The Temple of the Flavian clan (Latin: templum gentis Flaviae) was a Roman temple on the Quirinal Hill, dedicated by Domitian at the end of the 1st century to other members of the Flavian dynasty.Da̧browa, Edward. 1996. "The Origin of the "Templum Gentis Flaviae": A Hypothesis." Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome 41:153-161. It was sited at the ad Malum Punicum, on a site near the present-day junction of Via XX Settembre and Via delle Quattro Fontane.Coarelli, F. 1995. “Gens Flavia, templum” in E. M. Steinby ed., Lexicon Topographicum Urbis Romae 2:368-9. This site was near the residences of Vespasian (Domitian's birthplace) and Vespasian's brother Titus Flavius Sabinus.
The temple is first mentioned in Book IX of Martial's Epigrams, a poetic work published ca. 94. This would make it seem that the temple was built and dedicated towards the end of Domitian's reign, as the culmination of his campaign to deify his elder brother Titus, Titus' daughter Julia Flavia and Domitian's own son who had died in infancy.Martial Epigrams IX.20.1
In A.D. 96 the temple was struck by lightning.Suetonius Domitian 15 It was likely expanded under Claudius Gothicus ca. A.D. 268-270.Scriptores Historiae Augustae Claudius Gothicus 3.6
A series of fragmentary sculptures executed in Pentelic marble have been associated with the now lost temple. These fragments were dispersed through the art market, with some fragments remaining in Italy while others ended up in the United States.Koeppel, G. M. 1980. “Fragments from a Domitianic Monument in Ann Arbor and Rome.” Bulletin, Museums of Art and Archaeology, The University of Michigan 3:14-29.
See also List of Ancient Roman temples
References
Bibliography John Ferguson, The Religions of the Roman Empire, Cornell University Press, 1985 Samuel Ball Platner and Thomas Ashby, A topographical dictionary of Ancient Rome, Oxford University Press, 1929 Filippo Coarelli, Rome and environs, an archaeological guide, University of California Press, 2007