Landmarks as Symbols of Power: A Characteristic of the Urban Policy of Augustus

Abstract

During the Augustan Age, there seems to be no intention of colonising Hispania as a whole, of systematically occupying the entire territory. Quite the opposite, Augustan settlements, very much like Caesarean settlements, seem to be solutions that are limited regionally and with a short-term perspective, an answer to internal organisational problems: more specifically, the discharging of army veterans. Nevertheless, Rome dominated the entire country and, especially from the Augustan Age onwards, Landmarks/Herrschaftszeichen were introduced in the territory as symbols of power. This article introduces the concept of Landmarks/Herrschaftszeichen in the Hispanic scientific discourse. They are the material manifestation of the Roman Empire, especially in the provinces. Although this concept can be extended also to symbols or texts, in this case it will refer to architecture, monuments and buildings. The term references the demonstration of Roman authority through an imposing, original architecture that is monumental in nature. That is, the signposting of the Empire’s territorial expanse through monuments that are spread across the territory. The Arae Sestianae, such as the Pillars of Hercules, are mainly symbols of power that afford a reference to the extreme confines to which the world spans in the discourse of any Roman citizen. The Roman lighthouse of La Coruña not only lit the way for seafarers; it was also a cartographical point of reference. Symbols of power act both ways. For indigenous populations they point to the presence of Rome as the new dominating power by means of a monument that is physically present and is capable of appraising the new order; at the same time, they are useful, accessible and functional in one way or other. For Roman citizens, these symbols of power are a means to mentally understanding how far their Empire extends.