Chapter 6: Roman Art

name Pantheon

The ________ is from the Greek meaning "all the gods "or "common to all the gods ..

literature

Roman culture is rich in written ________: i.e., epics, poetry, dramas.

Colosseum

Arches and vaults make enormous buildings possible, like the ________ (72- 80 C.E.

Extravagant home

________ symbolized the owners wealth.

Sand

________ was placed on the floor to absorb the blood; occasionally the ________ was dyed red.

long lasting

The paint forms a bond with the plaster that is durable and ________.

Thickness of walls

________ is thinned at the top; coffers take some weight pressure off the walls.

Roman architecture

________ shows a preference for large public monuments.

Pentheus

________ opposed the cult of Bacchus and was torn to pieces by women, including his mother, in a Bacchic frenzy; two women are pulling at his hair in this image.

Roman art can be subdivided into the following periods

Republican, Early Imperial, Late Imperial, and Late Antique

Roman culture is rich in written literature

i.e., epics, poetry, dramas

Ashlar Masonry

A technique used where building are built without mortar

Groin Vault

A larger more open space, formed when two barrel vaults intersect

Pier

a vertical support that holds up an arch or a vault

Spandrels

The spaces between the arches on the piers

Coffer

in architecture, a sunken panel in a ceiling

Impluvium

a rectangular basin in a Roman house that is placed in the open-air atrium in order to collect rainwater

Cubiculum

a Roman bedroom flanking an atrium; in Early Christian art, a mortuary chapel in a catacomb

Composite column

one that contains a combination of volutes from the Ionic order and acanthus leaves from the Corinthian order

Keystone

the center stone of an arch that holds the others in place

Flagstaffs

These staffs are the anchors for a retractable canvas roof, called a velarium

Velarium

A retractable canvas roof used to protect the crowd on hot days

Hypogeum

The subterranean part of an ancient building

The Roman emperor Hadrian visited the site and named it after himself

Hadriane Petra

Upper floor

broken pediment with a central tholos

Interior

one central chamber with two flanking smaller rooms

Function

In reality, it was a tomb, not a "treasury," as the name implies

Function

Part of a complex that included the Basilica of Ulpia, Trajans markets, and the Column of Trajan

Context

Built with booty collected from Trajans victory over the Dacians

Basilica

in Roman architecture, a large axially planned building with a nave, side aisles, and apses

Functional

Law courts held here; apses were a setting for judges

Cupola walls are enormously thick

20 feet at base

Cupola

a small dome rising over the roof of a building; in architecture, a cupola is achieved by rotating an arch on its axis

Oculus

a circular window in a church, or a round opening at the top of a dome

Traditional interpretation

it was built as a Roman temple dedicated to all the gods

Recent interpretation

it may have been dedicated to a select group of gods and the divine Julius Caesar and/or used for court rituals

Inscription on the façade

"Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, having been consul three times, built it."

Fresco

a painting technique that involves applying water-based paint onto a freshly plastered wall

Encaustic

an ancient method of painting that uses colored waxes burned into a wooden surface

Perspective

depth and recession in a painting or a relief sculpture

Foreshortening

a visual effect in which an object is shortened and turned deeper into the picture plane to give the effect of receding in space

First Pompeian Style

Characterized by painted rectangular squares meant to resemble marble facing

Second Pompeian Style

had large mythological scenes and/or landscapes dominating the wall surface

Third Pompeian Style

characterized by small scenes set in a field of color and framed by delicate columns of tracery

Triclinium

a dining room in a Roman house

Veristic

sculptures from the Roman Republic characterized by extreme realism of facial features

Bust

a sculpture depicting the head, neck, and upper chest of a figure

Contrapposto

a graceful arrangement of the body based on tilted shoulders and hips and bent knees

At base

Cupid on the back of a dolphin-a reference to Augustuss divine descent from Venus; perhaps also a symbol of Augustuss naval victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra

Technique

Roman invention of a tall hollowed out column with an interior spiral staircase

Continuous narrative

a work of art that contains several scenes of the same story painted or sculpted in continuous succession

Trajan appears 58 times in various roles

commander, statesman, ruler, etc

Horror vacui

(Latin for a "fear of empty spaces") a type of artwork in which the entire surface is filled with objects, people, designs, and ornaments in a crowded, sometimes congested way

Romulus and Remus

According to legend, \____, abandoned twins, were suckled by a she-wolf, and later established the city of Rome on its fabled seven hills.

Augustus Caesar

Civil war in the late Republic caused a power vacuum that was filled by Octavian, later called \____, who became emperor in 27 B.C.E.

Pompeii

The single most important archaeological site in the Roman world is the city of \____, which was buried by volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E.

