31. Study Questions Copy

Being associated with these gods would have strengthened his claims to power and enhanced his reputation as a general and leader.

It seems likely that he was attempting to distance himself from the things he had done as a Triumvir.

The Res Gestae was written by Augustus, and so has the benefit of personal knowledge of events but it fails to mention the failures of his reign (such as the scandals involving his daughter and granddaughter, and the loss of three Roman legions in the Teutoburg Forest in AD 9). The Res Gestae is like a CV, which only mentions successes.

Augustus is depicted like a Greek god, eternally young.

You should be mentioning his stance (adlocutio), the contrapposto pose, the appearance of Cupid and the dolphin by his foot (recalling his link to Venus, and to the battle of Actium), the breastplate design.

The return of the standards by the Parthians in 20BC.

The statute is deliberately ambiguous and can be read either way. He is in military uniform but not wearing a helmet. The Parthian standards were returned by treaty, so could indicate peace, but it is likely that it is a peace imposed with the threat of military retaliation if they were not returned. So, perhaps pacification rather than peace? The Latin word ‘pax’ could mean both.