Download Republic and Early Empire Notes

Roman Republic and Early Empire
Key Vocabulary
Republican Art
Temple of “Fortuna Virilis”
Dome
Verism
Nave aisles
point perspective
concrete
barrel vault
forum
impluvium
aerial perspective
arch
groin vault
basilica
Pompeii
Early Empire
Augustus of Primaporta
Pont du Gard
Arch of Titus
Ara Pacis
Colosseum
Spoils of Jerusalem
Maison Carrée
triumphal arch
I.
Architecture of Roman Republic
A. Slide: Reconstructed view of Rome in 4th C. CE: Before the Sack
B. Slide: Temple of Portunus (Temple of “Fortuna Virilis”), Rome, ca.
75 BCE
i. Republican eclecticism
ii. Temple of Roman god of harbors, Portunus
iii. Follows Etruscan plan
1. Accessible from front stairs only
2. Built of tufa overlaid with stucco (plaster) in imitation
of Greek marble.
3. Columns Ionic not Tuscan
4. Imitate Greek peripteral colonnade with engaged
columns around cella (pseudoperipteral)
C. Slide: Temple of “Vesta” or “the Sibyl,” early 1st C. BCE
i. Imported concept of Greek tholos.
ii. Corinthian columns
iii. Narrow stairway, imposed axial plan
D. Slide: Restored view of the Sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia, late 2nd
C. BCE
i. Republican taste for Hellenistic design
ii. Difference in construction with concrete and barrel vaults
iii. Transform a hill – domination over nature vs. Greek concept
of crowning a hill with a building.
E. Slide: Arches, Vaults and Domes
II.
27 BCE Republic of Rome officially transformed into the Empire with the
assumption of imperial power by Augustus.
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Roman Republic and Early Empire
Masterpieces of Early Imperial Art and Architecture
A. Introduction
1. Roman Art drew from Greek and Etruscan sources.
2. Romans used art to communicate the size, power, and
authority of the Empire and a specific ruler. Art was at
the service of the government.
B. Statue of Emperor Augustus (Augustus Primaporta)
1. Background on Caesar Augustus
 Augustus’s original name was Octavian.
 Julius Caesar adopted young Octavian as his son
before he was assassinated.
 After Octavian defeated all his rivals, the Roman
Senate proclaimed him “Augustus” which means
“exalted.” From this point on Octavian is known as
Caesar Augustus.
2. Numerous statues of Augustus were placed in towns
and cities all across the Empire. These statues were his
official portraits. Citizens were required to swear
allegiance to the likeness in the absence of the emperor.
 This statue was found in Livia’s villa
3. To better interpret this statue it is important to recall
that Augustus claimed descent from Aeneas, the
legendary ancestor of the Romans.
 Aeneas was one of the survivors of Troy. He escaped
in a boat with his father, son, and their household
idols
 The gods guided Aeneas’ boat to the Italian shores.
 Aeneas was the son of Venus (aka Aphrodite) and a
mortal man
4. Note the winged baby boy by Augustus’s right foot. The
boy represents Cupid, son of Venus. It reminds us of
Augustus’s divine lineage as a descendant of Aeneas,
son of Venus. Remember
5. A youthful warrior – Although Augustus was 76 years
old when he died, he is portrayed as a youthful warrior
in the prime of his life. Let’s compare this statue with
the Spear Bearer (Doryphoros) by Polykleitos. Note
how the new Roman specificity of identity and dress is
grafted onto the idealized striding nude figure of the
victorious athlete.
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Roman Republic and Early Empire
6. Gestures – Augustus raises his right hand in a
conventional gesture of command
7. Armor – Augustus is dressed as a victorious general.
His parade armor is decorated with reliefs showing
Roman enemies surrendering to the all powerful
emperor.
8. Augustus had himself portrayed in many modes such as
pontifex maximus (chief priest) and performing
different heroic deeds, some of which he may have
actually done.
9. Compare and Contrast to Doryphorus
C. Ara Pacis (Altar of Peace)
1. After defeating all his rivals, Caesar Augustus’s reign
began what is known as the PAX ROMANA, which
means the Roman Peace, a 200 year period of peace and
prosperity during the Roman Empire.
2. Monument erected in honor of Caesar Augustus for
bringing peace to the Roman Empire.
3. It is actually an altar for sacrificing animals, equipped
with drains for letting out blood.
4. The reliefs communicate messages to the Romans and
glorify Augustus.
5. Upper Register – East side – left panel Tellus (Mother
Earth) holding two children. She is surrounded by a
diversity of animals, who peacefully lay around her.
Also around her, there are bounties of grain and
flowers. A vase pours water. All of these elements
symbolize peace and prosperity of the Augustan age.
Right panel shows the goddess Roma Victa, who
guarantees peace and prosperity through military
victory
6. Upper Register – West side – Romulus and Remus
being suckled by the she-wolf watched by the farmer
who brought the boys up. Another scene on the West
Side shows Aeneas making a sacrifice.
7. Upper Register – North and South sides – depicts a
procession of the imperial family and other important
dignitaries.
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Roman Republic and Early Empire
i. Presents the Augustan age as a new
Golden Age similar to the Golden Age of
Pericles in Classical Athens
ii. Note the young children – The presence of
men with their families was intended as a
moral example expressing the emperor’s
political and social agenda.
8. Lower register – north and south sides
 The lower register of the enclosure is decorated with a
floral frieze, composed of spirals which start from an
exuberant burst of acanthus foliage; from the centre of
the acanthus a floral candelabra rises vertically. From
the acanthus' spirals ivy leaves grow, as well as laurel
and vines, tendrils and palmettes branch off, and while
the stalks taper away, curling into spirals, flowers of
every type blossom forth. In the depths of the
vegetation small animals find a home, as well as twenty
swans with outstretched wings, which articulate the
rhythm of the composition. This floral relief is often
related to Virgil's fourth Eclogue, in which the Golden
Age, the return of peaceful, happy times is announced
by the copious and spontaneous production of fruit and
harvests. As well as a generic reference to fertility and
abundance, consequent on a return to the Golden Age,
the frieze can also be read as an image of the peace of
the gods, of the reconciliation of the divine forces
which reign over the entire universe, made possible by
the coming of Augustus.
9. AP QUESTION – In whose honor was this monument
erected? How do the style and content of the monument
reflect its culture’s social and political values?
D. Other major structures of the Augustan Age
1. “I found Rome as a city of brick and transformed it into
a city of marble.”
2. Building up the Roman Forum – Forum of Augustus.
 Julius Caesar had built an extension onto the
Forum.
 Augustus built his next to Julius Caesar’s. It was
filled with statues of gods and ancestors proclaiming
his divine lineage.
3. Pont-du-Gard Aqueduct at Nimes, France
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


