Dr. Douglas Boyne and his team at Saint Louis University have made an important archaeological discovery. They discovered an ancient Roman temple dating back to the time of Constantine.
They discovered three walls of a monumental structure believed to be a Roman temple dating back to the 4th century AD. This discovery provides valuable insight into the social transition from pagan gods to Christianity within the Roman Empire during the time of Constantine.
This recently discovered Roman temple dates back to the 4th century AD and is considered an amazing addition to the landscape of this particular region of Italy. This discovery is expected to significantly contribute to the understanding of ancient cities, their urban layout, and the social dynamics of the late Roman Empire. The existence of this temple highlights the continuity between the classical pagan world and the early Christian Roman world.
Boyne focused his archaeological excavations in the famous medieval city of Spello, near Assisi, about 20 minutes from Rome and about two and a half hours north. Spello’s choice was influenced by Constantine’s 4th century letter to the town’s inhabitants about religious festivals, which guided the expedition that led to the discovery of ancient Roman temples.
This edict, unearthed in the 18th century, reveals that the inhabitants of Spello were allowed to celebrate religious festivals locally instead of traveling to festivals far away. However, the condition was that a temple be built and worshiped to the divine ancestors of Constantine and the Flavian family. This highlights the multicultural nature of Roman society at the time.
Boyne said, “There was a remarkable religious continuity between the Roman world and early Christendom. Things did not change overnight. I had no sense that there were actually any physical religious sites associated with “acts of imperial worship.” However, with its inscriptions and references to temples, Spello offers the very interesting possibility of a large-scale discovery of imperial worship under Christian rulers. ”
Boyne traveled to Spello to conduct subsurface imaging to identify ancient structures that may lie beneath the surface. A few weeks later, they discovered a promising image under a parking lot where the temple might be located. Through careful excavation, the team discovered two connecting walls, followed by what Boyne believes to be the inner walls of the temple. Boyne said the discovery is considered the most important evidence of imperial worship in fourth-century Italy and the late Roman Empire.
Boyne said, “There is evidence from elsewhere in the Roman world that Christian rulers supported cult practices in the empire. It is known that pagans worshiped in temples in the fourth century, but All discoveries were small and insignificant.”
“And we knew that Christians supported imperial worship, and we knew that without any idea where it occurred. This temple is a bridge between these two landmarks. In this respect, it is unlike any other temple in the Mediterranean world of the 4th century Roman Empire that I know of. This temple should be considered in future studies of imperial worship in the 4th century Roman Empire. This is an amazing discovery.”
“This discovery shows how slowly social change occurred at the time. Constantine famously was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, but under Emperor Theodosius, It took almost 70 years for Christianity to become the official religion of the Roman Empire. Even then, it took many persuasive efforts to convert people who worshiped pagan gods to Christianity. We needed a gradual change.”
“This changes everything about how we perceive the pace of social change and our impressions of the impact of social and cultural change. This building, in its own way, is very radical. It shows the staying power of pagan traditions that had been in the ground for centuries before the rise of Christianity. It shows how values, hopes, and dreams continued to be negotiated for the future of the empire.”
“We are on the verge of providing people with clear evidence that upends the way they think about big moments of cultural change. It’s not as big as you might think, and there are a lot of gray areas between people’s habits and broader society and culture.”
“And many of them may be left out of the story. So it’s possible that this temple was a temple dedicated to the holy ancestors of Konstantice, as a means of worshiping the emperor in the then increasingly Christianized world. It’s very strange that this could happen and I’m very happy to be able to bring this issue to light.”
Boyne announced the discovery at the Society for American Archaeology’s annual meeting.