Download Roman Art History - Architecture

ROMAN ART AND
ARCHITECTURE
What do you already know about Roman Empire?
Legacy of the Roman Empire
▪ The ancient Romans were great builders. Their advances in
technology include the invention of concrete
▪ Roman language was Latin, which is the root of all the
romance languages including English, French, and
Spanish
▪ Our months,
January named after the two faced god Janus;
February named after "Februa" (the wips used in a
popular festivity held in February);
March is for the god Mars
July was renamed in honour of Emperor Julius Caesar
August renamed in honour of Emperor Augustus.
▪ Saturnalia were celebrated until the 25th of December and
involved an exchange of gifts.
▪ Days of the week: Monday is the day of the Moon; Sunday
the Sun; Saturday is for the god Saturn. For the other days of
the week we have to look to Latin languages eg in Italian:
Tuesday is Martedi' (Mars day), Wednesdays is Mercoledi'
(Mercury day), Thursday Giovedi' is Jove or Jupiter and
Friday (Venerdi') is Venus day.
ROMAN EMPIRE
How did the Romans conquer so many
people and force Roman culture and
way of life upon them? Well, they didn't
really.
The Romans faught and conquered
foreign lands, however they often really
didn't have to try hard.
The Romans had a policy of letting
people keep their own traditions and
culture. In other words, instead of
conquering an area, and forcing people
to be more "Roman", Romans merely
made the conquered people swear fealty
to Rome and then pretty much left them
alone.
At its height, the Roman Empire spanned an area of some 2.5
million square miles (6.5 million sq. km).
This was a wonderful strategy.
Generally, a people will fight to
preserve their way of life. But since
being absorbed into the Roman Empire
really didn't change much about a
people's daily life many often gave up
and willingly joined the empire rather
than fighting.
The Romans greatest contribution was in architecture.
They were the great builders of the world.
• Romans greatest contribution to history is their mastery in
architecture.
• Romans invented concrete, an innovation that allowed for faster
building and larger scale.
• The arch became the central tool in architecture (the Romans did not
invent the arch, but their development of it enabled them fully to
exploit their penchant for resolving improbable situations by vast
expense of labour.)
• Romans constructed public buildings for business and leisure time
activities, as well as, sea routes and harbours
.
The Roman Empire capital: Rome
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Jupiter/Zeus
Neptune/Poseidon
Greek
Zeus
Hera
Ares
Athena
Aphrodite
Artemis
Dionysus
Apollo
Poseidon
Hades
Hestia
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_____________________Roman•
Function
King of the gods; father of the sky
Queen of Heaven, godess of marriage
God of water and agriculture
Goddess of wisdom and memory
Goddess of love
Goddess of the moon and hunting
God of wine and the grape
God of health and prophecy
God of the sea
God of the underworld
Goddess of hearth and household
Juno/Hera
Jupiter
Juno
Mars
Minerva
Venus
Diana •
Liber
Apollo
Neptune
Pluto
Vesta
Minerva/Athena
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Roman
Religion
The Romans didn’t have a particular religion, their beliefs
were not based on one central belief
Romans had a religion of their own, which was a mixture of
rituals, superstitions, and traditions which they collected
over the years from a number of different sources (Greeks,
Etruscans, Egyptians, etc)
The Romans worshiped 100 of different gods,
Roman’s fundamental belief was that if the Gods were happy
then the Romans would receive good fortune. It was
therefore important to worship the Roman Gods on a daily
basis.
Prayers were offered to relevant Gods and Goddesses - in
matters of love the Romans would pray to Venus. Soldiers
would pray to Mars the God of War and so on. There was a
Roman God to suit all.
The Roman was by nature a very superstitious person.
Emperors would tremble and even legions refuse to march if
the omens were bad ones.
Venus/Aphrodite
Mars/Ares
Cupid/Eros
Roman Temples
• The Romans built temples to worship their Gods
and Goddesses
• The word "temple" derives from Latin ‘templum’ ,
which was originally not the building itself, but a
sacred space where rituals were practiced.
• Public religious ceremonies took place outdoors, and
not within the temple building.
• Worship consisted of processions, praying and
making sacrifices at a temple.
• Sacrifices, chiefly of animals, would take place at an
open-air altar within the templum.
• Roman temples related to the Greek temples in
general design.
• However distinctive elements, such as, temple
raised on a podium, having a front staircase, and
having the columns along the sides being attached
or engaged (pseudo-peripteral) are clearly a Roman
temple features.
• Roman Temples had a gabled roof
• Walls of Roman Temples were painted in fresco the frieze often depicted Roman life
The Pantheon
125 A.D. Rome
The Pantheon, 125 A.D. ,Rome
• Pantheon is a temple built to honor all the Roman gods and
goddesses.
• The Pantheon is built like a Greek temple from the front.
• It is built in the shape of a drum
• The dome rising 14 stories above the ground. It is made of
concrete, and is 142' in diameter with a large hole (oculus)in the
middle to let out (sacrifice) smoke and let in light (and rain -there
are drains in the floor for this).
• The dome was covered with gleaming brass so that people could
see it shining all over the city.
THE ROMAN FORUM OF 179 AD
Forum Roman
• The Forum was a marketplace
and business center, where the
ancient Romans went to do their
banking, trading, shopping,
marketing, and the
administration of justice.
• It was expanded to include temples,
a senate house and law Forum.
Colloseum -The Flavian Ampitheatre
The Colosseum -The Flavian Ampitheatre 80 A.D.
• The name ‘Coloseeum’ comes from the Latin word
‘colosseus’ meaning ‘colossal’.
• Opened in 80 A.D with 100 days of events.