Ashlar Masonry

A technique used where building are built without mortar.

barrel vault

Roman architects understood that arches could be extended in space and form a continuous tunnel-like construction called a \____.

Groin Vault

A larger more open space, formed when two barrel vaults intersect.

**Pier**

a vertical support that holds up an arch or a vault

**Spandrels**

The spaces between the arches on the piers.

Coffer

in architecture, a sunken panel in a ceiling

atrium

Stepping through the doorway one enters an open-air courtyard called an \___, which has an impluvium to capture rainwater.

Impluvium

a rectangular basin in a Roman house that is placed in the open-air atrium in order to collect rainwater

Cubiculum

a Roman bedroom flanking an atrium; in Early Christian art, a mortuary chapel in a catacomb

Atrium (plural: atria)

a courtyard in a Roman house or before a Christian church

peristyle

The Romans placed their intimate rooms deeper into the house. Eventually another atrium, perhaps held up by columns called a \___, provided access to a garden flanked by more cubicula.

forum

The center of the Roman business world was the \___, a large public square framed by the principal civic buildings.

Composite column

one that contains a combination of volutes from the Ionic order and acanthus leaves from the Corinthian order

**Tuscan columns**

as seen on the Colosseum are unfluted with severe Doric-style capitals

**Keystone**

the center stone of an arch that holds the others in place

House of Vettii

* Two brothers owned the house; both were freedmen who made their money as merchants.
* Extravagant home symbolized the owners’ wealth.

House of Vettii

* Peristyle garden in rear with fountain, statuary, and more cubicula; this is the private area of the house.
* Axial symmetry of house; someone entering the house can see through to the peristyle garden in the rear.

House of Vettii

* Private citizen’s home in Pompeii
* Originally built during the Republic with early imperial additions.

House of Vettii

* Narrow entrance to the home sandwiched between several shops.
* Large reception area called the atrium, which is open to the sky and has a catch basin called an impluvium in the center; rooms called cubicula radiate around the atrium.

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

The building illustrates what popular entertainment was like for ancient Romans.

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

Entrances and staircases were separated by marble and iron railings to keep the social classes separate; women and the lower classes sat at the top level.

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

* Accommodated 50,000 spectators.
* Concrete core, brick casing, travertine facing.
* 76 entrances and exits circle the façade.

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

Stadium meant for wild and dangerous spectacles—gladiator combat, animal hunts, naval battles—but not, as tradition suggests, religious persecution.

**Flagstaffs**

These staffs are the anchors for a retractable canvas roof, called a velarium.

**Velarium**

A retractable canvas roof used to protect the crowd on hot days.

Sand

was placed on the floor to absorb the blood; occasionally the sand was dyed red.

**Hypogeum**

The subterranean part of an ancient building.

Petra

was a central city of the Nabataeans, a nomadic people, until Roman occupation in 106 C.E.

Petra

The Roman emperor Hadrian visited the site and named it after himself.

propylaeum

Approached through a monumental gateway, called a \____, and a grand staircase that leads to a colonnade terrace in the lower precincts.

Treasury and Great Temple of Petra, Jordan

Approached through a monumental gateway, called a propylaeum, and a grand staircase that leads to a colonnade terrace in the lower precincts.

Treasury and Great Temple of Petra, Jordan

In reality, it was a tomb, not a “treasury,” as the name implies.

Treasury and Great Temple of Petra, Jordan

Monuments carved in traditional Nabataean rock-cut cliff walls. Greek, Egyptian, and Assyrian gods on the façade. Nabataean concept and Roman features such as Corinthian ­columns.

Forum of Trajan

* Large central plaza flanked by stoa-like buildings on each side.
* Originally held an equestrian monument dedicated to Trajan in the center.

Forum of Trajan

Part of a complex that included the Basilica of Ulpia, Trajan’s markets, and the Column of Trajan.

Basilica of Ulpia

* Second floor had galleries or perhaps clerestory windows.
* Timber roof 80 feet across.
* Basilican structure can be traced back to Greek stoas.

Basilica of Ulpia

* Grand interior space (385 feet by 182 feet) with two apses.
* Nave is spacious and wide.
* Double colonnaded side aisles.

Basilica of Ulpia

Law courts held here; apses were a setting for judges.

Basilica

in Roman architecture, a large axially planned building with a nave, side aisles, and apses

Trajan Markets

* Multilevel mall.
* Original place had 150 shops.

Trajan Markets

Use of exposed brick indicates a more accepted view of this material, which formerly was thought of as being unsuited to grand public buildings.

Pantheon

* It is now a Catholic church called Santa Maria Rotonda.

Pantheon

* it was built as a Roman temple dedicated to all the gods.
* it may have been dedicated to a select group of gods and the divine Julius Caesar and/or used for court rituals.

Pantheon

Inscription on the façade: “Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, having been consul three times, built it.”