Imperial Procession

Detail of a relief on the south side of the Ara Pacis. The bored but well-behaved youngster pulling at Agrippas robeand being restrained gently by the hand of the man behind himis probably Agrippas son Gaius Caesar. The heavily swathed woman next to Agrippa on the right may be Augustus wife, Livia, followed by Tiberius, who would become the next emperor. Behind Tiberius could be Antonia, the niece of Augustus, looking back at her husband, Drusus, Livias younger son. She may grasp the hand of Germanicus, one of her younger children. The depiction of children and real women in an official relief was new to the Augustan period and reflects Augustus desire to promote private family life as well as to emphasize his potential heirs. The figures in this frieze represent members of Augustus extended family, and scholars have proposed some specific identifications. The middle-aged man with the shrouded head at the far left may be Marcus Agrippa, who would have been Augustus successor had he not predeceased him in 12 ce.

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