Download ROME Gladiator Figurine Roman, 1st c. BCE– 1st c. CE Terracotta

ROME
Gladiator Figurine
Roman, 1st c. B.C.E.– 1st c. C.E.
Terracotta (76.33)
This figurine represents a Roman gladiator, standing firm with his armored left leg
forward and his left arm weilding a shield. His right arm is held forward, ready to
strike with a now-missing sword. The figurine was mould-made in pieces, and after
firing was coated in white slip. During this period, such figurines were mass produced
for use as grave goods, offerings to deities, or for secular purposes. It is possible that
this figurine was dedicated by a gladiator or fan to ensure victory, or as a thank offering
after a win. The figurine could also have been sold as a souvenir or a toy. This figurine
was likely produced in Roman Gaul (modern France), since similar figurines from
terracotta workshops have come to light from the region. Gladiatorial games were
especially popular in Gaul and Italy.
In the Roman world, gladiators fought in amphitheaters all over the empire; the sport
was wildly popular in the Imperial period and gladiators often became celebrities with
large followings of fans, despite their status as slaves and criminals. Select gladiators
could become wealthy enough to buy their freedom, becoming public heroes in the
process. The sport was highly organized, with different types of gladiators that used
specific arms and armour. This figurine can be identified as a secutor (“follower” in
Latin): a gladiator that fought with a short sword, arm guard, greave, and rectangular
convex shield. The secutor’s costume, equipment, and combat techniques were based on
the Samnite soldiers in Italy. It is odd that the Missouri figurine is missing the
characteristic large, crested helmet with visor worn by this type of gladiator. A secutor
would often be paired in combat with a retiarius, a light-armed gladiator that fought
with net and trident.
Gladiatorial combat remained popular until the 5th century C.E., when it was finally
banned by the emperor Flavius Honorius.
MAA 9/2005
ROME
Head of an Empress
Allegedly from Tunisia
Roman, 3rd century
Marble (2004.1)
Weinberg and Gilbreath-McLorn Museum Funds
This life-size portrait probably represents a Roman empress of the third century. She
wears a tall diadem, which indicates her imperial status. The hair is dressed with a
central part, swept back from the face in a simple wave, and continues to the back of the
head where it is wound into a large, elaborate bun. The purpose of the two circular
depressions on either side of the part is unknown. Perhaps they were intended to hold
a hair ornament or to secure a “pointing” device, a copyist’s tool. Though the deeply
drilled eyes and polished surface of the cheeks indicate the face was finished
completely, the hair was not. The striations end above the ears, and the bun is only
roughed out.
Based on other portraits, both in stone and on coins, the hairstyle and appearance of this
woman match best with empresses of the mid-third century. A head in the Terme
Museum in Rome, identified as Herennia Cupressenia Etruscilla, wife of the emperor
Trajan Decius (reigned 249-251), bears a very close resemblance to the Missouri head.
Other possibilities are Furia Sabinia Tranquillina, wife of Gordian III (238-244), and
Marcia Otacilia Severa, wife of Philip the Arab (244-249).
MAA 9/2005
ROME
Sarcophagus Fragment with Standing Figure against an Architectural Background
Roman, 2nd or 3rd c. C.E.
Asia Minor (Turkey)
Dokimeion marble (2004.88)
Weinberg Fund
In the Roman world, inhumation burial became
increasingly popular in the 2nd and 3rd centuries C.E.,
replacing the earlier rite of cremation. Wealthy Roman
elites throughout the empire commissioned lavishly
carved marble sarcophagi, which could be
freestanding, placed within family tombs, or in
catacombs. This fragment comes from a type of
sarcophagus of the Asiatic type, the largest and most
decorative in the Mediterranean world.
There were three main centers of sarcophagus manufacture: Attica in Greece, and
Proconnesus and Dokimeion in Western Asia Minor. One advantage of sarcophagi was
the large space for figural decoration; they were prefabricated with appropriate
funerary themes, with the details carved after commission. Although many sarcophagi
were crafted at workshops close to marble quarries, a great number were ordered by
the elite of Rome (over 6,000 sarcophagi have been found in Rome).
The illustration below depicts a typical Asiastic sarcophagus, now in the Byzantine
Museum in Athens. Figures carved in deep relief pose in front of an architectural
backdrop consisting of elaborately carved colonnades. Spirally fluted columns and an
abundance of carved mouldings were typical of the architecture of Roman Asia Minor.
This layout was probably inspired by ancient stage design, and might have symbolized
a metaphorical “stage of life.” Sarcophagi often depicted mythological or allegorical
scenes, and later Christian themes, that praised the deceased, or alluded to cultural
views on the afterlife. Today, it is difficult to interpret the exact meanings of this
iconography. The identity of the preserved youth on the displayed fragment is
unknown, but his garment is tied with the Knot of Hercules, which was associated with
the bridal outfit. Marriage themes were common on the tombs of young women, and
this is perhaps an allegorical figure associated with marriage.
MAA 9/2005
ROME
MAA 9/2005