What repeating motif can you see in this aqueduct?
_____________________
What was the purpose of an aqueduct?
______________________
Romans used a lot of water for their baths and
fountains. Rome sought to extend these enjoyments
throughout the empire. Why?

Pont-du-Gard aqueduct crosses the Gard River in
France. It transported water from a source that was
82 miles away!

This aqueduct delivered enough water so that the
average amount of water for each person was 100
gallons per day (this includes water for baths).

Porta Maggiore
o Originally a decoration on an aqueduct in
Rome praising the Emperor (Claudius).
Then used as a gate to Rome as city grew
(architectural recycling).
4. Maison Caree, Nimes, France
 Classicizing temple in France probably based on
Temple of Mars in Augustus’s forum.
 Notice the references to Greek temples –
entablature, pediment, Corinthian columns
 Side columns are ENGAGED – still attached
making this a pseudo-peripteral plan (pseudo means
false, peripteral temple – columns going all the way
around).
E. Conclusion of the Augustan Age
1. For about half a century after the death of Caesar
Augustus, all the succeeding emperors came from
Augustus’s line (Julian line) or his wife Livia’s line
(Claudian line). This period is thus called JulioClaudian period.
2. Emperor Nero was the last emperor of the JulioClaudian line.
 He was forced to commit suicide because he was
considered to be crazy.
 During his reign, a fire swept through Rome
burning large amounts of the city. He was in another
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Roman Republic and Early Empire

