One Big, Happy Family

Even casual readers of this young blog probably know my affinity for the emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193-211 AD) and his two sons Caracalla (r. 198-211 with Severus; r. Feb-Dec. 211 AD with Geta; r. 211-217 on his own) and Geta (r. 209-211 AD with Severus and Caracalla; Feb-Dec. 211 AD with Caracalla.) The below image is of the Severan Tondo, a tempera painting on a wood panel, probably of Egyptian origin from the early third century. It, and countless others like it that have not survived, most likely served as an imperial portrait to be displayed in government offices and buildings, much like today the President's and Vice President's official portraits, along with that of the corresponding Cabinet member, adorn U.S. federal buildings.

The tondo depicts Septimius Severus with his wife Julia Domna (who, Roman coin collectors know, has her own extensive coinage, who's portraits come complete with elaborate hair styles), and their two children, Caracalla to the right and Geta to the left. Note that Geta's face has been removed, scratched out as if it were never there. That's because Geta suffered damnatio memoriae - literally meaning "damnation of memory" - a deliberate way of dishonoring the deceased. Usually reserved for traitors, Caracalla probably had his brother's image "erased" from memory over his own guilt in having his brother murdered, in his mother's arms, no less. That's right - Caracalla has his own brother killed; we're told Geta died in Julia Domna's arms.

The brothers Caraclla and Geta are infamous for their infighting. Some enthusiasts today believe that Caracalla was the truly evil one, whereas Geta was nice and unsuspecting. Both brothers had their partisans and my belief is that Caracalla just acted quicker than Geta did. There was no way either brother was going to share power, despite how much Severus wanted it to be.

Despite suffering damnatio memoriae and apparently having his image removed from official imperial depictions, it does not appear that Geta's coinage was massively recalled. Sure, Geta's coinage is not as common as Caracalla's, and his coins as Augustus are rarer than their current valuations suggest, his coins continued to circulate. Which suggests to me that the damnatio memoriae was less a hate-filled obsession and more a political expediency.

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