Lecture List Periods for Unknown (Exam 2)

Archaic Period

ca. 600-480 BCE

Temple of Artemis, Corfu, ca. 580 BCE

Greek Temples: Doric, Ionic, or Corinthian

Temple of Artemis: all elements of Doric style, all in stone

Entrance typically on the east, facing an open-air altar

House the cult statue of a god and to provide a place to display and store dedications (votive offerings)

Peripteral: a type of building in which the main structure is surrounded on all sides by a freestanding colonnade

Pedimental sculpture

Gorgoneion, archaic features

Trojan War = Greek Heroism

Titanomachy = power of the Olympian gods

Apotropaic: having the power to avert evil influences or bad luck

Mix of meanings and functionality - early period of experimentation

Classical Period

480-323 BCE

Parthenon, Athens, 432 BCE

Harmonious proportions [I=2w+1] 8 × 17 columns

Pentellic marble

Chryselephantine: A technique in ancient Greek sculpture involving the use of gold and ivory to create detailed and lifelike representations of figures, often used for statues of gods and goddesses.

Tilted columns with entasis: The slight convex curvature given to the shaft of a column in classical architecture, intended to counteract the optical illusion of concavity and create the impression of straightness.

Doric with an ionic twist (Doric frieze outside the peristyle, Ionic frieze inside)

Wet drapery style

Egyptian blue

Panathenaic procession (Annual festival for Athena)

Alexander III (The Great)

Hellenistic Period

323-31 BCE

Temple of Apollo, Didyma, ca. 300 BCE

New investment in city and monument building

Emphasis on ideas of: city planning and organization; monumentality; drama and theatricality

Hippodamian plans = zoning

Dipteral design (Hellenistic principle of reduplication): A type of temple surrounded by a double row of columns on all sides.

Hypaethral interior: A type of ancient Greek or Roman temple that lacks a roof over the central part, leaving the inner sanctuary open to the sky.

Play of light and shadow

Shrine of Apollo at ground level

Corinthian engaged columns

Terme Boxer, Rome, ca. 250 BCE

New explorations in theatricality and emotion

Showing wounds

Human face = window to the soul

New ideal/truth

Heightened pathos: evokes pity or sadness

Etruscan Period

ca. 800-200 BCE

Tomb of the Leopards, Tarquinia, ca. 470 BCE

Loose confederation of city states

Expanded to Italy

Extensive trade with Greece; major importers of Greek pottery and practices

Etruscan Tombs: organized into Necropolis

Above ground/ tufa/ subterranean tombs

Tympanum: The semi-circular or triangular space enclosed by a pediment in classical architecture, often decorated with relief sculpture or carving.

Etruscan symposia: honor the dead rather than celebrate the living

Roman Republic

509-27 BCE

Theater of Pompey, Rome, 55 BCE

Syncretic: combination of diverse elements into something new

High potential for communicating many messages simultaneously

Can appear disjointed at times, as if parts don’t belong together

Porches, platforms, and modes of access

Use of concrete to construct cavea

Pozzolana (volcanic sand) from Pozzuoli, near Naples

Mortar (sand, lime, water) + aggregate (stone, brick) and poured into wooden frameworks

Theater proper with lavish decoration of statues and revetment

Temple for patron deity

Assoc. porticos and gardens decorated with artworks brought back as spoils of war from Pompey’s military campaigns in the East (Greece)

Denarius of Julius Caesar, Rome, 44 BCE

Veristic portraits: truth

Highlights physical imperfections and textures that come with age (wrinkles, bags, crow’s feet, warts, sagging neck, balding hair line, etc.)

Mostly men serving in political positions (senators)

Signs of age illustrate Roman Republic virtues:

Gravitas: seriousness of mind

Dignitas: excellence of moral character and personal influence

Fides: reliability; royal service to family and the state

Coins were very important for understanding ancient portraiture because they combine text and image in an inseparable way

Corona triumphalis: A ceremonial crown awarded to victorious Roman generals during a triumphal procession, typically made of laurel leaves.

