Germanico e gli archi tiberiani nel foro di Augusto

The twin arches dedicated to Germanicus and Drusus Minor in the Forum of Augustus were commissioned by Tiberius and dedicated by the Senate. They inaugurate the series of similar arches in coloniae and municipii, differing in very specific characteristics, both for the particular location in the circumscribed area of the Augustan Forum and for the original decoration of the archivolt. The two brothers “enter” with their bronze effigies on the crowning of the arches into the Forum, characterised by its function as a place linked to the triumph and the ornamenta triumphalia, by the galleries of the triumphers and the summi viri. The contribution deals for the first time in a systematic way with the archaeological emergencies of the arches, examining in detail the structural parts and architectural elements still in place, including the three fragments relevant to the decoration of the archivolt, drawing the main structural data and a preliminary-schematic reconstructive proposal. The iconographic motif of the archivolt consists of acorns and oak leaves. In this regard, the synthesis of the knowledge about the figure of Germanicus and his links with the Forum and especially with the Temple of Mars Ultor, the analysis of the documentation relating to the tradition and use of the oak crown both in the sacred and civil spheres, the re-examination of the inscription attributed to Drusus Minor (actually also attributable to Germanicus), the findings in the arrangements for celebrating Germanicus post mortem lead to see a strong logical and celebrative link in the choice of the oak crown motif as a civic crown. In the Julio-Claudian statuary cycles we find some portraits of Tiberius and Germanicus with oak wreaths on their heads that seem to confirm (although they may have been made postmortem) the not only decorative but strongly symbolic choice of the oak crown on the arch.