EXPLAIN THE ROLE OF THE ROMAN TRIUMPHAL ARCHES.
The role of the Roman triumphal arches has never been an overtly practical one ; though some have been incorporated over time into various city walls and structures, from the construction of the early arches under the reign of Augustus, they have officially served a largely commemorative and ornamental role, granted to emperors by the Senate in honour of military triumphs . From the Arch of Tiberius in Orange, likely constructed between 27 and 10 BCE, to the Arch of Constantine in Rome, built in 315, the triumphal arches celebrate the achievements of the Roman emperors and act as a form of propaganda that legitimises their respective reigns and reinforces Roman beliefs and values, “commissioned
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The Arch of Titus is sparsely decorated, with only three panels of sculptural relief: on either side of the barrel vault passageway, one displays Titus in triumph, being welcomed into Rome by the goddess Roma an a bare, headless torso likely representative of Honos (a god of honour and military justice); the other a procession carrying the spoils of the Judean Revolt through the Porta Triumph (the triumphal gate, through which all triumphant generals passed during their triumphal procession), including a menorah, symbolic of the Jewish subjugation; finally, remaining within the vault, the coffered ceiling bears a relief of Titus’ apotheosis. By comparison, the other arches do not retain this purity of purpose or faith. It is notable that the arches of Tiberius and Titus were constructed still relatively early in the Roman empire, and both at the end of civil wars (Tiberius after the Final War of the Roman Republic and Titus after the Year of Four Emperors that followed the end of Nero’s chaotic reign); within these contexts, neither arch heavily depicts the emperor himself – as the first emperor, Augustus was wary of appearing as a king or dictator after the fall of the Roman Republic and the tyranny of Caesar, and so kept Tiberius’ arch focussed instead on the military themselves. Though Titus appears in the triumph and apotheosis panels of his own arch, the depictions are relatively modest, as is the arch itself, avoiding all the decadence and excess associated with
After the defeat of Carthage and the Gaul the Roman generals began to vie for power. Even after the murder of Cesar was retaliated the fighting would not end. It was only after Anthony and Cleopatra were defeated that a certain peace settled over the Roman provinces. The man responsible for this peace is Octavian, who is later known as Augustus (Roman Empire, 2002). To honor his many achievements a statue of him was made after his death. Using the contrapposto pose, the all-around relief, various symbolic shapes Polykleitos, the artist of this statue, creates an inspiring image of the great
The Votive Statue of Gudea depicts the ruler in his youth standing straight up with his arms holding a vessel of water in front of him. Two streams of water are flowing out of the vessel and down the statue while fish are depicted facing towards the vessel, promoting life and peace. Gudea wears a long garment that does not cover one of his shoulders and contains inscriptions written by Gudea himself. In the inscription he dedicates the statue to Geshtinanna, a goddess who interpreted dreams. Because the garment leaves on shoulder bare, viewers are able to see Gudea’s well-defined muscles. His eyes are wide open, symbolic of intense concentration, and he wears a wide brimmed hat. In the work, Gudea is seen as an amicable, strong, and righteous leader. The Augustus of Primaporta depicts the emperor standing with his arm raised and with all his weight shifted into one foot. This is slightly different than the Votive Statue of Gudea, both positions are symbolic of the way a rule from each time period would have addressed troops. Augustus along with his youthful features, is exactly how Augustus would have wanted to be remembered. This is also true to The Votive Statue of Gudea. There are many other symbolic details that relate to mythology and history incorporated into the statue of Augustus. The torso armor that Augustus wears
In this Bronze statue, a Roman emperor is shown in a god like state. Like any statues at the times they depicted the ruler in a larger than life state. This specific statue is missing the head and lower part of the right leg. He is rising his right arm while the left is resting on his hip. Its exaggerated proportions depicts the ruler in a perfect state most likely disregarding his actual appearance.
...ion this all showed that style of governing and ruling an empire started a century long pattern of events that eventually lead to the fall and destruction of the old oligarchy led by the Senate. The combination of desire for personal gain and glory of a politician or general was what weakened the Roman customs and the Senate. This was a cycle among the Senate, to find themselves stuck in a problem and to find others to fix with of course military means but in turn make everything more corrupt with their disruptive practices such as Pompey and Julius Caesar. But they were not the only ones there were others who were to blame for causing such decay and corruption such as Marius, Sulla, Gaius and Tiberius Gracchus. They were the ones who kept this corruption cycle going and it was Augustus Caesar who finally broke the cycle and brought stability and order back to Rome.
In Rome the buildings were constructed under Roman Empire. The Roman Colosseum was constructed between 69 to 79 CE by the Vespasian emperor, The Circus Maximum was built in the 2nd century B.C by the high emperor, in 31 B.C the fire destroyed it that led Emperor Augustus to rebuild the Circus in 82 AD, Ludus Magnus was a gladiatorial training school in Rome and it was originally built between 81-96AD by Emperor Domitian. The emperor’s theme was large public stone buildings that would bring the people of Rome together and also the emperor was rich and they had manpower. The emperors also patron towards the workers and also to prove that they are the great leaders. The emperors had money, a lot of workers to build the buildings to the Emperor’s satisfaction. The buildings were used by the public as entertainment where they would go and watch all sorts of races & fights.
