Temple of Cybele (Palatine)
Encyclopedia
The Temple of Cybele or Temple of Magna Mater was a temple on the Palatine Hill
in Rome. This, the main temple of Cybele
or Magna Mater in Rome, was erected after the Roman embassy brought back her icon from Pessinus in 204 BC
. It was dedicated on 11 April 191 BC, by the praetor Marcus Junius Brutus, on which occasion the Ludi Megalenses
were instituted.
It burned down in 111 BC
, though the statue of Quinta Cloelia inside was undamaged. A Metellus, probably the consul of 110 BC
, restored it, but it burned down again and was restored by Augustus in 3. Surviving intact from the Augustan era until the fourth century, it is referred to incidentally as a place of assignation by Juvenal
(IX.23), during the events of 38 BC
, and in the third century.
The stone needle or icon kept there itself is described by a late writer as small and set in a silver statue of the goddess. It was perhaps removed by Elagabalus
to his temple on the Palatine
.
At the top of the Scalae Caci, on the west corner of the Palatine, are the ruins of an ancient temple near which have been found inscriptions relating to Magna Mater, a portion of a colossal female figure seated on a throne, and a fragment of a base with the paws of lions, the regular attendants of the goddess. These ruins consist of a massive podium made of irregular pieces of tufa and peperino laid in thick mortar, and fragments of columns and entablature. The walls of the podium are 3.84 metres thick (those of the cella were somewhat thinner) on the sides and 5.50 in the rear, p325but this unusual thickness is because the rear wall is double, with an air space, 1.80 metre wide, between the two parts. This wall was faced on the outside with stucco, not with opus quadratum. The total length of the temple was 33.18 metres and its width 17.10. It was prostyle
hexastyle, of the Corinthian order
, and was approached by a flight of steps extending entirely across the front. From the rear wall of the cella
projects the base of a pedestal on which the stone needle probably stood. The concrete of the podium belongs to the time of Augustus
(AJA 1912, 393), and since the remaining architectural fragments are of peperino, it is evident that the restoration of that period was carried out with the material of the original structure.2 The character of these remains and the inscriptions and objects found here make it extremely probable, to say the least, that this is the temple of Magna Mater, an identification that is strongly supported by the evidence of a coin of the elder Faustina
(Cohen, Faust. sen. 55). This represents a temple of the Corinthian order, with curved roof, and a flight of steps on which is a statue of Cybele with a turreted crown enthroned between lions. The temple is also represented in a relief in the Villa Medici
, formerly attributed to the Ara Pacis
(SScR 69).
A seated statue of a goddess in the Palatine Antiquarium is now accepted to be of Cybele, and may be from the temple complex.
Palatine Hill
The Palatine Hill is the centermost of the Seven Hills of Rome and is one of the most ancient parts of the city...
in Rome. This, the main temple of Cybele
Cybele
Cybele , was a Phrygian form of the Earth Mother or Great Mother. As with Greek Gaia , her Minoan equivalent Rhea and some aspects of Demeter, Cybele embodies the fertile Earth...
or Magna Mater in Rome, was erected after the Roman embassy brought back her icon from Pessinus in 204 BC
204 BC
Year 204 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cethegus and Tuditanus...
. It was dedicated on 11 April 191 BC, by the praetor Marcus Junius Brutus, on which occasion the Ludi Megalenses
Megalesia
The Megalesia, Megalensia, or Megalenses Ludi, was a festival celebrated in Ancient Rome in the month of April in honor of the great mother of the gods .-Origins:...
were instituted.
It burned down in 111 BC
111 BC
Year 111 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Serapio and Bestia...
, though the statue of Quinta Cloelia inside was undamaged. A Metellus, probably the consul of 110 BC
Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus
Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus was the leader of the conservative faction of the Roman Senate and a bitter enemy of Gaius Marius....
