Samothracian Influences at Rome: Cultic and Architectural Exchange in the Second Century B.C.E.

Roman influence at the Sanctuary of the Great Gods at Samothrace is well documented in the literary and archaeological records. This article asks whether some reflection of Romans’ demonstrable involvement at Samothrace appears in Rome itself. I argue that the tradition of a genealogical link between Rome and Samothrace existed as early as the second century B.C.E. I then systematically examine monuments in Rome that suggest an indebtedness to Samothracian cult or architecture, especially the Temple of the Lares Permarini, the Round Temple on the Tiber, and the altars of the Samothracian gods in the Circus Maximus, but also the Porticus Octavia, the Temple of Hercules Musarum, and the theater next to the Temple of Apollo in Circo. These monuments reveal the impact of Samothrace’s famous mystery cult and renowned Hellenistic architecture in Rome. They demonstrate that the relationship between Rome and Samothrace was dynamic, affecting Rome on levels both cultic and architectural. Ultimately, Samothracian influences at Rome help us better understand the mechanisms of hellenization in Rome in the second century B.C.E. They also demonstrate the impact of Samothrace’s cult and architecture beyond the sanctuary’s heyday in the fourth and third centuries B.C.E. and beyond the Greek-speaking world.