Augustine and the golden beard of Hercules

Abstract

In the middle of a climate of religious conflict between Christians and pagans, the gilded beard of a statue of Hercules in Carthage was “shaved” by a group of Christians in the year 401. On June 16 of the same year, Augustine delivered a sermon (24) to his coreligionists in Carthage in which he analyzed the facts from a Christian perspective. The article examines the data on the statue of Hercules, the meaning of the beard in the ancient world, the religious conflict, the legislative norms on the matter and the approach of the bishop of Hippo on the statue of Hercules, concluding that Augustine’s interpretation of the symbolic meaning of the beard is mediated by the biblical figure of Samson.