Roman Art History Exam 2

Forum Baths, Pompeii: Plan, Ca. 80 BCE - 79 CE.

Head of the goddess Sulis Minerva, Bath, England, gilt bronze, c. 75 C.E. The bath was built upon an ancient natural hot water spring. The statue depicts the syncresis of Minerva and the Celtic diety Sulis, a fusion made by the Romans. Defixiones (curse tablets) were found at the bath made out to Sulis Minerva.

Bronze statue of Lucius Marcius Grabillo, early 1st. c. CE. Found at a hot spring in San Casciano dei Begni. Striking posture and thinness (prominent ribs), arms in prayer position. Example of a votive statue––asking for healing of the objects which the state depicts (such as ears, legs, breasts, polyviscera); statues are of varying scales. Dedication of the statue to the dieties of the spring, either in thanks or supplication for healing. Lucius Marcius Grabillo offered this statue and six other statues and six legs (inscription).

The Baths of Caracalla, marble and granite, 211-216 CE. 2nd biggest bath after Trajan (took up 60 acres of space). Axiality and symmetry of the Roman house is reflected in the baths.

Hercules Farnese “Weary Hercules,” from the Baths of Caracalla, early 3rd c. CE, copy of Greek original. Located in the entryway to the Frigidarium; Colossal; idealized muscles that “defy belief.” Depicted with attributes of older men/philosophers: beard, downward, thoughtful gaze, wrinkles in forehead, hand posed as if poised for philosophical rhetoric; shown as both an athlete and a thinker. Leaning against the skin of the Nemean lion and his iconic club; holding three apples from the Hesperides (tree of life) in the Underworld, in some traditions his last labor––physical exercise of his labors has taken a mental/emotional toll. Front: impression of weary Hercules; back: explanation of why he’s weary.

The Farnese Bull “The Punishment of Dirce,” 3rd c. BC(?). Violent punishment scene in the poleastra, probably commissinoed specifically for this space; two brothers tying a female figure to a crazed bull as a punishment for intending to murder their mother. Display of heroic, physical prowess; depicting the idea the that everyday activity of working out is akin to mythological heroes.

Achilles and Troilos Group, from the Baths of Caracalla, marble. Achilles has a killed Troilos slung over his shoulder, about to throw him over a cliff––a crime against gods and man in Roman/Greek cultures. Plays of the idea of front and back (like the Hercules statue); a theatrical approach to the spectator. Even though extremely brutal/violent, the statue still depicts Achilles in his athletic prime, and displays the physical feat of holding someone over his shoulder.

The Flavian Amphitheater / Colosseum, 70-80 CE, Rome, marble. Started by Vespasian and finished by his son, Titus; paid for by the spoils from the Jewish War. Used for entertainment/performances, and also executions. Elliptical plan, stacked seating (rank descends as seats ascend), three tiers: doric columns, ionic columns, and corinthian columns at the top.

Riot in the Amphitheater, fresco fragment from garden wall, Pompeii. 59-79 CE. Depicts a fight between the inhabitants of two Roman settlements, Nuceria and Pompeii. Combination of a frontal/facade view which gives a sense of the building, combined with a bird’s eye perspective which shows the action of the scene. Less glamorous than the imperially-produced image of the bronze sestertius, focusing on the people rather than the building; a celebration of disorder, chaos, and the individual, particular memories of that day.

Flavian Amphitheater (Colosseum), Bronze Sestertius, 81-90 CE., from the reign of Titus. Bird’s eye view as well as view of the facade; emphasis on the amount of people in the Colosseum––in response to Nero’s domus Aurea, “Nero built that building for himself, and we (the Flavians) built this building for all of you,” emphasis on the collective, shared experience. Depicts a figure seated on the spoils of the Jewish War, which funded the Colosseum, asserting Roman dominance over foreign enemies. Imperial image of collective order. 

Gladiator mosaic from Roman villa, Zliten (Libya), 2nd c. CE. Depicts gladiatorial contests, animal hunts, and scenes from everyday life. The imagery of the gladiatorial games draws on military representations, i.e. the tomb of Quintus Fabius.

Gladiator mosaic from Wadi Lebda, Leptis Magna, Libya, 2nd c. CE (?). Painterly representation of mosaic: gleam of skin, detail of hair, foreshortening. Shows imagery of the arena even in the most lavish residences.

