The Goddess Roma (Dea Roma)

Dea Roma, was the divine personification of the city of Rome and of the Roman state. Emerging during the Republican period, she represented the strength, unity, and authority of the empire. Her worship began in the east, where local communities honored the power of Rome by dedicating temples, altars, and statues in her name. Over time, Roma’s image spread across the Mediterranean world, appearing on coins, sculptures, and monumental architecture. Both a religious figure and a political symbol, she embodied the ideals of Roman sovereignty and the enduring spirit of the Eternal City.

The idea of deifying cities originated in the Hellenistic world, where Greek communities personified their cities through protective goddesses known as Tyche. These figures symbolized civic fortune and prosperity and often wore mural crowns representing city walls. The Romans adopted this concept and adapted it to express their own imperial identity. One of the earliest known depictions of Roma appears on a silver coin minted around 275 BCE in Locri Epizephyrii, a Greek colony in southern Italy. The reverse shows Roma seated with a shield while the goddess Pistis crowns her – an early visual declaration of divine trust in Roman power. By 195 BCE, her first temple had been dedicated in Smyrna, marking the beginning of her formal cult.

Roma’s appearance reflected both Greek influence and Roman values. In the east she resembled a Tyche, crowned with a city wall and holding a cornucopia that symbolized abundance. In the west she assumed a more militaristic identity, wearing armor and a helmet to emphasize conquest and defense.

Unlike most Roman deities, Roma’s cult did not begin in Rome. It arose in Greek cities that wished to honor their new overlords but could not worship a Roman ruler directly, since Republican Rome rejected monarchy and divine kingship. By venerating Roma, these communities could pay homage to the Roman state rather than to an individual leader. The goddess thus became a diplomatic bridge between Greek religious traditions and Roman political authority, uniting diverse peoples under the shared idea of Rome.

Under the emperors, Roma’s significance deepened. Augustus formalized her worship by permitting temples dedicated jointly to Roma and the deified Julius Caesar in eastern cities such as Ephesus and Nicaea. A century later, Hadrian built the grand Temple of Venus and Roma in the Roman Forum, enshrining her at the heart of the capital and defining her as Roma Aeterna, or Eternal Rome. These acts transformed her from a symbolic figure into a true state goddess, the divine embodiment of imperial order and destiny.

Roma’s legacy has endured long after the fall of the empire. During the unification of Italy in the nineteenth century, she was revived as a national emblem of strength and continuity. The modern statue of Roma atop the Victor Emmanuel II Monument echoes her ancient role as protector of the state, her crown adorned with wolves recalling Rome’s legendary origins. From Republican coinage to modern monuments, Roma continues to serve as a lasting symbol of the city’s resilience and identity.

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