Herculaneum VI.21, Sede degli Augustali or Hall of the Augustales, Curia.

Linked to side entrance at VI.24. Excavated 1960-62.

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According to Wallace-Hadrill, this building consisted of a Hall with central shrine and a two side rooms. The list of members of the Collegium of Augustales displayed here, was found elsewhere. Seen by some as the Curia. Rich style IV decorations in hall and shrine with grandiose mythologicals in shrine.

See Wallace-Hadrill, A., 1994. Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum. New Jersey: Princeton U.P. (p.206)

The hall housed the College of Augustales, a civic order of freedmen charged with the organisation of the imperial cult.

As a dedicatory inscription records on the north wall, its construction was sponsored in the latter part of the reign of Augustus by two brothers, Aulus Lucius Proculus and Aulus Lucius Iulianus, who offered a banquet for the decuriones and the augustales on the day of its consecration.

The large rectangular hall was paved in cocciopesto with four central columns supporting a flat roof.

Leaning against the two front columns are statue bases (on one of which was the graffito mentioning the Curia Augustiana), in the eighteenth century the statues, which had a dedication on their bases from the Augustales to the divine Caesar and divine Augustus, were carried away.

At the rear, the central shrine was reached by two steps, and the dado of the shrine was faced with marble, the middle zones of the walls were painted with a cinnabar (bright red tinted with orange) background decorated in the fourth style.

To the right of the shrine, with a simple screen in opus craticium, was formed the room of the custodian of the shrine, whose skeleton was found at the time of excavation lying on his bed, and here shown inside a glass show-case.

See Guidobaldi, M.P, 2009: Ercolano, guida agli scavi. Naples, Electa Napoli, (p.110).

See Guidobaldi, M.P. and Esposito, D. (2013). Herculaneum: Art of the Buried City. U.S.A, Abbeville Press, (p.313)

Deiss wrote that the identification of the Augustales’ structure in Herculaneum is made precise by the dedicatory inscription on the wall.

The inscription fortunately was overlooked by the tunnellers, who stripped all the statuary (probably including Proculus and Julian) and the floors from this hall.

See Deiss, J.J. 1968. Herculaneum: a city returns to the sun. UK, The History Book Club, (p.154)

VI.21 Herculaneum, on left, October 2014. Looking towards west side of entrance and VI.22. Photo courtesy of Michael Binns.

VI.21 Herculaneum. September 2015.

Entrance doorway on Decumanus Maximus, looking south. Photo courtesy of Michael Binns.

VI.21, Herculaneum. March 2014.  Entrance doorway on Decumanus Maximus, looking south.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VI.21, Herculaneum. March 2014.  Looking south across flooring at entrance on south side of Decumanus Maximus. 

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2021. Looking north-east towards entrance doorway. Photo courtesy of Robert Hanson.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014. Looking north-west from rear of two statue bases.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2021.

Looking south towards shrine, across two statue bases between the first two columns, as you enter. Photo courtesy of Robert Hanson.

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2010. Looking south towards shrine, across two statue bases between the first two columns, as you enter.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking south towards statue base on east side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2006. Looking south-east across Hall of the Augustales.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking north-east towards rear of statue base on east side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking north-east towards rear of statue base, and corner. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.21 Herculaneum. 7th August 1976. Looking towards north-east corner.

Photo courtesy of Rick Bauer, from Dr George Fay’s slides collection.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking towards north wall on east side of entrance doorway.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking east (left) towards statue base, and south-east corner.

On one of the two columns the graffito was found which mentioned the Curia Augustales. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

According to Wallace-Hadrill, the column bearing no less than three graffiti, was the first column on the right, (west side).

See Wallace-Hadrill, A. (2011). Herculaneum, Past and Future. London, Frances Lincoln Ltd., (p.180)

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2006. Looking towards east wall.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014. Looking along east wall towards south-east corner.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking towards the south-east corner. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014. Looking towards the south-east corner.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014. Looking south between two statue bases.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. March 2014. Looking south and across statue base on east side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2006. Looking south and across statue base on east side.

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking south-east. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking south-east towards upper column on east side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking south-east towards column on east side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2011.

Looking west to detail of column on east (left side). Photo courtesy of Nicolas Monteix.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014. Detail from column on east side. Looking west.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. March 2014. Looking south.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. April 2013. Looking south. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.21 Herculaneum. May 2011. Looking south-west. Photo courtesy of Nicolas Monteix.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2014.

Looking south-east from rear of column and statue base on west side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Looking south across statue base on west side.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

On one of the two columns the graffito was found which mentioned the Curia Augustales.

According to Wallace-Hadrill, the column bearing no less than three graffiti, was the first column on the right (west side) as you enter.

See Wallace-Hadrill, A. (2011). Herculaneum, Past and Future. London, Frances Lincoln Ltd., (p.180)

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Statue base on west side, looking west. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.21 Herculaneum, March 2019. Statue base on west side, looking north-west.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR

VI.21 Herculaneum. August 2013. Statue base and column on west side, looking north-west. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.21 Herculaneum. Found 18th May 1740. Inscription from one of the statue bases.

DIVO AVGVSTO

AVGVSTALES

Divo Augusto / Augustales   [CIL X 1412]

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum. Inventory number 3714.

VI.21 Herculaneum. Found 21st May 1740. Inscription from one of the statue bases.

DIVO IVLIO

AVGVSTALES

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum. Inventory number 3713.

Divo Iulio / Augustales   [CIL X 1411]

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