Roman art was heavily influenced by Greek sculpture, painting, and architecture.
Romans identified their gods with Greek gods and adopted Greek iconography.
Roman artists copied Greek art, and Roman collectors imported Greek works extensively.
Greek art tended toward idealization, while Roman art was typically commemorative, narrative, and history-based.
Roman Portraiture
Roman portraits, like Hellenistic ones, aimed to preserve the features of their subjects.
They created wax death masks and copied them in marble to achieve specific likenesses.
Portraits served a dual function: preserving the person’s image and contributing to family history (genealogical).
Roman reliefs typically depicted historical events, commemorating individuals' actions.
Most commemorative reliefs adorned architectural works.
Roman Architecture
Roman architecture included domestic, public, religious, and commemorative types.
Unlike Greeks, Romans adapted the landscape to their building needs and were aggressive builders and skilled engineers.
Monumental architecture was used as an imperial tool to demonstrate Rome's wealth, skill, and cultural superiority.
Extensive building programs accommodated the expanding territory and growing population, while also glorifying the state and emperor.
Romans assimilated and developed building techniques from the Near East, Greece, and Etruria.
Newer technologies like the arch and dome were used to create strong, well-engineered buildings.
From the first century C.E., Romans created impressive interior spaces, focusing on shaping interior space rather than filling it with structural supports.
Concrete was a key building material, allowing for monumental public buildings.
Domestic Architecture
Sophisticated domestic architecture was developed, with many examples preserved due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E.
Pompeii and Herculaneum were covered in volcanic ash and forgotten until 1592.
The Roman domus featured an atrium with a compluvium (rectangular opening) in the roof that allowed rainwater to collect into an impluvium (sunken basin).
The compluvium also provided the primary source of light.
Houses had plain exteriors, while interiors were often luxurious with mosaics, paintings, and sculptures.
Upper-class houses had running water and sewage pipes.
Middle and lower classes lived in concrete apartment blocks called insulae, which could be up to five stories high.
The country villa was invented as an escape from the city.
Public Buildings
The increasing complexity of life in Rome led to the development of public spaces and buildings.
Key architectural types included the forum and the basilica.
The Forum
Typically a square or rectangular open space bounded by colonnades and a basilica.
Originally a marketplace, it became a focal point for civic and social activity.
Civic leaders addressed the populace from the forum.
The Basilica
A huge roofed building, usually at one end of a forum.
Used for commercial transactions, municipal hall, and law court.
The Markets of Trajan
Distinctive for their innovative engineering and architecture with a concrete core faced with brick.
Served a social and commercial function and were aesthetically pleasing.
Public Baths
Served as cultural centers for socializing, bathing, and swimming.
Included facilities for playing ball, running, and wrestling.
The Colosseum
A massive amphitheater, a building type invented by the Romans.
Used for gladiatorial contests and combats between men and animals.
Remains a monument to the political era of imperial Rome.
The exterior consists of arcades with three stories of evenly-spaced round arches.
Three different orders of columns support the arches: Tuscan, Ionic, and Corinthian.
Level 1: Tuscan (simplistic)
Level 2: Ionic
Level 3: Corinthian (ornate)
Level 4 had no arches, a solid wall with engaged Corinthian pilasters.
Statues were placed in each arch on levels 2 and 3.
Materials used: concrete, travertine, tufa, brick, and marble.
Aqueducts
Demonstrates Roman practicality and engineering ability.
The Pont du Gard is an impressive example of a Roman aqueduct section.
Marcus Agrippa commissioned the system to bring water to Nîmes from natural springs 48 km away.
Roman Architectural Achievements
Arches: Allowed wider and lighter structures spanning larger distances.
Vaults: Extended arches used to create large open interior rooms and covered passageways.
Domes: Hemispherical structures evolved from the arch, forming ceilings or roofs.
Concrete: Perfected its use, leading to new possibilities in architecture.
Religious Architecture
The Pantheon
The most innovative ancient Roman temple, built during Hadrian's reign.
Dedicated to the five planetary gods: Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Saturn, and Venus.
Consists of a rectangular portico with granite Corinthian columns and a huge concrete rotunda faced with brick.
Combines Greek temple aesthetics with Roman round interior space to resolve tension between tradition and Greek culture.
The interior is illuminated by an open oculus (Latin for “eye”) in the center of the dome.
The oculus allows rain and air to enter, with drains to remove water.
Commemorative Architecture
Developed to commemorate the actions of individuals, usually emperors or generals.
Trajan's Column
Erected in honor of Trajan's victories.
Depicts chronicles of Trajan's wars and victories in Dacia (modern Romania).
Shows the triumph of civilization (Romans) over the barbarian state (Dacians).
Also known for his philanthropic rule, overseeing extensive public building programs and implementing social welfare policies.
Triumphal Arches
Roman innovations that commemorated military exploits of a victorious general or emperor.
Arch of Titus
Represents the Roman conquering of Jerusalem.
Emperor Titus sacked the temple in Jerusalem and looted its treasures.
Arch of Constantine
Commemorated Constantine’s victory over Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge.
He became the sole ruler of the Roman Empire and made Christianity the main religion of Rome.
Decorated with original reliefs and reliefs removed from earlier monuments.
Sculpture
Romans were hugely influenced by Greek art and aesthetics of symmetry, proportion, and harmony.
Greek influence is felt in terms of realistic proportions, pose, movement, and overall beauty.
Greek mythology was a central theme in Roman sculptural reliefs, mosaics, and paintings.