HSC Ancient History Core
Study
Religion in Pompeii and
Herculaneum
Temple of Apollo, Pompeii
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This bronze statue of Apollo as an
archer stands facing the Temple of
Apollo in the form at Pompeii. The
Corinthian column on the raised
platform to the left is part of the
podium of the temple, built in the
second century BC. The columns
behind the statue are part of the
western ambulatory of the temple.
The statue is a copy of the bronze
sculpture, which was found in
pieces at the site. A similar statue
of Artemis (Diana to the Romans),
also shown as an archer, was
found nearby.
Apollo was sacred to both the
Greeks and the Romans. Festivals
were important events at Pompeii.
These were held in honour of
Apollo.
Altar in the Temple of the Genius of Augustus
(later known as the Temple of Vespasian)
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The Temple of the Genius of Augustus was
built during the reign of Augustus to
celebrate the Imperial cult. It was damaged
in the earthquake of AD 62 but had been
restored by the time of the eruption of Mount
Vesuvius in AD 79.
On the front of this white marble altar is a
relief depicting the sacrifice of a bull, a ritual
associated with the Imperial cult. Can you
identify the following details from the relief:
the young attendant carrying a jug and
saucer
the officiating priest with his toga draped
over his head
the tripod altar
the mallet to be used to stun the bull before
its throat was cut.
The other three sides of the altar show
objects associated with the Imperial cult.
Hercules with Minerva and Juno from the College
of the Augustales, Herculaneum
This is one of a pair of
paintings from the shrine
inside the College of the
Augustales, Herculaneum.
Hercules, the darker skinned
figure, is seated with Minerva,
the Roman goddess of
intelligence and the arts, in the
foreground and Juno, wife of
Jupiter in the background. This
painting and the one facing it
feature the favourite gods and
goddesses together with
Hercules, the local
mythological hero.
Hercules with Neptune and Salacia, from the
College of the Augustales, Herculaneum
• This is the companion to the
painting of Hercules with
Minerva and Juno in the shrine
of the College of the
Augustales, Herculaneum.
This painting shows Hercules,
the figure with tanned skin
carrying his club, together with
Neptune and his wife Salacia,
sometimes known by her
Greek name, Amphitrite.
• The shrine is decorated in the
‘Fourth Style’ of painting, with
the two mythological scenes
surrounded by ornamental
panels featuring architectural
forms.
Dedicatory Inscription, College of
the Augustales, Herculaneum
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The statues and floor decorations
were stripped from this building by
early excavators. However they
missed this marble plaque which
clearly identifies the building’s
function as the meeting place of
the Augustales, leading citizens
who were responsible for
maintaining the cult of the deified
emperors.
The inscription records that the
building, dedicated to Augustus,
was built by the brothers A. Lucius
Proculus and A. Lucius Iulanius,
who gave a dinner to members of
the decurion council and the
Augustales on its inauguration
day.
Mosaic from the House of Neptune and
Amphitrite, Herculaneum
• This mosaic is from the
summer dining room of the
House of the Neptune and
Amphitrite, one of the bestpreserved houses in
Herculaneum. It is made from
thousands of tiny tiles, which
have retained their vivid
colours.
• The mosaic shows the god of
the sea and his wife, however
they have been curiously
named: Neptune is the Roman
name for the god (Greek
Poseidon) but Amphitrite is the
Greek name for his wife
(Roman Salacia).