‘Framing’ Romanità : The Celebrations for the Bimillenario Augusteo and the Augusteo–Ara Pacis Project

Fascist Italy's 1937–8 celebrations of Augustus' bimillenario served as a pivotal moment in the regime's cult of 'romanità,' blending imperial imagery with a vision of Rome as a universal political center. The study highlights how two major projects—the reconfiguration of Augustus’ Mausoleum and the excavation/reconstruction of the Ara Pacis—were fused to create 'sacred' spaces where past and future intertwined. These interventions, analyzed through architectural and urbanistic framing, reveal the regime's strategic use of monumental design to impose a new temporal narrative, transforming archaeological relics into symbolic gateways for a futurist, universalized Rome.

Kallis, A. (2011). ‘Framing’ Romanità : The Celebrations for the Bimillenario Augusteo and the Augusteo–Ara Pacis Project. Journal of Contemporary History, 46(4), 809–831. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022009411413407