Julia joined with him in the work of restoration. We know that at Rome she rebuilt the temple of Vesta, and the numerous provincial inscriptions suggest a much wider interest. Under her lead the women of Rome were encouraged to look beyond their homes. Sabina had erected, or dedicated, a meeting-hall for women in the Forum of Trajan, but it had fallen into decay. Julia restored this early “women’s club,” and no doubt introduced into it the enthusiasm for letters and philosophy which she still had. Her “circle,” as Philostratus calls it, probably included the historian Dio, who was still at Rome, and the poet Appian, who had some years before described her as “the great Domna.” Philostratus himself, a Greek writer and rhetorician, one of the most learned men of the time, was closely associated with her. It was at her request that he wrote his famous “Life of Apollonius of Tyana.” In his “Lives of the Sophists” (Philiscus) he speaks of her as “Julia the Philosopher,” and in one of his letters (lxxiii) he refers with high appreciation to her learning. Julia was then in the prime of her life, and in her happiest days. The bust of her that quickly catches the eye in the Vatican Museum--the largest surviving portrait-bust of the period--will hardly be deemed to possess the beauty with which the historians invest her. The thick lips and large nose, which betray her ancestry, do not compare well with the features of other Empresses. But the grave, strong, thoughtful face and large eyes, which we may imagine instinct with Syrian fire, are undeniably handsome. Her sister, Julia Mæsa, was with her--a woman of similar strength, moderation, and judgment. But the younger generation in the palace gave them concern. The young men, Bassianus and Geta, were loose and luxurious in their ways; and one of the daughters of Mæsa, Julia Soæmias, was a fit companion for Bassianus. Severus, noting the advance of his gout, looked with grave eyes on the soft habits and the constant quarrels of the sons whom he wished to leave partners in the Empire. [Illustration: JULIA DOMNA BUST IN THE VATICAN MUSEUM]