Ancient Rome Roman Art

History of Roman Art Italy was home to an ancient people called Etruscans (most civilized and powerful) Under the Etruscans, Rome grew in size and power By the end of the 6 th Century, it was the largest and richest city in Italy The Romans drove the Etruscans out of the city in 509 BC and established a republic Much of Roman art was copied from the Greeks The Romans imported the art and brought the Greek artists over

Roman Sculpture and Painting Differed tremendously from the Greeks Romans: Preferred Realistic Private needs Greeks: Preferred Idealistic Public monuments Romans wanted sculpture to remind viewers of specific individuals A person’s character could be shown through facial features and expressions (they often commissioned busts (heads) instead of full figures)

Greek vs. Roman Sculpture

Portrait Sculpture Funeral masks~ originally wax masks were carried in funeral processions and displayed on small shrines in homes Soon marble and other stone was used and the artist’s were commissioned for high demand to create these

Mural Painting Wealthy people didn’t like to hang paintings on wall but hired artists to paint murals Mural- a large picture painted directly on a wall The muralists depicted the world around them, painting landscapes and pictures of buildings Pompeii- almost every house had a mural

Pompeii Murals

Roman Architecture Many buildings, temples and monuments still survive The Romans built roads, sea routes, aqueducts and public buildings The temples used Greek features and the Romans added columns for decoration

Maison Carree` Built by the Romans in France in the 1 st century Illusions of columns around the building but only used on the front Placed on a podium or platform to raise it above eye level (a feature borrowed from the Etruscans)

Maison Carree`

Roman Architecture Temples were created in a circular or semicircular fashion, spanning openings Openings have arches and roofs to support the roofs,, they created a barrel vault- a series of round arches placed from front to back to form a tunnel The roofs were so heavy, no windows were used This rounded arch improved the post and lintel system The Romans improved construction with the arch- used to counterforce the weight of the wall Keystone- top of arch They used concrete as a building material They also used architecture wherever they went and conquered keystone

Roman Aqueducts Aqueduct- a system that carried water from mountain streams into cities by using gravitational flow Engineering skills designed for efficiency 11 built around Rome ranging from 1-=60 miles carrying 270 million gallons of H20 everyday

Roman Aqueducts

Roman Baths Baths- vast enclosed structures containing libraries, lecture rooms, gymnasiums, shops, restaurants and pleasant walkways Became social center/ cultural center and place for hygiene (shopping malls of today)

Roman Baths Roman Bath Spring from aqueduct (rocks are red from minerals)

Roman Bath Designs Series of rooms with pools of progressively cooler water 1.Calidarium- hot water pool; entered first 2.Tepidarium- warm bath, next 3.Frigidarium- cool bath; last -water temperatures were made possible by furnaces underground tended to by workers and slaves

Roman Bath Plan

Caracella (An artist's impression of the baths... see those specks in the water?) Caracella now

Caracella Most famous Built by emperor Caracalla in 3 rd C AD Sprawled 30 acres, bathhouse measuring 750’x380’ Central hall- 180’x77’ wide with concrete groin vaults Groin vault- 2 barrel vaults placed at right angles

Sport Event Building Chariot races 150,000 Romans at Circus Maximus Eventually schedules 64 days a year because of popularity

Colosseum Large arena or ampitheatre Built in 1 st century AD Named after colossal statue of Nero Covers 6 acres Forms complete oval 615’x510’ So large that Middle Age people moved within Colosseum and erected a small city Over centuries, rulers, popes and nobility, took apart the stone to create other buildings Pope Benedict XIV put an end to the destruction Uses all 3 orders- Doric on bottom, Ionic on middle, Corinthian on top Pilasters- flat rectangular columns attached to a wall

