacina is believed tobe thenumenof thewaters of theCloacaMaxima,who is later conflated as an aspect of Venus.51 Pliny the Eldermentions Venus Cloacinawhen relating the anecdote thatwhen theRomansandSabineswere to fightover thecarryingoff ofmaidens, the soldiers purified themselves with myrtle that was growing in the spot later occupied by the sacellum, given that Cloacina derives from cluere (‘to cleanse’).52 The appearance of the small shrine isknown fromnumismatic evidence (Fig.6).53 Theshrine is circularwithanopenbalus- trade, marked by the legend CLOACIN(A). Inside, there are two draped female statues whose right hands are lowered, perhaps supporting thymiateria, or incense burners, and their left hands are raised toholdperhaps the leafy branches ofmyrtle. The structure of the shrine sug- gestedby thedepictionson the coinswas confirmedby thediscoveryofmarble foundationsof a small circular monument (2.40m in diameter) in front of the Basilica. The foundations go deep into the ground (at least eight courses), suggesting that the shrinewas in use for a long periodof time.54 Themeanings behind this particular shrine aremanifold. The cult of Cloacina is reported tohavebeen institutedbyTitusTatius,before the traditional ‘Regal’periodofRome.55 Ina time 46 Fest. 370. 47 LTUR III (1996) 172f. s.v. LacusRestitutus (A. LaRegina). 48 Cic. Rosc.Am.89; Sen.Dial. 1, 3, 7. 8; Firm.Mat. 1, 7, 34. 49 Fest. 370. 50 Plin. HN 36, 24, 121. For more on Agrippa’s water-related building activities see: Evans 1982; Roddaz 1984; Albers 2013. 51 Plin.HN15, 119–120. See also: Liv. 3, 48, 5; Plaut. Curc. 471. 52 Plin.HN15, 119–120. 53 BMCRR I 577f. nos. 4242–4254. 54 Richardson 1992, 92; Freyberger–Ertel 2016, 22f. 55 Cypr. Idol.4;Aug.Civ.4,8.6, 10, 1;Min.Fel. 25,8;LTURIII (1996)290f. s.v.MuriAureliani (G.PisaniSartorio).