The coins of Augustus have both the civic crown and the laurel, but those of his immediate successors have only the former. In the year 74 the laurel again appears with the crown on the coins of Vespasian and Titus, and we may suppose that the distinction formerly conferred on Augustus was about this time revived in honor of Vespasian. It was indeed quite natural that men should think of Vespasian and Augustus together. Both restored peace and order after disastrous civil wars; both adopted severe repressive measures against luxury and immorality, and both adorned Rome with great public buildings. The temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline, which Augustus had repaired and made more magnificent, Vespasian rebuilt from the foundation after it was burned in 69. The Senate, which had suffered so seriously at the hands of Nero, had reason to be deeply grateful to Vespasian, who treated it with marked respect, in this also following the example of Augustus. If the annals of the reigns of the Flavian emperors were not so meagre, we should very likely find a decree of the Senate honoring Vespasian with the civic crown and the laurel. Such a decree might well have suggested the founding of a temple, and the placing of these symbols of peace and victory upon its altar. The temple itself was built, together with the court, after the earthquake of 63, and at the time of the eruption the work was not entirely completed. The walls of the cella and of the entrance from the Forum had received their veneering of marble and were in a finished state; but those of the court, divided off into a series of deep panels above which small pediments alternated with arches (Fig. 45), had received only a rough coat of stucco and were still awaiting completion. The temple must have been built in the time of Vespasian, who reigned from 68 to 79 A.D.; and as this emperor possessed too great simplicity of character to allow men to worship him as a god while he was still alive, it was probably dedicated to his Genius. [Illustration: Fig. 46.--The temple of Vespasian, restored.] The rooms at the rear of the temple (shown on the plan) were entered by a door at the right. They may have served as a habitation for the sacristan, or as a place of storage for the sacrificial utensils. The north room was also connected with rooms belonging to the sanctuary of the Lares, the purpose of which is unknown. CHAPTER XV _THE BUILDING OF EUMACHIA_ [Illustration: Fig. 47.--Plan of the building of Eumachia.