• The Colosseum has an oval shape. Covers 6 acres. It held
50,000 marble seats
• 3 orders of columns: Doric, Ionic, Corinthians
• Velaria - sun screen on masts
• 80 entrances: 76 for the public, one for the Emperor, one
for priestesses, Door of Life, Door of Death
• The floor was made of wood. It would have been covered
with sand, so the blood could easily be taken away.
• The Colosseum held regular events. Gladiators fought
each other for life or death, sometimes they had to fight
against animals. Other games included: boxing-matches,
archery-matches, chariot races and feminine fighters.
• Underground, there was a labyrinth of passages, and
compartments for gladiators, animals, machinery for stage
sets, elevators on pulleys, ramps, trap doors in floor,
dressing rooms, cages, cells and storage accommodations.
• Sea battles were also reacted, in which case the floor of
Colosseum was flooded.
The Flavian Ampitheatre 80 A.D.
The Colosseum, Rome
The Flavian Ampitheatre
The Colosseum, Rome. 80 A.D.
• The word gladiator comes from ‘gladius’
the Latin word for a short sword used by
legionaries and gladiators.
• Gladiators were professional fighters in
who fought against each other sometimes to
the death, for the entertainment of
spectators.
• The gladiators were often slaves or
criminals
• They also fought against lions and tigers.
These animals were imported from NorthAfrica
• When a gladiator surrendered, the public
might say that he must die or might live. If
they put their thump up, he might live. If
they put their thump down, he had to die.
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During the period 30 to 313 A.D. the
Roman Empire was a dangerous
place for early Christians, whose
beliefs contradicted with Roman
religion.
Hostility toward Christians
fluctuated throughout the empire.
Periods of peace were interrupted by
incidents, such as, a great Rome fire
of A.D. 64, when Emperor Nero
blamed on Christians.
Christianity was punishable by death
during this era, yet pardon was
available to those willing to renounce
their religion by offering sacrifice to
the emperor or Roman gods.
Honoring Rome's gods and goddesses
was considered a civic obligation and,
at times, a law.
Many Christians refused deny their
faith. They were executed and then
hailed as martyrs by other Christians.
In 313 Constantine I and Eastern
Roman Emperor Licinius ratified the
Edict of Milan, which finally ensured
tolerance for Christians throughout
the Roman Empire.
Circus Maximus, 6th c B.C.
Circus Maximus, 6th c B.C.
• The Circus Maximus was a huge arena for
hosting events chariot and horse races.
• The circus could hold up to 250,000 Romans,
• charioteers raced down the track's 1,650 feet
straightaways.
• It laps lasted 7 rounds
• Chariots were very light so they could go as fast
as possible which were made of wicker and
leather.
• Chariot racing was the most popular spectator
sport in ancient Rome – even more popular than
gladiatorial combats!
Roman Ampitheatre
Roman Amphitheatre
• Ampitheatere was an open-air venue for
theatrical performances.
• The Romans copied the Greek style of building,
however the Romans tended not to be so
concerned about the location, they were
prepared to build walls and terraces instead of
looking for a naturally-occurring site.
• All theatres built within the city of Rome were
completely man-made without the use of
earthworks.
• The auditorium was not roofed; rather, awnings
(vela) could be pulled overhead to provide
shelter from rain or sunlight.
Ancient Roman Bath, England
Roman Public Bath
• Baths were public facilities that provided an opportunity for citizens to socialize, exercise,
and unwind after a day's or week's work.
• Baths had: hot and cold pools, steam rooms, saunas, exercise rooms, hair, reading rooms and
libraries.
• Everyone in Rome used Roman public baths, regardless of socioeconomic status. Rich folk
tended to use the public baths daily, while poorer folk generally visited the public baths on a
weekly basis.
• Most bath houses were quite large (some could hold up to 3,000 people at one time).
• Roman bath houses were a feat of engineering at the time. Drawing on natural hot springs from
beneath the ground. Heaters were also created to maintain warm temperatures in the baths.
What do you think this is?
Triumphal Arch
Triumphal Arch
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The Triumphal Arch is a monument to
celebrate military victory.
The Emperor Constantine had a triumphal
arch built to celebrate a military victory in
312 AD.-built to celebrate Constantine’s
assumption of power.
Several Emperors built triumphal arches
to commemorate their achievements
The Arch of Constantine is a three-way
arch (barrel vault), measuring 21m in
height, 25.7m in width and 7.4m in depth.
Eight detached Corinthian columns, four
on each side, stand on plinths on the sides
of the archways.
barrel vault, aka, tunnel vault or a wagon
vault, is an architectural element formed
by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair
of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel
vault) along a given distance.
-relief
-medallions
Relief sculpture is a kind of sculpture in which a design or
image is carved into a flat surface.
Aqueduct
The Roman aqueduct at Pont du Gard, France
Aqueduct
Roman aqueduct, Segovia, Spain.
• Aqueducts are channels either above ground, below
ground or on the ground that transport water from a
lake or stream into a city which may be miles
away.
• The word aqueduct comes from the Latin word
"aqua"; meaning "water" and "ducere"; meaning to
lead.
• The history of Roman aqueducts date all the way back
to 312B.C.
• This invention was made to bring water from lakes
and streams into the main land so that towns and
farms were allowed to flourish. The Romans built this
water carrier so that the people would not die of
drought and waste valuable time getting water.
Roman Basilica
The Basilica of Maxentius, Rome, 308 A.D.
The Basilica of Maxentius
• The basilica served as a law court and
imperial reception hall.
• The building was begun in A.D. 308
by then emperor of Western Rome,
Maxentius, and finished four years
later under Constantine's rule.
• The basilica's central nave was 265
feet (80 meters) long and 83 feet (25
meters) wide.