Why is there a baby at the feet of the statue of Octavian Augustus? (3 photos)

Octavian Augustus was perhaps the greatest and most important of Roman emperors. Even those who are not at all interested in history ancient Rome saw his famous statue.





This statue is very famous, moreover, it is a lifetime statue, i.e. she, most likely, conveys the appearance of Octavian well. Once it belonged to his wife - Livia.

But if you look down, you can see an interesting detail. - the baby at Octavian's right leg. Why is he there? Let's figure it out together.



The reason lies in the recent past of Octavian. Guy Julius Caesar belonged to the Julio family - a very rich and influential patrician family that was at the height of power from the very foundation Rome.

Members of the Juliev clan boasted of their kinship with the goddess Venus. Caesar himself publicly declared his connection with Venus and that that she is protecting him. Caesar in general often boasted of his inhuman luck and explained it by the favor of the goddess.

When Caesar was killed, he made a separate clause in his will adopted Octavian Augustus. August after that also became known as Guy Julius Caesar and bore this name until the end of his life in memory of his adopted father. In addition, the use of the name Caesar was a successful political one. move. Caesar was incredibly popular, and it was beneficial for Augustus to be "Second Caesar".



Be that as it may, Augustus wanted to continue to raise the prestige of Caesar's name, as it raised his prestige as well. August even gave Caesar the status of a demigod, while adding divinity to himself. The point of this was to increase your personal authority. Who will dare to argue with a demigod?

This brings us to the baby. It's not really a child wings can be seen behind his back. This is Cupid riding a dolphin. Cupid in Roman mythology was the messenger of the goddess Venus. Thus the statue was supposed to demonstrate the connection of Augustus with the goddess.

But besides this, there was another reason, purely practical. This statue of Augustus is very heavy and most of its weight is in its top part. Two thin ankles are not enough to support her weight. The sculptor needed another point of support to give the statue stability and ability to support its own weight.