Mausoleum of Augustus

• The Mausoleum of Augustus is a circular tomb built in 28 BCE by Augustus.
• It was built on the Campus Martius in Rome. The original structure is thought to have had a conical roof topped by a bronze statue of Augustus.

Getting There

• Location: Piazza Augusto Imperatore, Rome.
• Nearest Metro Station: Flaminio, Line A. Then Bus 628, 119.
• Admission: The Mausoleum is no longer open to Visitors due to Restoration works.

Res Gestae Divi Augusti

• In front of the Mausoleum were two Bronze Tablets, listing the achievements of Augustus, called the Res Gestae Divi Augusti, ‘The Deeds of the Divine Augustus’.

Emperors Ashes held in the Mausoleum

• The Ashes of the following Emperors were held in Gold Urns placed in niches:
  • Augustus
  • Tiberius
  • Caligula
  • Claudius
  • Vespasian
  • Titus
  • Nerva was the last Emperor to be buried there.

Other cremations buried in the Mausoleum

1. Marcus Claudius Marcellus in 23 BCE,
2. Marcus Agrippa in 12 BCE
3. Nero Claudius Drusus in 9 BCE
4. Octavia Minor (Augustus’ sister) in c. 9 BCE
5. Gaius in 4 CE and Lucius in 2 CE (Augustus’ Grandsons)
6. Livia in 29 CE (Augustus’ wife)
7. Germanicus in 19 CE
8. Agrippina the Elder in 33 CE
9. Julia Livilla (Agrippina’s daughter) in c.42 CE
10. Nero Germanicus (Germanicus’ son) in 30 CE
11. Drusus Caesar (Germanicus’ son) in 33 CE
12. Nero Claudius Drusus (Tiberius’ brother)
13. Antonia Minor (Tiberius’ sister in law) in 37 CE
14. Britannicus (Claudius’ son) in 55 CE
15. Poppaea Sabina (Nero’s wife) who was not cremated but embalmed, in 65 CE
16. Julia Domna (Septimius Severus wife) in 217 CE

Desecration

• In 410 CE, during the Sack of Rome by Alaric and the Visigoths, the Mausoleum was desecrated and the ashes scattered, although the Mausoleum was left intact.

Where were the Roman Emperors buried?

• The Roman Emperors were cremated and their ashes placed in Golden Urns put in niches in dedicated Mausoleums in Rome, Italy.

Photo and map: Mausoleum of Augustus, Rome