Download 2012 Roman Art Study Guide An Outline of Roman History Founding

2012
An Outline of Roman History
Founding of the city and geography
Punic Wars (Hannibal of Carthage)
Patrician
Pax Romana
Byzantium
Roman Art Study Guide
Roman Republic
Plebian
Roman Empire
Christianity
Fall of Rome
Monarchy (753-509 B.C.)
In the monarchy period, Latin and Etruscan kings reigned, beginning with Romulus and ending with
Tarquinius Superbus (exact dates of rule unreliable).
Major Sites:
Rome
Bath
Hadrian’s Wall
Nimes
Istanbul (Constantinople)
Verona
Arles
N. Africa
Padua
Segovia
Merida
Pompeii
Republic (509-27 B.C.)
The Republic lasted from the expulsion of Tarquinius Superbus until the bestowing of the title of
Augustus on Octavian, the grandnephew of Julius Caesar and victor over Mark Anthony in the civil
War that ended the Republic. Some major figure were:

Marcellus, b.268(?) B.C., d. 208 B.C., consul

Marius, b. 157 B.C., d. 86 B.C., consul

Sulla, b. 138 B.C., d. 79 B.C., consul and dictator

Pompey, b. 106 B.C., d. 48 B.C., consul

Julius Cesar, b. 100B.C., d. 44 B.C., consul and dictator

Mark Anthony, b. 83 B.C., d. 30 B.C., consul
Early Empire (27 B.C.-A.D. 96)
The Early Empire began with the rule of Augustus and his Julio-Claudian successors and continued
until the end of the Flavian dynasty. Selected emperors and their dates of rule (with name of the
most influential empresses in parentheses) are also listed in chronological order:

Augustus (Livia), r. 27 B.C.-A.D. 14

Tiberius, r. 14-37

Caligula, r. 37-41

Claudius (Agrippina the Younger), r. 41-54

Nero, r. 54-68

Vespasian, r. 69-79

Titus, r. 79-81

Domitian, r. 81-96
High Empire (A.D. 96-192)
The High Empire began with the rule of Nerva and the Spanish emperors, Trajan and Hadrian, and
ended with the last emperor of the Antonine dynasty. The emperors (and empresses) of the period
were:
Nerva, r. 96-98

Trajan (Plotina), r. 98-117

Hadrian (Sabina), r. 117-138



Antonius Pius (Faustina the Elder), r. 138-161
Marcus Aurelius (Faustina the Younger), r. 161-180
Lucius Verus, co emperor, r. 161-169
Commodus, r. 180-192
Late Empire (A.D. 192-337)
The Late Empire began with the Severan dynasty and included the soldier emperors of the third
century, the tetrarchs, and Constantine, the first Christian emperor. Selected emperors (and
empresses) were:

Septimius Severus (Julia Domna), r. 193-211

Caracalla (Plautilla), r. 211-217

Severus Alexander, r. 222-235

Trajan Decius, r. 249-251

Trebonianus Gallus, r. 251-253

Diocletian, r. 284-305

Constantine, r. 306-337
Major Works:
Etruscan sarcophagus
Hadrian’s Villa
Apollo of Veii
Head of a Roman
Temple of Fortuna Virilus Mason Caree
Ara Pacis
Augustus of Primaporta
Flavian Amphitheater
the Forum
Trajan’s Column
The Pantheon
Basilica of Old St. Peter’s
Villa of Mysteries
Arch of Titus
Constantine
Vocabulary
Amphitheater
Greek, “double theater.” A Roman building type resembling two Greek theaters
put together. The Roman amphitheater featured a continuous elliptical cavea around a central arena.
Arcade
A series of arches supported by piers or columns.
Atrium
The court of a Roman house that is partly open to the sky. Also the open, colonnaded
court in front of and attached to a Christian basilica.
Basilica
In Roman architecture, a civic building for legal and other civic proceedings, rectangular
in plan with an entrance usually on a long side.
Caldarium
The hot-bath section of a Roman bathing establishment.
Cista An Etruscan cylindrical container made of sheet bronze with cast handles and feet, often with
elaborately engraved bodies, used for women’s toilet articles.
Capitolium An ancient Roman temple dedicated to the gods Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva.
Cavea Latin, “hollow place or cavity.” The seating area in ancient Greek and Roman theaters and
amphitheaters.
Coffer
A sunken panel, often ornamental, in a vault or a ceiling.
Encaustic
while hot.
A painting technique in which pigment is mixed with wax and applied to the surface
Forum
The public square of an ancient Roman city.
Impluvium
In a Roman house, the basin located in the atrium that collected rainwater.
Necropolis
Greek, “city of the dead”; a large burial area or cemetery
Oculus
Latin, “eye.” The round central opening of a dome.
Terracotta
painted.
Patricians
Plebeian
Hard-baked clay, used for sculpture and as a building material. It may be glazed or
Roman freeborn landowners.
The Roman social class that included small farmers, merchants, and freed slaves.
Pontifex Maximus Latin, “chief priest.” The high priest of the Roman state religion, often the
emperor himself.
Senate
Latin, “council of elders.” The legislative body in Roman constitutional government.
Triumphal arch
In Roman architecture, a freestanding arch commemorating an important event,
such as a military victory or the opening of a new road.
Tuscan
The standard type of Etruscan column. Resembles ancient Greek Doric
Column
columns, but is made of wood, is unfluted, and has a base.
Veristic
True to natural appearance.
Roman Wall Painting Mural Styles
First Style The earliest style of Roman mural painting. Also called the Masonry Style, because the
aim of the artist was to imitate, using painted stucco relief, the appearance of costly marble panels.
Second Style
The style of Roman mural painting in which the aim was to dissolve the confining
walls of a room and replace them with the illusion of a three-dimensional world constructed in the
artist’s imagination.
Third Style The style of Roman mural painting in which delicate linear fantasies were sketched on
predominantly monochromatic backgrounds.
Fourth Style
The style of Roman mural painting which marks a return to architectural
illusionism, but the architectural vistas of the Fourth Style are irrational fantasies.