“Have I played my part well in this comedy of life? Then applaud as I exit.”
This quote is supposedly the last words of Augustus, first emperor of Rome and subject of the included photo. Born Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian, he later changed his name as he changed the political system of Rome, furthering the work that his adopted father, Julius Caesar, had already started. His last words were purportedly recorded by ancient historian Suetonius, although how he accurately got them is a mystery considering Augustus died in 14 CE, and Suetonius was not born until 69 CE. They also vary depending on translation.
I chose this photo because recently I’ve become extremely interested in ancient Rome, beginning with me reading Mary Beard’s book, Emperor of Rome. The most fascinating part of reading about Rome is that despite them living thousands of years ago, in some ways it feels as though their struggles mirror ours today.
The audio I am including is a snippet of a poem “On the Nature of Things” by Roman poet and philosopher Titus Lucretius Carus, better known as Lucretius. This snippet is from Book III – Part 3 “The Soul is Mortal”, translated by William Ellery Leonard and recorded for LibriVox by Daniel Vimont.
A poem from a Roman debating the fate of the human soul after life in juxtaposition with an Emperor who was deified and worshipped after death drives home for me the paradoxical nature of both Imperial Rome and human nature itself. In this statue of Augustus the artist included a small baby Cupid riding a dolphin, which was a direct reference to his claim that he was descended from the same line as Julius Caesar, who claimed his ancestry extended to the goddess Venus. Despite all of this godly lineage, in the end, Augustus perished the same as any other human. One can only wonder if he thought his soul would be borne to the realm of the Gods on his deathbed, or if he believed that his exit truly meant the end of all of his mind and soul, as Lucretius would suggest.
Lucretius would have died before the Roman Republic became the Roman Empire, but as with many words of ancient Romans, his poems and musings have lived a thousand lives after him. Augustus is the single Roman emperor with the most surviving portraits in various forms, and yet none of these marble busts contain the essence of his soul, or who he was as a person. All we have are artifacts that merely offer a glimpse through a distorted looking glass, as it were.
Together, this image and this poem speak to me of the ephemeral nature of being human. People have been fighting for power and wondering about what it means to be alive and have a soul for as long as we have been humans. No matter who we are, no matter if we have all the wealth in the world, for emperor and plebian alike, death is our final act. What comes next is anyone’s guess.
Terms of Use “Death of An Emperor” by Emily Bowlin is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
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Hi Emily,
The inclusion of the quote from Augustus on the far right hand corner was a powerful move. As someone who enjoys Roman art, but is not well versed in the history surrounding it, I appreciated your in-depth analysis and additional context. My first impression of the image can be described by the following words: power, ego, and war. Which, after reading your post, seem to be aligned with the intentions of your selection, and perhaps, the artist themself. I will admit that I had some technical issues with the audio. During playback, the volume seemed to be rather low, even when putting my speaker on the highest setting. Because of this, I am unable to provide additional feedback on the audio/image pairing at the moment. If it happens to just be an error on my end and I’m able to troubleshoot it, I will attempt to update this comment. However, what I can say is I think the inclusion of a timeless poem adds additional depth to both the tangle and intangible meanings behind the statue.
Hello Emily!
Thank you for the complete review of the history of the meaning of the photo. As someone who is not well versed in Roman history, it was extremely helpful to be able to understand the context of the photo and audio clip. The photo by itself gives such a great vision of what life would have been like for just a small moment during that time period. The detail of the clothing, hairstyle, and even the facial features is so lifelike. I am very glad that you put the description in of the small baby cupid riding a dolphin. This provides great context since, at first glance, it did seem out of place. I get the feeling that there was a deep narcissistic personality to the main character, probably coming from a long line of narcicissists just based on the belief of being borne to a realm of gods. It is quite ironic to hear the description of his passing just like any other human being.
The audio clip is a very interesting choice. I had not thought of using a poem being recited as an audio clip. Thank you for helping me to think outside the box. I was able to hear the audo clip and I think it pairs extremely well with the photo. I could picture being a commoner back during that time frame and watching a performance of the orator of the poem while catching a glimpse of the person depicted in the photo.
Hi Emily,
Wow, I actually remember learning about this statue in my high school Art History class! I remember hearing that it was meant to be viewed from below, which totally changes how it’s supposed to look.
At first, the statue of Augustus feels so powerful and almost godlike. His stance, the military armor, and even the little Cupid by his side all make it seem like he wasn’t just a ruler—he was meant to be remembered forever. It gives off this strong sense of control, authority, and permanence.
But the audio totally threw me off. The way it flows kind of reminded me of Shakespeare, and it made me think about who Augustus was as a person. It makes you think about what is really important in life and if power was worth it.
The combination of the two really changes the way you see Augustus. Instead of just admiring his power, you start questioning it. The poem makes him feel less like an untouchable figure and more like just another person who had to face death, no matter how great he was.
I feel like if you paired it with music from Gladiator or some epic battle soundtrack, it would’ve totally changed the feel—making him seem even more legendary. It really shows how much music can shift emotions and completely change the way we experience art.