Carminia Ammia (fl. c140 – c170 AD) was a
Graeco-Roman
The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...
public
benefactress
A benefactor () is a person who gives some form of help to benefit a person, group or organization (the beneficiary), often gifting a monetary contribution in the form of an endowment to help a cause. Benefactors are humanitarian leaders and ch ...
. She was the second wife of Marcus Ulpius Carminius Claudius the elder, a priest of the
goddess Aphrodite
Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...
in
Attouda,
Caria
Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid- Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined ...
, in
Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
.
Carminia held the civic honour of stephanephoros, a title given to magistrates in some Greek cities who had been granted the honor of being allowed to wear a wreath or garland on public occasions. She also served as
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
ess of
Thea Maeter Adrastos and of Aphrodite. Her first priesthood was later held by her son
Marcus Ulpius Carminius Claudianus the younger. Her granddaughter, Ulpia Carminia Claudiana also held civic office. This granddaughter appeared on Roman coinage with
Geta Caesar, the son of emperor
Septimius Severus
Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...
and brother of
Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
.
Sources
*R.van Briemen, The Limits of Participation (1996)
References
* Peter J. Thonemann & Funda Ertuğrul
"The Carminii of Attouda" ''Epigraphica Anatolica'', 38 (2005), pp. 75–86
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ammia, Carminia
2nd-century Roman women
2nd-century Romans
Priestesses of the Roman Empire