Head of Caesar

Funerary Relief of the Gessii, Rome, ca. 50 BCE

Funerary window relief

Death and memory

Verism

Slavery and liberta/libertus : freedwoman/man

Once freed, enslaved persons attained new rights

Toga: only worn by men with Roman citizenship

Palla: only worn by women with Roman citizenship

Pudicitia pose: A pose in Roman art representing female modesty and chastity, often depicted with a woman veiling her head or holding her dress in a protective manner.

Cuirass: A piece of armor consisting of breastplate and backplate worn to protect the torso, often depicted in classical sculpture and portraiture. (new right to serve in army)

Paludamentum: A cloak or military cloak worn by ancient Roman military commanders, often depicted in portraits and sculptures of Roman generals. (new right to serve in army)

Julio-Claudian Period

27 BCE-68 CE

Augustus, Primaporta, ca. 20 CE

Transition of Rome from a Republic to an Empire

Comma locks = Power hair

No more verism = classicizing style

Youthful face

No aging

Adlocutio pose: contrapposto + right arm raised and hand either pointing or extended outward

Orator, military commander, hero/ god-like, bare feet, divine ancestry

Cuirass depicting the diplomatic victory, returning the roman battle standard (aquila)

Pax Romana: The period of relative peace and stability experienced throughout the Roman Empire during the first and second centuries CE, marked by extensive construction and cultural achievements.

Ara Pacis, Rome, ca. 9 CE

Carrara (AKA Luna) marble

Original polychromy

Altar with “traditional” wooden components rendered in stone

Exterior decoration:

Lower registers: plants and animals

Upper registers: historical narratives

Celebrated Augustus and his “new” Rome, with an emphasis on peace, order, and prosperity

Scrolling vegetation: fertility/abundance and harmony/order

The natural world tamed

Imperial procession

Sacrificial animals

Capite Velato: the act of covering the head with a veil when performing sacrifices

Livia in the Guise of Ceres, Rome, after 14 CE

Guise: akin to disguise (shows someone or something as someone/something they are not)

Often represents mortal individuals as gods because aspects of the god/goddess are considered analogous to the aspects of the mortal

Ceres (Demeter): goddess of agriculture and motherly love

Floral garland, sheaves of wheat; seed pods, cornucopia, palla, nodus hairstyle, stola, contrapposto, capite velato, infula

Nodus hairstyle: external indication of inner restraint and modest character: front loop and bun

Ideal Roman woman: modest, productive member of society, bearer of children

Flavian Period

69-96 CE

Return to Republican portraiture Verism

Colosseum, Rome, 80 CE

Nero constructed the Domus Aurea (Golden House) for luxurious rooms of entertainment

Colosseum replaced Nero’s man-made lake

Amphitheater

Concrete and brick with travertine revetment

Barrel vaults

Stratified seating: wooden upper tier (very poor, women, and slaves); marble lower seating (middle and upper classes)

Floor covered with sand or water; concealed complex machinery and rooms for combatants (gladiators, animals, etc.)

Corinthian engaged columns and pilasters

Order of the Colosseum: Corinthian - Ionic - Tuscan

Arch of Titus, Rome, 82 CE

A monument to the life and afterlife of a Flavian emperor

Coffered vault: A sunken panel in a ceiling, often decorated, used to reduce the weight of a vault or dome and to create visual interest.

Vault: An arched masonry structure forming a ceiling or roof, used to cover a space or passageway, commonly seen in Roman architecture.

Apotheosis: The transformation from mortal to divine status following death, particularly in depictions of emperors or heroes ascending to the heavens.

Freestanding Arches = Triumphal Arches

A civic celebration awarded to an individual by the Senate for his victory in a foreign war

First one historically awarded to Romulus

During the Republic, awarded to generals

During the empire, awarded only to the emperor and members of his immediate family

Displays of:

Prisoners of war

Spoils with descriptive signs (golden menorah, golden shewbread table, copy of the Torah)

Fasces: A bundle of rods with an axe blade protruding from the center, carried as a symbol of authority by Roman magistrates and officials, representing unity and power.

Battle (paintings, models)

Triumphator in a quadriga: A chariot drawn by four horses abreast, often depicted in ancient art and architecture as a symbol of victory or triumph.

Victoria holding a corona triumphalis: A ceremonial crown awarded to victorious Roman generals during a triumphal procession, typically made of laurel leaves.

Sacrificial animals (2 white oxen for Jupiter)

Officials and standard bearers

The army