, restored it, but it burned down again and was restored by Augustus in 3. Surviving intact from the Augustan era until the fourth century, it is referred to incidentally as a place of assignation by Juvenal
Juvenal
The Satires are a collection of satirical poems by the Latin author Juvenal written in the late 1st and early 2nd centuries AD.Juvenal is credited with sixteen known poems divided among five books; all are in the Roman genre of satire, which, at its most basic in the time of the author, comprised a...
(IX.23), during the events of 38 BC
38 BC
Year 38 BC was either a common year starting on Sunday or Monday or a leap year starting on Saturday, Sunday or Monday of the Julian calendar and a common year starting on Sunday of the Proleptic Julian calendar...
, and in the third century.
The stone needle or icon kept there itself is described by a late writer as small and set in a silver statue of the goddess. It was perhaps removed by Elagabalus
Elagabalus
Elagabalus , also known as Heliogabalus, was Roman Emperor from 218 to 222. A member of the Severan Dynasty, he was Syrian on his mother's side, the son of Julia Soaemias and Sextus Varius Marcellus. Early in his youth he served as a priest of the god El-Gabal at his hometown, Emesa...
to his temple on the Palatine
Elagaballium
The Elagabalium was a temple built by the Roman emperor Elagabalus, located on the north-east corner of the Palatine Hill. During Elagabalus' reign from 218 until 222, the Elagabalium was the center of a controversial religious cult, dedicated to Deus Sol Invictus, of which the emperor himself was...
.
At the top of the Scalae Caci, on the west corner of the Palatine, are the ruins of an ancient temple near which have been found inscriptions relating to Magna Mater, a portion of a colossal female figure seated on a throne, and a fragment of a base with the paws of lions, the regular attendants of the goddess. These ruins consist of a massive podium made of irregular pieces of tufa and peperino laid in thick mortar, and fragments of columns and entablature. The walls of the podium are 3.84 metres thick (those of the cella were somewhat thinner) on the sides and 5.50 in the rear, p325but this unusual thickness is because the rear wall is double, with an air space, 1.80 metre wide, between the two parts. This wall was faced on the outside with stucco, not with opus quadratum. The total length of the temple was 33.18 metres and its width 17.10. It was prostyle
Prostyle
Prostyle is an architectural term defining free standing columns across the front of a building, as often in a portico. The term is often used as an adjective when referring to the portico of a classical building which projects from the main structure...
hexastyle, of the Corinthian order
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
, and was approached by a flight of steps extending entirely across the front. From the rear wall of the cella
Cella
A cella or naos , is the inner chamber of a temple in classical architecture, or a shop facing the street in domestic Roman architecture...
projects the base of a pedestal on which the stone needle probably stood. The concrete of the podium belongs to the time of Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
(AJA 1912, 393), and since the remaining architectural fragments are of peperino, it is evident that the restoration of that period was carried out with the material of the original structure.2 The character of these remains and the inscriptions and objects found here make it extremely probable, to say the least, that this is the temple of Magna Mater, an identification that is strongly supported by the evidence of a coin of the elder Faustina
Faustina the Elder
Annia Galeria Faustina, more familiarly referred to as Faustina I , was a Roman Empress and wife of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius.-Early life:...
(Cohen, Faust. sen. 55). This represents a temple of the Corinthian order, with curved roof, and a flight of steps on which is a statue of Cybele with a turreted crown enthroned between lions. The temple is also represented in a relief in the Villa Medici
Villa Medici
The Villa Medici is a mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and now property of the French...
, formerly attributed to the Ara Pacis
Ara Pacis
The Ara Pacis Augustae is an altar to Peace, envisioned as a Roman goddess...
(SScR 69).
A seated statue of a goddess in the Palatine Antiquarium is now accepted to be of Cybele, and may be from the temple complex.
Source
- Magna Mater, aedes at LacusCurtiusLacusCurtiusLacusCurtius is a website specializing in ancient Rome, currently hosted on a server at the University of Chicago. It went online on August 26, 1997; in January 2008 it had "2786 pages, 690 photos, 675 drawings & engravings, 118 plans, 66 maps." The site is the...