Book contents
- The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery
- The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Altars of the Lares Augusti
- 3 Modelling the Emperor
- 4 Publica numina
- 5 Roman Emperors, Conquest, and Violence
- 6 Court Politics and Imperial Imagery in the Roman Principate
- 7 Local Aspirations and Statues of Emperors in Roman North Africa
- 8 The Altar of P. Perelius Hedulus in Carthage and the Social Aspects of Provincial Image-Making
- 9 Imagines et tituli
- 10 The Imperial Image in Media of Mechanical Reproduction
- 11 When Was an Imperial Image?
- Index
- References
3 - Modelling the Emperor
Representations of Power, Empire, and Dynasty among Eastern Client Kings
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 November 2020
- The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery
- The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Altars of the Lares Augusti
- 3 Modelling the Emperor
- 4 Publica numina
- 5 Roman Emperors, Conquest, and Violence
- 6 Court Politics and Imperial Imagery in the Roman Principate
- 7 Local Aspirations and Statues of Emperors in Roman North Africa
- 8 The Altar of P. Perelius Hedulus in Carthage and the Social Aspects of Provincial Image-Making
- 9 Imagines et tituli
- 10 The Imperial Image in Media of Mechanical Reproduction
- 11 When Was an Imperial Image?
- Index
- References
Summary
This chapter argues that client kings played a significant, even leading role in disseminating the images associated with the princeps and the imperium Romanum at the outskirts of the empire. Dependent rulers faced a unique challenge, as they had to pay homage to the emperor as the superior authority while maintaining and communicating their own royal prestige and local legitimacy. In the context of these intricate dynamics, client kings developed a mode of representation that reflected their authority as well as the superiority of the emperor. To this end, they adopted and adapted models from the centre of the empire for their own purposes, turning modes of imperial representation into a shared idiom of power. However, the hierarchy between emperor and dependent ruler always remained clear and was reinforced through the imperial cult. Instead of undercutting the local legitimacy of client kings, the reverence of an even higher authority, elevated beyond mortality, was used to strengthen the position of dependent rulers whose power relied on the centre’s approval.
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- The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery , pp. 52 - 75Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020