Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Roman Senate witnessed a new temple rise on the Palatine Hill in 28 BCE. This structure was not merely a place of worship but a calculated instrument of power for Octavian, who had recently taken the name Augustus.
The dedication ceremony took place on October 9th, a date traditionally associated with victory deities. This timing reinforced the message that his military victories at Actium were blessed by the gods.
Augustus commissioned three cult statues crafted by renowned Greek artists of the fourth century BCE to stand inside the main chamber. The central figure was Apollo playing a lyre created by the sculptor Scopas, while his sister Diana was originally carved by Timotheos before her head was remade by Avianus Evander.
The Great Fire of Rome in 64 CE damaged the structure shortly after it was founded in 28 BCE. A second blaze destroyed the temple completely during the night of March 18th to 19th in 363 CE.
Pietro Rosa began full excavations of the area in 1861 while working for Napoleon III. He discovered the concrete core in 1865 and consolidated surviving fragments into a staircase.