Colosseum

Colosseum’s Interior

"Thumbs Down" by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1872

Colosseum’s History and Facts After the death of Nero, Vespasianus instructed to build the Colosseum for spectacular events in 72 AD. He did this, because he wanted to impress and because he wanted to make the citizens happy. With help of a large army of slaves and removable stagings, he built the Colosseum. The Colosseum was built in 10 years. Shape The Colosseum has an oval shape. The name descends of the Latin word colosseus, what means: colossal. It is 49 m height and the outside walls have an outline of all most 537 m. Underground, there was a labyrinth of passages, dressing rooms, cages, cells and storage accommodations. They could stretch sail over the Colosseum, so the sunlight would be subdued. A special group of sailors, who used to do the work with cables and pully's, were apointed to pull and to veer out the whole system of ropes. Events In the Colosseum regular events were hold. Gladiators fought each other on live and death, sometimes they had to fight agains animals. In the Colosseum, you could look at boxing-matches, archery-matches, chariot races and feminine fighters. There were also sea battles in which case the whole Colosseum was flooded. The last bloodthirsty event was in 523 A.D. The events took place in the arena. The floor was made of wood. There was sand on the that floor, so the blood could easiely be taken away. The word arena is descended of the Latin word for sand or beach. Gladiators The gladiators were often slaves or criminals, who were trained to fight to each other on life and death. They also fought agains lions and tigers. These animals were imported from North-Afrika. There were different sorts of gladiators: - The Samniets fought with a long, rectangular, shield and a sword of a lance. - The Thraci � rs fought with a little, round, shield and a dagger. - The Retiarii fought with a net and a three-pronged. 'Ave, Caesar, morituri te salutand' 'Salute, Imperator, they who will die salute you' 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.

The Colosseum’s Interior Ground level- 80 arched openings allowed people to enter and leave and could be emptied in minutes 76 used by the general public 1 reserved for the Emperor and 1 used by the priestesses “Door of Life”- reserved for gladiators “Door of Death”-slain gladiators Seats now gone but easily accomodated 50,000 people 1 st tier seats- best seats reserved for Emperor and state officials Upper class sat on 2 nd tier Upper tier- general public High stone wall separated spectators from gladiators and wild animals Beneath floor- compartments and passages Place to hold caged animals, barracks for gladiators and rooms to house machinery needed to raise and lower stage sets and performers

Gladiator Contests 3 rd C BC Slaves pitted against each other in death battles Battles very popular Objectors afraid to voice their opinions 5,000 pairs of gladiators and 11,000 animals killed in a day

PANTHEON One of the most celebrated Roman monuments, especially for its state of conservation, its grandiosity and ingenious design, it was reconstructed in the year 130 a.d. by the emperor Hadrian and for some centuries transformed in a church. Its dome measures 43 meters in diameter and has a hole in the center that creates an incredible luminous effect on multicolored marble found inside. It accommodates the tombs of the kings of Italy as well as some of Italy's great artists among which Raphael.

Pantheon AD Designed as a temple dedicated to all Roman gods later converted to a Christian Church In continuous use and in excellent condition Steps once leading up to front are gone because of street level Impact of building is less from the outside Inside-great dome space with true hemisphere Made of brick and concrete 144 feet above floor Diameter is exactly 144 feet

Pantheon cross section

Pantheon AD 3 zones: 1. lowest- 7 niches-recesses in wall possibly containing statues or altars dedicated to Roman gods of the heavens- Sol (sun), Luna (moon) and 5 known planets 2. middle-12 signs of the zodiac 3. top- dome representing the heavens covered with coffers (indented panels) which reduce the weight of the dome

Pantheon AD -well illuminated considering it has no windows Walls are 20 feet thick Opening is 30 feet across Sky is seen through the top Rain: floor is built slightly higher in center, formed a shallow depression (drain) and created a drainage system to carry water away

basilicas Spacious rectangular buildings designed to hold large numbers of people Designed as a court of law or public meeting hall (public square) Served as model for generations of Christian church buildings

Plan for basilicas Rows of slender columns divided space into nave- long wide center aisle Roof over center was higher and allowed builders to install windows Apse- semicircular area at end of nave

Early basilica plan

Triumphal Arch Heavily decorated arch Celebrating a military success Monument to victory Large central opening and 2 smaller openings on the sides General rode through opening on chariots or horses and foot troops marched through small ones

Arch of Constantine AD

Arch of Constantine Largest and most elaborate Decorated with reliefs and sculptures dedicated to other emperors Located across the street from the Colosseum

Declining Power of Rome 330 AD Constantine I moved capital from Rome to the ancient Greek city of Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople Marked the beginning of the Byzantine Empire 410AD- Visegoths invaded and barbarians invaded End of the 5 th century, the barbarian kingdoms of the Middle Ages took it’s place