The Circus Maximus, Rome. Not until Julius Caesar that the space gets any formalized architectural elements, finished by Augustus––enclosed with stone architectural form, stone seating. Destroyed and rebuilt in 2nd c. under Emperor Trajan.

The Circus Maximus, Rome. Not until Julius Caesar that the space gets any formalized architectural elements, finished by Augustus––enclosed with stone architectural form, stone seating. Destroyed and rebuilt in 2nd c. under Emperor Trajan.

Bronze sestertius, with image of the Circus Maximus, 103-111 CE. Facade view with row of arches and upper tiers of seating, obelisk on central barrier is a prominent monument. No people represented. Distortions in the attempt to render the elongated space on the small surface of a coin. Imperial depiction of Trajan’s architectural accomplishment. 

Circus Floor Mosaic, from small room/vestibule in house in Carthage, 2nd-4th c. CE. Bird’s eye view/flattened architecture to depict the action of the race. Emphasizes the importance of the spina (central barrier).

Circus Floor Mosaic, from Lyon (Roman Gaul), early 3rd c. CE.

Clay Lamp showing a chariot race, 175-225 CE. Physicality of the lamp enables the viewer to turn it around in their hands, mimicking the circular movement of the race. Portrays the action of the race, the architecture, and the crowds of people. Distorted perspective to fit as much visual information on the small surface as possible.

Funerary Relief with Circus races, from Ostia, 98-117 CE. Depicts the action of a chariot race. Honoring the couple on the left of the relief.

The Arch of Titus, Rome, ~81 CE. Originally made of Greek marble, but reconstructed with a brighter white travertine to differentiate conservation. Associated with Titus, but built by his younger brother Domitian. Located on the outside edge of the Forum Romanum, right where the triumphal procession would pass through––high visibility from elsewhere in the city, dominating the landscape. Example of a victory monument––means of inscribing victories into the landscape. 

Triumph Relief (Arch of Titus), Rome, ~81 CE. Processional scene facing towards the Forum; the viewer is a part of this eternally repeating procession. Titus in the chariot, elevated above the rest (imperial art singles out the most important figure). The figure below him with bare torso is a god/non-human figure, possibly a personification of the spirit of Titus; Victory is behind the procession with outstretched wings, extending a crown of victory over the emperor’s head; personification of Rome (Roma) leads the horses, still looking back and upward at the emperor. The viewer, looking up, is assimilated into the position of Roma herself, who is subordinated to the emperor.

Spoils Relief (Arch of Titus), Rome, ~81 CE. Soldiers carrying various spoils of the Jewish War (prominent menorah, taken from the destroyed temple in Jerusalem, table with sacred implements), emphasizing the material success of the victory. They are passing through an arch themselves––probably the one that Titus built in the Circus Maximus.

Deification of Titus (Arch of Titus), Rome, ~81 CE. Central portrait of Titus in his toga riding on the back of an eagle, which is sacred to Jupiter––showing how the Flavians can even triumph over death. Demonstrates how the visual language of the triumph is now being mapped onto the language of deification––the emperor inhabits a different sphere than us, the viewers down on earth, and can make another triumph in the heavens. 

Asarotos oikos (unswept floor) mosaics, 2nd c. CE. Remnants of a feast.

House of the Vettii, Room p, (Punishment of Ixion) 1st c. CE(?), Pompeian 4th style. Ixion is punished (for wanting to have sex with Hera) by being tied to a burning wheel on which he will be eternally tortured. The Vettii brothers, who were liberati, must have witnessed corporal punishment themselves––why choose to depict it in their home? The painting also celebrates their knowledge of Greek myth, and engages with questions of social hierarchies/norms.

House of the Chaste Lovers, Room g (East wall, central picture), Pompeii, 40 CE. Evoking the distant past of the Greek symposium––thinking about the Roman banquet as a version of the symposium, and celebrating this excessive behavior.

House of the Triclinium, Room r (East wall, central picture), Pompeii, 1st c. CE. Commemorates a real, specific party, rather than a mythological scene––figures seem to have recognizable, portrait-like features. Specific, possibly emotional, connection between the master of the house and the enslaved child by his side, perhaps a favorite slave of his.