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110 DylanK. Rogers
Fig. 3:Rome,
ForumRomanum,
AugustanPuteal
andTrajanicSacel-
lumof the Lacus
Iuturnae.
theHouse of theVestal Virgins, near theVicus Tuscus that leads to theVelabrum.25 Iuturna’s
source is also known as one of the famed ancient springs of Rome, along with those of the
Camenae andApollo.26 It is believed that Castor andPolluxwatered their horses at the spring
associatedwith Iuturnaafter theBattle of LakeRegillus in 494BC, and thenagain after Pydna
in 168BC.27 Particularly in relation to the Dioscuri’s epiphany in 494BC, there is yet another
connection towater, namely that thebattle takesplace at a lake. In fact, the association to the
twins is strengthened by the discovery of a statue of the pair in the forum,which is dated to
immediately after Pydna.28 TheBattle of LakeRegillus has been seen as part of themythology
of thebirth of theRepublic, as itwas apivotal event that led to the success of thenewRoman
state.29 Subsequently, the battle is exploited in theAugustan periodwithOctavian’s victory at
Actium, in the context ofwhichVergil describes how theDioscuri aidedOctavian, just as they
did theRomans 500years previously.30 In theAugustan renovations of the forum,whichwere
well underway, if not nearly complete, by 29BC, thememories of the Battle of Lake Regillus
were easily evoked through the built environment, with Temple of Castor and Pollux next to
theLacus Iuturnae, bothofwhicharedirectly across fromAugustus’ActianArch.
Theancientandmythologicalassociationsof thespring, then,makethespaceanimportant
one in thebuilt environment of the forum. The first phase of the spring, probably dated to the
2ndcenturyBC,aroundthetimeofPydna,monumentalizedthenaturalspringsource,byadding
a rectangularbasinon top, constructedofopus incertumand linedwithcocciopesto.31With the
revival of the cult byAugustus,marble veneerwasadded to thebasin, alongwithanumberof
dedications, includingawhitemarbleputeal, inscribedwith Iuturnai sacrumby thecuruleaedi-
le, Marcus Barbatius Pollio.32 In the time of Trajan, a small sacellumwas added immediately
adjacent to thebasin (Fig.3). By the 4th centuryAD, the area included theheadquarters of the
25 Formoreon the spring, see: Lanciani 1975, 225f.; Ammerman 1990a; Corazza–Lombardi 1995, 198f.
26 Frontin. aqu. 1, 4.
27 Scullard 1981, 64.
28 Clarke 1968; Coarelli 1985, 156; LTUR III (1996) 169 s.v. Lacus Iuturnae (E.M. Steinby).
29 Rebeggiani 2013.
30 Verg.Aen.8, 678–681. Rebeggiani 2013, 57–67.
31 For the chronology anddevelopment of the precinct associatedwith Iuturna in the ForumRomanum, see the
publishedexcavationsof the site inSteinby 2012. See alsoSteinby 2015.
32 CIL6.36807;Kajava 1989, 37–39.
The Power of Urban Water
Studies in premodern urbanism
- Titel
- The Power of Urban Water
- Untertitel
- Studies in premodern urbanism
- Autoren
- Nicola Chiarenza
- Annette Haug
- Ulrich MĂĽller
- Verlag
- De Gruyter Open Ltd
- Datum
- 2020
- Sprache
- englisch
- Lizenz
- CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- ISBN
- 978-3-11-067706-5
- Abmessungen
- 21.0 x 28.0 cm
- Seiten
- 280
- Kategorie
- Technik