Final Impressions

Abstract The conclusion describes Octavia’s funeral, which may have been the first to include two orations in the forum. While her eulogies do not survive, contemporary ones inscribed on stone praise women for extraordinary deeds during the civil wars. Octavia’s body helped cultivate the notion of an imperial family, since she lay in state in the temple of her divine uncle Caesar and was buried in the Mausoleum of Augustus. The sources emphasize the grief expressed by her brother, showing that public grieving by and for members of the imperial family continued to develop as a means of displaying loyalty to the regime. The conclusions review the traditional skills of the matron Octavia deployed on a public stage, including social networking, distributing information, arranging marriages, and managing finances. It also emphasizes innovations in which she participated, such as living in the Roman provinces, being depicted on coins, and patronizing a public building program.