Organized by Filippo Coarelli, the exhibition – whose full title is Divus Vespasianus: the Capitoline Hill and Egypt in the Flavian era – illustrates the major building projects that Vespasian was responsible for on the Capitoline hill, including the reconstruction of both the Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus and the Temple of Isis that had been elevated to public sanctuary status.
The entire exhibition pivots around the key role played by Egypt under Vespasian and his sons, and their particular devotion to eastern divinities, which wasn’t limited to buildings on the Capitoline Hill, as the reconstruction of the ancient Iseo on Campus Martius confirms.
This exhibition also marks the reopening of the Egyptian Room to the public.
The pieces included in the exhibition are extremely valuable and include the Capitoline Triad. It is being displayed here for the first time as an evocative reminder of the great Roman divinities that were once honoured in the grandiose Temple of Jupiter. Another noteworthy and exceptionally valuable exhibit is the inscription that mentions a priest in the Temple of Isis on the Capitoline.
