Temple of Augustus

The Temple of Augustus stands next to the Hacı Bayram Mosque in Ulus, two remnants of different eras occupying the same sacred ground. The temple was built in the 1st century BCE by the people of Galatia to honour Augustus, and it contains the only surviving complete inscription of the Res Gestae Divi Augusti — Augustus's account of his own achievements and the official ideology of the early Roman Empire. The Latin text, accompanied by a Greek translation, covers the interior walls.

The mosque was built against the temple's ruins in the 15th century, and the juxtaposition is striking: Roman columns and Byzantine carvings on one side, Ottoman calligraphy and prayer on the other. The site is free to enter and is usually quiet except on Fridays.

things to do sight
A story
The Res Gestae Divi Augusti — "The Deeds of the Divine Augustus" — was Augustus's own account of his reign, carved on bronze tablets in Rome and sent to major cities of the empire. The original bronze tablets were melted down long ago. The only complete surviving text is the one inscribed on the walls of this temple in Ankara, which is how a Roman building in central Anatolia became one of the most important documents in classical history.