Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Arch of Augustus

Marcus Julius Cottius was king of the Ligurian tribes inhabiting the region now known as the "Cottian Alps", that became part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century BC. Segusio (= Susa) at that time was the capital of "Alpes Cottiae". Cottius had the "Arch of Augustus" built from white marble 9/8 BC to record the renewed alliance between Emperor Augustus and him. A frieze, depicting a suovetaurilia, a kind of ritual offering. Above that is the (very long) dedicatory inscription to ".. Imperator Caesar Augustus son of a god, Pontifex Maximus.." Seen here are two young Vandals, climbing the arch, while their father is capturing the climb on video.

Marcus Julius Cottius was king of the Ligurian tribes inhabiting the region now known as the "Cottian Alps", that became part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century BC. Segusio (= Susa) at that time was the capital of "Alpes Cottiae". Cottius had the "Arch of Augustus" built from white marble 9/8 BC to record the renewed alliance between Emperor Augustus and him. There is a (very long) dedicatory inscription to ".. Imperator Caesar Augustus son of a god, Pontifex Maximus.." A frieze runs all around the arch - 33 meters. It depicts a suovetaurilia, a kind of ritual sacrifice of pig (sus), a sheep (ovis) and a bull (taurus). The bull is seen to the left.

Marcus Julius Cottius was king of the Ligurian tribes inhabiting the region now known as the "Cottian Alps", that became part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century BC. Segusio (= Susa) at that time was the capital of "Alpes Cottiae". Cottius had the "Arch of Augustus" built from white marble 9/8 BC to record the renewed alliance between Emperor Augustus and him. A frieze, depicting a suovetaurilia, a ritual sacrifice. Above that is the (very long) dedicatory inscription to ".. Imperator Caesar Augustus son of a god, Pontifex Maximus.." The wall to the right is much younger than the arch. It belongs to the "Castello della marchesa Adelaide" (= Castle of Marquise Adelaide), where Adelaide of Susa (aka Adelaide of Turin), who married Otto of Savoy in 1046, once lived. She had joined Henry IV, later her son in law, on his way to Canossa in 1077.

Perugia was an Umbrian settlement on top of a mountain that became a Roman colonia around 250 BC. In 547 Totila´s Ostrogoth troops looted the city after a long siege. Legends tell, that Perugia´s bishop Herculanus, who negotiated with Totila in behalf of his folks, got beheaded by the Ostrogoths, making St. Herculanus (aka "Sant' Ercolano") to the city´s patron saint. In the 9th century, with the consent of the Carolingians, it passed under the popes. Within the 11th century gained independency. After a long conflict, in 1370 the city signed a treaty accepting a papal legate, but already 5 years later the vicar-general of the Papal States was expelled by a popular uprising. During the Italian Wars Perugia passed through many hands until Condottiero Braccio da Montone reached a concordance with the Papacy. It did not bring peace to the city, but led to the "Salt War" in 1540, that had started as a protest against paying new taxes on salt. The papal troops forced a surrender. Within a few years, more than hundred houses, as well as churches and monasteries were destroyed and used as building material to built an enormous fortress, the "Rocca Paolina". The fort was for centuries a symbol of oppressive papal rule. - The "Arco Etrusco" (aka "Arco di Augusto") is part of the Etruscian fortification, constructed in the 3rd century BC. It was restored by Augustus (ex-Octavian) in 40 BC after his victory in the Perusine War. This war ended after Octavian's army laid siege Perusia (= Perugia) finally causing it to surrender due to starvation. Perusia got looted, the city burnt down, the inhabitants were butchered. The inscription reads "Augusta Perusia", which was the name of the city after the war.