Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus

• 1. Foundations And Vows

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  King Lucius Tarquinius Priscus stood on the Capitoline Hill in 509 BC and vowed to build a temple while fighting the Sabines. This vow marked the beginning of Rome's most sacred structure. Ancient sources say the king began terracing the hill to support the foundations. Modern coring confirms that workers excavated massive amounts of Cappellaccio tufa directly from the site to create a level building area. The last King of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, completed the foundations and superstructure. Before construction began, shrines to other gods occupied this spot. Augurs performed rites to move them, but Terminus and Juventas refused to leave. Their refusal became a favorable omen for the future Roman state. Workers digging the foundations reportedly saw a man's head appear. Augurs interpreted this as a sign that Rome would become the head of a great empire. The temple was dedicated on the 13th of September 509 BC by Marcus Horatius Pulvillus. Some ancient writers claim it was consecrated two years later in 507 BC. In 495 BC, Latins delivered a gold crown to the temple as gratitude for releasing prisoners.

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• 2. Architectural Evolution

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  The first version of the temple burned down in 83 BC during civil wars under Sulla. Sulla had looted Athens in 86 BC and seized gigantic incomplete columns from the Temple of Zeus. He transported these columns back to Rome for reuse. Whether he used all the columns remains unconfirmed because they were extraordinarily long. Quintus Lutatius Catulus dedicated the second structure in 69 BC. This new building followed the same plan but used more expensive materials. Literary sources indicate the temple was not fully completed until the late 60s BC. Fires in subsequent centuries necessitated further reconstructions. The third temple only lasted five years before burning again in 80 AD. Vespasian rebuilt it with a Corinthian order and statuary including a quadriga atop the gable. Domitian began rebuilding immediately after the fire with the most lavish superstructure yet. He used at least twelve thousand talents of gold for gilding bronze roof tiles alone. The fourth temple survived until the fall of the empire. Remains of the last temple were pillaged for spolia in the Middle Ages. Only elements of the foundations and podium survive today.

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• 3. Sacred Iconography

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  Etruscan artisan Vulca of Veii created the famous terracotta sculpture of Jupiter driving a quadriga. This chariot drawn by four horses sat on top of the roof as an acroterion. The cult statue of Jupiter showed the god standing and wielding a thunderbolt. He wore a tunica palmata decorated with images of palm leaves and a toga picta dyed purple with gold thread designs. This costume became standard dress for victorious generals celebrating a triumph. In the second building, Apollonius of Athens sculpted a chryselephantine statue of Jupiter seated with a thunderbolt and scepter. It possibly featured an image of the goddess Roma in one hand. The third temple included bigae driven by figures of Victory on either side at the base of the roof. A Renaissance drawing shows a four-horse chariot beside a two-horse chariot to the right of the latter at the highest point of the pediment. Statues of Mars and Venus surmounted the corners of the cornice serving as acroteria. In the center of the pediment Jupiter was flanked by Juno and Minerva seated on thrones. Below them was an eagle with wings spread out.

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• 4. Political Theater

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  Brutus and other assassins locked themselves inside the temple after murdering Caesar. Domitian hid in the dog handler's living quarters when forces of Vitellius overtook the Capitoline. The sacred geese of Juno were kept in the Area Capitolina and said to have sounded the alarm during the Gallic siege. During the Imperial period, dogs guarded this area. In the 19th of December 69 AD, an army loyal to Vespasian battled to enter the city on the hill. The second building burned down during this fighting. The Sibylline Books stored in the temple were lost in the fire of 83 BC. These books were consulted only in emergencies by the quindecimviri council of fifteen. The precinct held numerous shrines, altars, statues, and victory trophies dedicated by victorious generals. Some plebeian and tribal assemblies met there. In late antiquity, it became a market for luxury goods where shoppers negotiated prices for gems and silk. Cassiodorus described the temple as one of the wonders of the world in the early 6th century.

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• 5. Destruction And Decline

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  Emperor Theodosius I closed all pagan temples in 392 during the persecution of pagans. Ammianus Marcellinus called the temple 'the Capitolium' in the 4th century. Stilicho damaged the temple in the 5th century according to Zosimus who claimed he removed gold from the doors. Procopius states that Vandals plundered the temple during the sack of Rome in 455. They stripped away half of the gilded bronze tiles. Narses removed many statues and ornaments in 571. The ruins remained well preserved when humanist Poggio Bracciolini visited Rome in 1447. Giovanni Pietro Caffarelli destroyed the remaining ruins in the 16th century to build Palazzo Caffarelli on the site. Portions of the podium and foundations can be seen behind the Palazzo dei Conservatori today. A part of the eastern corner is visible in via del Tempio di Giove. Underground chambers called favissae held damaged building materials and old votive offerings that were religiously prohibited to disturb.

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• 6. Modern Archaeology

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  The original temple decoration was discovered in 2014 allowing archaeologists to reconstruct its earliest phase appearance for the first time. Findings showed wooden elements lined with terracotta revetment plaques decorated with painted reliefs following the Second Phase model. Five different plans have been published following recent excavations on the Capitoline Hill. Dionysius of Halicarnassus stated the same plan and foundations were used for later rebuildings but disagreement exists over dimensions. The second Medici lion was sculpted by Flaminio Vacca from a capital in the late 16th century. The Area Capitolina enclosed the temple with irregular retaining walls following hillside contours. It was enlarged in 388 BC to about 3,000 square meters. Scholars continue debating whether ancient measurements referred to the building itself or just the podium. Much about the various buildings remains uncertain despite these discoveries.

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