Going Bust?: Emperor Augustus

The Emperor Augustus was a big noise in Roman imperial circles. He was the first emperor. The rise, the fall of the Roman Empire, the subsequent centuries of competing emperors, numerous wars across Europe can all be attributed to the man who was given the name Augustus (he had originally been Octavius) when he officially became emperor in 27BC.

By the time he assumed the imperial title, the Romans, if not their empire as such, had been in Mallorca for around a hundred years. They created their settlements, of which Pollentia was the most significant. It was not surprising, therefore, that among the possessions in Pollentia was a bust of Augustus. Where exactly the bust would have been displayed is anyone's guess, but it is known - more or less - where it was found and when.

The oratory of Santa Anna is situated just off the road that connects the horse roundabout of Puerto Alcudia to the old town. The road, unsurprisingly as it runs past the municipal cemetery, is known as Cemetery Road. The small oratory, opposite the entrance to the cemetery, has been taking on increasing significance in the archaeological digs at Pollentia. It is one of the few examples of a church from the first years of Catalan occupation of Mallorca in the thirteenth century that survives, and it was somewhere by the oratory that the bust of Augustus was found some time in the sixteenth century. The exact date is unknown, but by 1593 it was forming part of a collection of antiquities that belonged to one Raimundo de Veri, the hearer or judge of the Audiencia Real in Mallorca. It is quite possible, therefore, that the bust had at some point been moved to the oratory, though the fact that it was apparently just found somewhere by the oratory suggests that the bust hadn't been treated with the kind of respect that it might have been expected would have been bestowed on an image of the founder of the Roman Empire.

That it was found by the oratory, however, might be deemed significant in light of latest discoveries by the oratory which have led archaeologists to believe that they have found the location of the great port, which would correspond with how far inland the sea used to once be. It has been thought that the sea came as far as just before the Roman theatre in Pollentia. It is situated pretty much the same distance inland as the oratory but is away from the main residential area of the Roman town. This area, La Portella, is close by the oratory.

The bust found its way into a collection held by the Marquis of Campofranco. Quite when the Marquis got hold of the bust is also unknown, but it would appear that he had his hands on other works of art from Pollentia. It has been documented that in 1832 the Marquis's library included a marble bust that some believed was that of Cecilio Metelo, who led the conquest of the Balearics and founded Pollentia in 123BC. The story of this bust bears a similarity to that of Augustus. It was said that it was found by the oratory of Santa Anna as well, but not until 1832.

Whatever the truth of the Cecilio Metelo bust, there was and isn't any doubting the authenticity of the Augustus bust. It was sculpted, so it is reckoned, when he was about thirty years of age and engaged with his battles with Mark Antony and Cleopatra. It's hard to know for certain, but it is just possible that the bust was made before he was actually named emperor when he was 36 years old and after he had defeated Mark Antony.

But emperor he became, and so the bust is of great historical importance. It was sold by the Campofranco family some ten years or so ago to a private collector, and this collector now wishes to put it up for auction, the Archaeological Museum of Madrid being the go-between with the Christie's auction house. The planned auction has caused something of an uproar. The Spanish state hasn't exercised first refusal on its purchase, and so it is possible that the bust will be lost to Spain and also Mallorca; it was exhibited in 2005 in Palma as part of an exhibition of the Roman world in the Balearics. The national culture ministry is studying the auction proposal.

The Més party, which includes the PSM Mallorcan socialists, is insisting that the Council of Mallorca gets involved and exercises its right of first refusal. Its culture councillor is saying that the council will do all it can to ensure the bust stays in Mallorca. Alcúdia town hall also wants the bust to stay, but if there is an auction, would the money be available? It could be worth as much as half a million euros.