MARS, AEDES
(templum, Servius; epodv, Appian, Dionysius):
a temple on the
(north) left side of the via Appia, between the first and second milestones
(
CIL vi. 10234: via Appia ad Martis intra milliarium I et ii ab urbe
euntibus parte laeva, cf.
Jord. ii. 110; App.
BC iii. 41; Serv.
Aen.
i. 292; Not. Reg. I). There is a distinct rise in the road leading to it,
the
CLIVUS MARTIS (q.v.) (Ov.
Fast. vi. 191-192). The site is 2 kilometres
from the porta Capena and just outside the porta Appia of the Aurelian
wall. (The first milestone was situated just inside this gate, LS iii. ii.)
Beside it was a grove (Schol.
Iuv. i. 7:
lucus Martis qui Romae est in
Appia in quo solebant recitare poetae; cf.
ANTRUM CYCLOPIS; HJ 208).
The date of the foundation of this temple is not known, unless, as
seems probable, Livy's statement under 388 B.C. (vi. 5. 8:
eo anno aedes
Martis Gallico bello vota dedicata est a T. Quinctio duumviro sacris
Faciendis) refers to this temple and not to that in the campus Martius
(see
MARS, ARA). The day of dedication was 1st June (Ov.
Fast. vi. 19 ;
Fast. Ant. ap.
NS 1921, 97,
Marti in CI[ivo]). The temple is mentioned
frequently, and the district around it, even as far as the Almo, was known
as ad Martis (
Liv. x. 23. 12, 47. 4;
xxxviii. 28. 3; Suet. Terent. 5;
Cic. ad Q.
F. iii. 7; Rostowzew, 496, 497).
1 The troops assembled here
when setting out for war (
Liv. vii. 23. 3), and the transvectio equitum
began here (
Dionys. vi. 13). In it was a statue of Mars and figures of
wolves (Liv. xxii. I. 12:
signum Martis Appia via ac simulacra luporum
sudasse), and near by was the
MANALIS LAPIS (2) (q.v.). There are no
certain remains of this temple, but some inscriptions relating to it have
been found in the immediate vicinity (
CIL vi. 473, 474 (=30774), 478).
In 189 B.C. the via Appia was paved from the porta Capena to this point
(
Liv. xxxviii. 28. 3), and the road was then known as the
VIA TECTA
(q.v.), no doubt from the construction of a portico along it (Ov. cit.)
(HJ 213-214;
Gilb. ii. 96-97;
Rosch. ii. 2390-2391;
BC 1900, 91;
2
1906, 209-223; T ix. 37).
