Roman Art and Architecture

Republic: 509-27 BCE

(Before the reign of Augustus)

Imperial: 27 BCE - 337 CE

(Augustus - Constantine)
Map of Rome during the reign of Hadrian.
Roman Republic
According to Roman tradition, the Republic began in 509 BCE when a group of noblemen
overthrew the last king of Rome.

The Romans replaced the king with two consuls, who were rulers who had many of the same
powers as the king but were elected to serve one-year terms.

Each consul could veto the actions of the other consul.

Roman society was divided into two classes: the patricians - wealthy elites, and the plebeians
- the common people.

In 211 BCE, Marcellus and his Roman army sacked Syracuse, the last Greek enclave.

Marcellus and his men returned to Rome with their loot, including a trove of stolen Greek art
as well as thousands of enslaved Greeks.

That was the beginning of Roman exposure to Greek culture and art, which transformed
Roman culture and civilization.

Until then, the greatest influence on Roman art and architecture had been the earlier
indigenous Italian civilization of the Etruscans.
Roman Architectural Innovations

Concrete enabled the Romans to construct

larger buildings cheaper and faster than the
Greeks or Etruscans.

Temple of Vesta, Tivoli, Italy, early 1st century BCE

 Roman Architectural Innovations

1. Arch

Pont du Gard, Nîmes, France,

late 1st century BCE
 Roman Architectural Innovations

2. Barrel Vault

Basilica of Constantine and Maxentius, 306-312 CE

Roman Architectural Innovations

3. Groin Vault

Basilica of Constantine and Maxentius, 306-312 CE

Roman Architectural Innovations
4. dome

Pantheon, 118-125 CE
Portraiture
The most distinctive Roman sculpture was the portrait bust.

In contrast to classical Greek sculpture, which focused on the generic idealized

representation of muscular, young men, Roman portrait busts were highly realistic images
of specific individuals, whose aim was to accurately capture their likenesses.

The people most likely to have their portraits memorialized in stone or bronze were
successful aristocrats, including many Roman portrait busts of old men.

For the Romans, hyperrealism, or verism, was necessary to be able to recognize the
person.

These men and their busts were also intended as embodiments of Roman virtues, and their
advanced age was part of what lent them their dignity.
 Portraiture was dedicated to
a natural likeness of the
individual.

This characteristic may come

from the creation of death
masks in the Republican
period out of wax.

These were used at funerals

and publicly displayed.

The subjects of portraits

were almost always men.

Portrait of a Roman, 80 BCE, marble

verism

A Roman Patrician with the Busts

of His Ancestors, Late 1st Century
BCE, marble
The Romans believed a portrait constituted only
the head of the person.

The Greeks, on the other hand believed the entire

body was needed.

Romans who admired Greek art sometimes had

their busts placed on the bodies of existing
sculptures.

Portrait of a Roman General, 75-50 BCE,

marble
Imperial Period
When Augustus defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra in 27 BCE, the
Republic essentially ended and the era of the Roman Emperors began.

Augustus’ name had originally been Octavian.

In 27 BCE, the Senate gave him the title Augustus, which means
exalted or sacred.

He was a great leader who brought peace to Rome.

He led the empire, with his wife Livia for 45 years.

The Roman government consisted of a senate, but the emperor was

considered to be the 1st citizen and controlled all aspects of public life.
Augustus was declared the high priest of Rome,
making him the highest religious figure as well
as its political leader.
Augustus 27 BCE - 14 CE
The artistic style of the age of Augustus is heavily
influenced by Greek idealism.

They utilized art for portraiture, public display,

and propaganda.

This sculpture was discovered in Livia’s villa at

Primaporta near Rome.

The sculpture adheres to the classical proportions

of Polykleitos.

The relief on his

armor represents
his diplomatic
victory over the
Parthians in 20
BCE.

Augustus of Primaporta, early 1st Century CE, marble

Augustus of Primaporta, 20 BCE, marble
Under Augustus’ rule Rome experienced Pax Romana, which lasted 200 years.

Ara Pacis, 13-9 BCE, marble

The Ara Pacis was begun in 13 BCE and was dedicated in 9 BCE when Augustus returned
to Rome after a three-year campaign in Gaul.

The exterior reliefs depict the mythical founding of Rome and Augustus’ divine lineage.
It also has processions of members of the Julio-Claudian family.
Reconstruction of the Ara Pacis
The depiction of women and children was new to the Augustian period.

This was an attempt to promote private family life and to show the potential heirs of the
Julio Claudian line.

Procession of the Imperial Family from Ara Pacis, 13-9 BCE, marble
 Vespasian 69 -79 CE
The Julio-Claudian dynasty ended with the suicide of Nero in 68 CE.

There was a brief civil war afterward until Vespasian took control in 69 CE.

He stabilized the empire during the first century CE.

Colosseum, 70-80 CE Colosseum, aerial view

The Colosseum was begun by Vespasian and completed by Titus who dedicated it in 80CE.

Outer walls were 159 feet high.

It held over 50,000 people.

The floor of the

Colosseum was
covered with sand,
which in Latin is
“arena”.

The opening
ceremonies for its
dedication lasted
100 days. It was
claimed that 9000
wild animals and
2000 gladiators
died during the events.

Colosseum, 70-80 CE
Trajan 98 – 117
The column was erected by Hadrian and
placed over Trajan’s ashes.

The relief is 625 feet long.

It is 3 feet in
height at the
bottom and
expands to
4 feet in height
at the top.

Trajan is
repeated many
times.

Column of Trajan, 113 -116 CE Column of Trajan, detail

Trajan built the last Imperial forum between 110 and 113 CE.

Hadrian finished it in 117.

He used a Greek architect, Apollodorus of Damascus for the project, who was a military engineer.

The end of the courtyard was closed by the Basilica Ulpia.

During construction, part of the

commercial district had to be
razed.

Trajan built a new market

center to compensate those
who lost their buildings.

150 shops on several levels.

It was constructed out of

concrete so that it was fire
proof.

This was a city code that was

implemented after a fire in
64 CE during Nero’s reign. Apollodorus of Damascus, aerial view of the Markets of Trajan, ca. 100-112 CE.
 Hadrian 117-138

The Pantheon was begun under the reign of

Trajan and finished during Hadrian’s reign.

Temple to the 7 planetary gods.

The inscription is misleading because it says it

was erected by Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius.

The inscription commemorates the first

structure on the site, not the Pantheon.

Aerial view of The Pantheon

It originally had a podium and stairs, now buried.

The dome is 143 feet in diameter and 143 in height.

In the 7th century, the building was consecrated as a church

The Pantheon, Rome, 110-128

Marcus Aurelius 161 - 180
Portraits continued to be made
for propaganda.

The horse originally was

stepping on a defeated enemy.

Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, 175, bronze

Constantine 306 - 337

Portrait of Constantine, 325-326,

Marble

Marble was used for the head, chest, arms,

and legs.

The body was covered with sheets of bronze

supported by a wooden frame.

Fragments from the colossal statue of Constantine It became the permanent stand-in for the
emperor when he was away.
The arch was erected by the Roman Senate to commemorate Constantine’s triumph over
Maxentius.

It dwarfed the nearby Arch of Titus.

The inscription says:

“To the Emperor Constantine
from the Senate and the
Roman People. Since through
Divine inspiration and great
wisdom he has delivered the
state from the tyrant and his
party by his army and noble
arms, [we] dedicate this arch,
decorated with triumphal
insignia.”

The triumphal insignia came

from other monuments from
Hadrian, Trajan, and Marcus
Aurelius
Arch of Constantine, Rome, 312-315