In Titus Livius’, The Early History of Rome, Livy takes on the task of documenting Rome’s early history and some of the famous individuals who help contribute to the ‘greatness’ of Rome. Livy dedicates an entire portion of his writing to describe the reigns of the first seven kings of Rome; all who influence the formation and governance of Rome in some way. However, of the seven kings in early Roman history, King Romulus and King Numa Pompilius achieved godlike worship and high esteem from their fellow Romans. While both highly important and respected figures in Rome’s history, the personalities and achievements of King Romulus and King Numa Pompilius are complete opposites of one another. Despite the differences found in each king and of their rule over Rome, both Romulus and Numa Pompilius have a tremendous influence in the prosperity and expansion of Rome in its early days.
...he other, the gate of ivory, a perfect and glittering gate through which spirits send false dreams into the world. Rather than sending Aeneas through the easy exit, Virgil sends him through the gate of ivory. The only reason Anchises would escort Aeneas through a gate of “false dreams” is to evaluate Rome’s future. All of the glories that Anchises prophesied earlier were artifices because (and Virgil once again correlates passages) Rome will eventually be overcome with its desire for expansion and wealth and be destroyed. Therefore, it is easily established that Virgil simply was not only celebrating Rome to please the king, but to secretly critique it as well. Anyone who believes otherwise merely fails to assess the details that Virgil includes in his implications that Rome will eventually fall and its future is not as certain as the Roman people may believe.
This was necessasy, as after Julius Caesar’s death, a period of civil wars ensued, where Augustus aimed to avenge Caesar’s death and consolidate his own role as principate. After this volatile period, Augustus implemented various reforms that brought peace and ‘good government’ to provinces. Eastern citizens showed their gratitude and loyalty in “a manner appropriate to local custom” (Hennessey, 1990). Henry Burton (1912), a credible historian, describes how the East had pre-established practices of placing divine honours onto living individuals that had syncretised from Hellenistic monarchs, including Alexander the Great, and Egyptian pharaohs. Through this, heroes of Rome such as Romulus, founder of the nation, were honoured as deities and considered of divine descent. It was therefore fitting for Augustus, who had founded a new and greater Rome, be “regarded as a god and accorded the same homage” (Burton, 1912). Thus, Augustus did not need to establish the cult, rather, enhance
Rome became a powerful empire engulfing much of Europe, North Africa, and parts of Asia and what seemed like this great entity called the Romans were always in the search of more territory and land to conquer and assimilate into their ever growing vast empire. However, this was not always the case, before Rome became one of the greatest empires in all of history, Rome was a republic. They were government consisted of a Senate who much like our country today represented certain classes of the citizens of the Republic. During the growth and rise of the Roman republic conquering neighboring territories and competing for land grabs was not Romans primary objectives. Romans believed in the well being and wealth of Rome, and if that meant the total destruction of a potential adversary, then as history will show that is unfortunately to the detriment of the adversary what happened.
Like the famous saying goes, Rome wasn 't built in a day, and that couldn 't be truer. There are many things that led to the founding of Rome, and those things ultimately led to the great Roman Empire that controlled Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia at its peak. The events that led up to the widely accepted founding date of 753 BC, can mostly be attributed to the geography of the area that became known as Rome, although there is a significant legend that includes a murderous twin. Overall, through Greek and Etruscan influences, the geography of Rome led to the founding of the republic as a trade depot.
The Roman Republic had an upstanding infrastructure, a stable social system, and a balanced constitution that solidified Rome’s greatness. Regardless of its achievements, however, the Roman Republic owes much of its success to classical Greek cultures. These cultures, in conjunction with the fundamental values of Roman society, certified Rome as one of the most significant powers the world has ever seen.
The engineering discoveries of ancient Rome have played a key role in the history of architecture and engineering. Many of Rome’s roadways, bridges, and aqueducts have been in use from the first century until the twentieth century. Many American buildings have used the Roman dome. Several major structures from early Rome still stand, including the Collosseum. These remnants of feats of Roman engineering stand as a monument to the ability of ancient Roman builders.
Here, we will be looking at a rendition of the high marble statue of Augustus Caesar known as “Augustus of Prima Porta.” Originating from 1st Century A.D., it is said that there is a possibility that the original sculpture could have been of greek descent. Upon a general overview of the sculpture, one can see that Augustus fulfils a millitarial role of some kind. From his very stance to the garments portrayed on him, Augustus is draped in a decorative cuirass and a tunic, accompanied by a figure of Cupid clutching on to his right calf. After taking the general themes of the work into account, one can then began to start unraveling the many symbolic elements embedded into the sculpture that allude to godly themes. Starting from the crown of his head, the very chiselment and structure of his face gives the work a youthful element to it, even though some say that Augustus was around 40 years old. A recurring theme within Greek and Roman culture is the matter of godliness and immortality amongst idolized figures themselves. This idea is usually depicted by displaying powerful human being in a younger light. This
This class has examined the various accomplishments of ancient Rome, many that have been carried on throughout time and influenced numerous cultures around the world. Amongst those accomplishments were the development of concrete and the utilization of arches. This paper will examine the Roman development of both concrete and the infamous concrete arch that is utilized in many modern day structures today.
...ovements on the arch and the dome. Also, they built roads, bridges, harbors, and aqueducts, which they were most famous for. Aqueducts were a revolutionary invention that carried water from the hills to the cities. Even today, the principal of the aqueducts enables many urban areas to have water. The lasting contributions of the Roman Empire have helped to shape modern living.