Temple of Augustus in Antioch in Pisidia

Near the Roman colony of Antioch in Pisidia, close to present-day Yalvac in Isparta province, stands the ruined sanctuary built to honor the emperor Augustus. Begun while Augustus was still alive and formally dedicated after his death, the temple anchored what archaeologists consider the most monumental complex in the ancient city. The shrine itself rose roughly 8.7 meters high and was fronted by four Corinthian columns, while the sanctuary around it spread across an area of about 100 by 85 meters, enclosed by a curving two-story portico lined with an estimated 150 columns. The complex served as the center of the imperial cult, through which Rome's provincial subjects expressed loyalty to the emperor. Its scale reflects Antioch's standing as a key Roman military and administrative base in Asia Minor. Today the surviving column bases, staircases, and carved blocks show how central emperor-worship was to civic life in this Pisidian hill town.