part of Italy rehearsing for a part in a play, hence
the saying that Nero played his fiddle while Rome
burned.
Nero took advantage of the opportunity and built a
large palace for himself in Rome called the Domus
Aurea or Golden House.
3. Nero’s Domus Aurea (Golden House)
 A VILLA (country house) in Rome
 An entrance hall large enough for a 120 foot statue
of himself as Sol – God of the Sun
 A large lake with buildings surrounding it so that
his home looked like a city
 Enough land for farming, vineyards, pastures for
animals, and woodlands
 Parts of the house had plated gold walls with inlaid
precious stones
 Dining rooms had ceilings of ivory which slide back
to expose pipes out of which flower petals would flw.
 Main dining room – circular and its roof revolved
day and night
 Sea water for his baths
 “Good, now I can at last begin to live like a human
being.”
F. The Flavian Dynasty (69 – 96 CE)
1. Background
a. After the death of Nero, Vespasian, a general
under Claudius and Nero, took over. Vespasian’s
family name was Flavian.
b. His sons were Titus and Domitian.
c. The Flavian dynasty ruled for the next quarter
century.
2. Flavian Amphitheater – Roman Colosseum
a. Called the Colosseum because it was built by a
colossal statue of emperor Nero
b. Its construction was began during the reign of
VESPASIAN.
c. It is an AMPHITHEATER, which means double
theater (like two Greek theaters put together).
Amphitheaters were used for public spectacles
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Roman Republic and Early Empire
(gladiator fights, re-enactments of battles, public
executions)
d. Why was it built?
i. Even though Rome was the capital of the
empire, it did not have its own major
amphitheater.
ii. Glorify the Flavian family by providing a
place of entertainment for Romans
iii. Give back to the people after the wicked
reign of Nero
e. Size
i. 160 feet high, it was the largest building
of its kind in the ancient world
ii. 80 numbered entrances
iii. Over 50,000 spectators with numbered
tickets used 76 entrances. The emperor
and his guests used 2 entrances
iv. The final entrances were used by the
gladiators
f. Key parts of the Colosseum
i. Arena – sandy floor where fighting took
place
ii. VELARIUM – canopy that could be
pulled over the audience to provide shade.
Architects are still unsure how the
Romans accomplished this feat.
iii. Extensive use of arches, barrel vaults
(passages through the Colosseum) and
groin vaults (intersection of barrel vaults,
which led out to the seating area)
iv. Outside of the Colosseum decorated with
engaged columns following different
orders of architecture –
1. Tuscan (similar to Doric) at the
bottom,
2. Ionic (middle level),
3. Corinthian (third level), and
4. Corinthian PILASTERS
(rectangular form of columns) on
the fourth level, where the poles
for the velarium were anchored.
v. Why do you think they varied the types of
columns?
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3. Arch of Titus
a. Romans invented the triumphal arch. The city of
Rome contained 36 triumphal arches. They
commemorated the military exploits of
successful generals as well as other major
achievements such as the completion of building
projects.
b. The act of passing through the arch symbolized
an emperor’s triumphant entry into Rome.
c. The Arch of Titus is 50 feet high and 40 feet
wide.
d. Note the used of engaged COMPOSITE columns
(combines Ionic volutes with Corinthian
acanthus leaves)
e. Titus died only 2 years into his reign. His
brother Domitian erected the arch in 81 AD to
commemorate Titus’ capture of Jerusalem and
suppression of a Jewish rebellion in 70-71 AD.
f. One interior panel shows a relief of triumphant
Romans carrying treasures from the Temple in
Jerusalem. Note the 7-branched menorah, the
ceremonial candle holder.
g. The opposite side interior panel shows the
triumphant Titus riding in his chariot.
h. Winged Victories carry laurel crowns in the
SPANDRELS – spaces connecting the vertical
parts of the arch with the horizontal lintel
i. Inscription recognizes Titus, son of Vespasian, as
a god – usually happened to Roman emperors
after they died
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