Roman Art

  • Roman Art was strongly influenced by Greek Art.
  • Roman Sculptures were considered the highest art form followed by Mosaics and Wall Paintings.

1. Roman Jewellery

  • Roman Jewellery was made from Iron, Bronze, Tin, Silver and Gold and consisted of Rings, Pins, Pendants, Earrings, Brooches, Bracelets, Necklaces and Tiaras with Precious Stones were sometimes being added. In particular, Pearls were the most common.
  • Roman Pearls
    • A Pearl Mania seized Rome during the first century BCE. Pearls achieved enormous prestige and value.
    • Pearls were sewn into furniture like couches and into clothing, like ladies gowns. Various Roman authors commented on this obsession with Pearls such as Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE).
  • Roman Intaglio
    • The Roman Intaglio was a semi-precious Gemstone, usually engraved, attached to a ring made of Gold or Silver.
    • The image engraved in the Gemstone was either of a God or had some similar theme.
  • Roman Signet Ring
    • The Romans signed their documents with an Intaglio on a gold ring.
    • The image engraved in the Gemstone was either of a God or had a mythological motif.
  • Gemstones
    • The Romans created jewelry using Amber, Diamonds, Emeralds, Obsidian, and Sapphires on rings made of Gold or Silver.
    • Pearls became so fashionable in the Empire that they were used to adorn furniture.
  • Roman Coins
    • Roman Coins usually displayed a detailed portrait of the Emperor.

2. Roman Sculpture

  • The Romans admired and copied the Classical Greek style of sculpture. Schools for studying the sculptures of Classical Greece existed in Athens and in Rome by the 1st century BCE. The following are the most famous works to have survived.
    • Orestes and Electra
    • The Doryphoros of Polykleitos
    • Prima Porta Augustus
      • The statue is a life size portrait of the Emperor Augustus. It is currently displayed in the Braccio Nuovo wing of the Vatican Museum, Rome.
    • The Galatian Gauls
      • These are three 2nd Century CE Roman Marble copies of Greek Statues originally made in Bronze by Attalus I of Pergamon around 230-220 BCE after his victory over the Gauls of Galatia: They depict the Galatian Gauls and are now on show in Rome.
      • The Ludovisi Gaul
          • Displaying a Man holding his dying wife whilst killing himself, now in the National Roman Museum, Palazzo Altemps, Rome.
      • The Dying Gaul
          • The statue, originally called the Dying Gladiator, depicts a Celtic warrior wearing a Torc, with a sword wound in his side. It is on display in the Capitoline Museums, Rome.
      • The Kneeling Gaul
          • On display in the Louvre, Sully, Ground Floor, Room 17, Paris.
  • The Later style from 50 CE onwards is preserved in the following statues:
    • Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius
      • Erected in 175 CE, It stands in the grounds of the Capitoline Museums. It is a giant Bronze Statue 13.9 ft high (4.24m), originally covered in gold.
    • Trajan’s Column
      • Erected in 113 CE to celebrate Trajan‘s Dacian Wars. It is probably Ancient Rome’s most original and best Sculpture.
      • It is located in Trajan’s Forum, in the Via dei Fori Imperiale, Rome, Italy,
      • It contains 2,662 figures in 155 scenes, made out of 19 drums of white marble, originally the figures were painted in colour with their swords and armour painted bronze.
    • Colossus of Barletta (Eastern Roman Empire c. 565 CE)
      • It is a Bronze statue of an Eastern Roman Emperor, 16ft 7in tall (5.11m) and variously attributed to be of Valentinian I, Justinian I (527-565 CE) or Theodosius I.

3. Roman Mosaic

  • The Roman Mosaic was a highly developed art form used during the Roman Republic (509-27 BCE) and the Roman Empire (27 BCE- 576 CE). It first appeared in Greece and was then continued by the Romans.
  • Different coloured glass or ceramic pieces were placed together to create an image which was displayed in private and public buildings, both on the floors and the walls.
  • The Mosaics that have been excavated around the Empire often depict highly detailed artwork with images from mythology or elaborate patterns.
  • Sicily

4. Roman Frescoes and Murals

  • The only wall paintings to survive the Roman Period are to be found on the walls of private villas that were buried under the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.
  • Pompeii
    • The Villa of the Mysteries in Pompeii holds well preserved wall paintings dating to 80 BCE.
  • Herculaneum
    • The Casa dei Casti Amanti holds a fresco of a detailed banquet scene.
  • Boscoreale
    • The Villa of Publius Fannius Synistor also holds frescoes of great quality.

5. Roman Panel Painting

  • The Romans were known to paint panels on wood or wooden furniture.
    • The Severan Tondo (c.200 CE) is a wooden panel depicting the portraits of the Severan Dynasty.
    • It is located in the Antikensammlung section of the Altes Museum in Bodestrasse 1-3, 10178, Berlin, Germany.

6. Roman Portraits

  • Examples of painted portraits have been found on funeral urns and boxes, and in the Fayum in Egypt.
  • The Fayum Mummy Portraits
    • The population in the Fayum continued to embalm and mummify their dead, instead of cremating them as was the custom elsewhere in the Roman Empire.
    • During the period of Roman occupation, between 1st century BCE and the 3rd century CE, a portrait of the deceased was painted on wood with a pigmented wax and placed over the Mummy.
    • They are the few surviving examples of Roman Panel Paintings to survive from the Roman Period.
    • The dry Desert environment has preserved these 2000 year old portraits, excavated from various Roman necropolises, and today we can see what the inhabitants actually looked like.
  • Over 900 Mummy Portraits have been found and examples are held in the following museums:

7. Roman Pottery

  • Roman Pottery is known as Arretine Ware which is a red glazed roman pottery made in Arrezo, which supplied the whole Roman Empire.
  • Arretine Ware is also known as Terra Sigillata and Samian Ware.
  • Clay Lamps were produced in molds from cheap clay by unskilled local potters.
  • They were produced by the million each year, and copied from various designs popular in Rome.

8. Roman Music and Roman Musical Instruments

  • Although no written music has survived from the Roman Period, a clue lies in the development of the Early Church Music.
  • Roman Music (753 BCE-380 CE)
  • Early Church Music
    • Early Church Music had no instruments and was only sung by the Clergy. This remained unchanged until the Reformation.
    • Byzantine Music, the music of the Byzantine Empire, was based on Ancient Greek Music, and is the closest to which we can trace Early Church music. Its main records start around 500 CE.
    • A Famous Hymn, with one or more Stanzas, is the Easter Vespers Hymn ‘Phos Hilaron’ (O Resplendent Light), which we know of from a fourth century CE description.
  • History of Classical Music
    • Classical music is considered to have started with Early Church Music and evolved up to the present day.

9. Roman Glass

    • Cameo Glass
      • The Romans developed a luxury glass known as Cameo Glass which used two different colours of glass fused together. The motif was etched out of the white glass to produce a raised relief on a dark glass background.
    • Lycurgus Cup
      • This is a rare example of a Roman Cage Cup. The glass displays different colours depending on whether it is lit from the back or the front, and is the only known Roman Glass vessel that has been found to do so, making it unique.
      • The Lycurgus Cup is on display in Room 41 of the British Museum in London.
    • Portland Vase
      • An example is the Portland Vase dated to c.25 CE, which is located in the British Museum.
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