Astrology was brought to Rome by Greek slaves whom the Romans took captive. These early astrologers were sometimes known as “astrologers of the circus”; the Romans liked to bet heavily at chariot races and brought along their Greek astrologer-slaves to predict winners for them.
Astrology soon became a topic of great interest to Romans. By the time of Julius Caesar (102–44 B.C.) just about every important Roman statesman and military man had his horoscope cast. Julius Caesar had a detailed horoscope prepared for him, and Mark Antony’s astrologer was a “gift” to him from Cleopatra. Caesar, in fact, wrote a book about different kinds of divinations. He was warned of his death by someone versed in astrology, “Beware the Ides of March.”
The Roman emperors who followed Caesar took astrology very seriously. Augustus (27 B.C.–A.D. 14) ordered coins to be minted that bore his astrological sign of Capricorn. Two stories have grown up about his early experiences with astrologers. One is that on the day Augustus was born, his father, who was a senator, arrived late at the Senate because of the happy event. He explained to the assembly that a son had just been born. At that point, Nigidius, a famous Roman scholar and astrologer, stood up and predicted that the new child would grow up to be a ruler. The second story is about a time, before he was emperor, when Augustus visited an astrologer. The astrologer did not know who Augustus was. Suddenly, upon learning the birth date, the astrologer threw himself at Augustus’s feet and worshipped him as the future master of the empire.
Tiberius (A.D. 14–37), who became emperor after Augustus, studied the horoscopes of political rivals. If he saw any that were likely to gain power in the future, he had those persons put to death. Life under Tiberius was equally hazardous for astrologers. If the emperor was presented with a horoscope he didn’t like, he had the astrologer thrown into the sea. Clearly, Tiberius believed that astrology should be a science in which never is heard a discouraging word.
The infamous Emperor Nero (A.D. 54–68) believed in the auguries of the stars so firmly that he waited until his astrologer told him it was the propitious time before proclaiming himself emperor.
Emperor Hadrian (A.D. 117–138) announced on the first day of each year the events that his charts told him would happen during the coming year. Hadrian correctly predicted the hour of his own death. If that happened today, it would cause the kind of shock among skeptics that would register high on the Richter scale.
Astrology soon became a topic of great interest to Romans. By the time of Julius Caesar (102–44 B.C.) just about every important Roman statesman and military man had his horoscope cast. Julius Caesar had a detailed horoscope prepared for him, and Mark Antony’s astrologer was a “gift” to him from Cleopatra. Caesar, in fact, wrote a book about different kinds of divinations. He was warned of his death by someone versed in astrology, “Beware the Ides of March.”
The Roman emperors who followed Caesar took astrology very seriously. Augustus (27 B.C.–A.D. 14) ordered coins to be minted that bore his astrological sign of Capricorn. Two stories have grown up about his early experiences with astrologers. One is that on the day Augustus was born, his father, who was a senator, arrived late at the Senate because of the happy event. He explained to the assembly that a son had just been born. At that point, Nigidius, a famous Roman scholar and astrologer, stood up and predicted that the new child would grow up to be a ruler. The second story is about a time, before he was emperor, when Augustus visited an astrologer. The astrologer did not know who Augustus was. Suddenly, upon learning the birth date, the astrologer threw himself at Augustus’s feet and worshipped him as the future master of the empire.
Tiberius (A.D. 14–37), who became emperor after Augustus, studied the horoscopes of political rivals. If he saw any that were likely to gain power in the future, he had those persons put to death. Life under Tiberius was equally hazardous for astrologers. If the emperor was presented with a horoscope he didn’t like, he had the astrologer thrown into the sea. Clearly, Tiberius believed that astrology should be a science in which never is heard a discouraging word.
The infamous Emperor Nero (A.D. 54–68) believed in the auguries of the stars so firmly that he waited until his astrologer told him it was the propitious time before proclaiming himself emperor.
Emperor Hadrian (A.D. 117–138) announced on the first day of each year the events that his charts told him would happen during the coming year. Hadrian correctly predicted the hour of his own death. If that happened today, it would cause the kind of shock among skeptics that would register high on the Richter scale.