Etruscans c BCE (around the end of the Bronze Age in Europe) a group called the Villanovans occupied the North West peninsula of modern Italy c. 750 BCE the Greeks establish colonies on the peninsula and island of Sicily c. 600 – 500 BCE; Etruscans (probably descended from Villanovans) gain control of the Northern and Central areas of the Italian Peninsula; establish Etruria

Round arch Porta Augusta; 100 – 200 BCE

Title: Apollo Medium: Painted terra cotta Size: height 5'10" (1.8 m) Date: c. 510–500 BCE Anavysos Kouros; c. 530 BCE

Artist: Etruscan Title: She-Wolf Medium: Bronze, glass-paste eyes Size: height 33½" (85 cm) Date: c. 500 BCE, or 450–430 BCE with 15th or 16th century additions (the twins) Source/Museum: Museo Capitolino, Rome

Romans: -legend says Rome was founded by twins Romulus and Remus, sons of the god of war, Mars (Ares) -they were left to die on the banks of the Tiber river (on the Italian peninsula) -a she-wolf rescued and nursed them, and they were later raised by a shepherd -when they reached adulthood, they returned to the place where they were rescued and founded a city; c. 753 BCE -for a time, Romans were ruled by Etruscan kings, but they over-threw them in 509 BCE and formed a republic centered in Rome -Etruscans were absorbed by the Romans by 200 BCE -Alternate Roman origin myth was described in the Aeneid by the poet Virgil

Timeline: -c. 753 BCE; legendary establishment of settlement that becomes Rome -c. 700 – 509 BCE; Etruscan supremacy on peninsula -c. 509 BCE; Romans overthrow Etruscans and form a republic -c. 275 BCE; Romans rule entire Italian peninsula -by 200 BCE; Etruscans absorbed by Romans -by 100 CE; Roman empire reaches from the Euphrates River in SW Asia to Scotland in the North, and all around the Mediterranean -c. 395 CE; Roman empire finally divides

Roman Religion: -adopted Greek religious beliefs and practices, but changed the names -combined worship of Classical gods with homage to past Roman rulers and allegiance to living rulers; state religion -as an official religion, it became increasingly unconnected with the lives of everyday people, therefore many conquered people continued to practice local religions like the emerging Christianity, and other traditional Egyptian and Near Eastern religions -these religions flourished alongside the state religion, despite occasional efforts to subdue them

The Republic: BCE -early Rome was governed by kings and an advisory board of leading citizens called the Senate -society divided into 2 classes: patricians; wealthy/powerful plebeians; lower class -509 BCE; Romans overthrow last Etruscan king and establish oligarchy: government of aristocrats; lasts ~450 years Aulus Metellus; Bronze; height 5'11“; c. 80 BCE

Portrait of Pompey the Great; Marble; height 9 ¼“; 30 CE. copy of sculpture of c. 50 BCE verism: meticulous realism

Denarius with Portrait of Julius Caesar; Silver; diameter ~ ¾“; 44 BCE Propaganda: -early Roman leaders recognized the value of putting their image with symbols of the Republic or important achievements -art used to reinforce the ruler’s power is common in all Roman periods

Roman Architecture and Engineering: -adapted Greek Architectural orders -added a base (pedestal) to the columns -often un-fluted shaft on Doric style (Tuscan order) -combined Ionic scrolls with Corinthian acanthus leaves (Composite order) Greek orders Roman orders

-Roman architects innovated heavily with the round arch (seen on Etruscan gate) -invented concrete in 1 st century BCE Roman aqueduct; Pont Du Gard Late 1st century BCE

Roman temples: -influenced by Greek and Etruscan temples -columns all the way around (Greek influence) but engaged after the front porch (Etruscan style) Maison Carrée; c. 20 BCE; Nîmes, France Temple, perhaps dedicated to Portunus; Late 2nd century BCE; Rome

Early Empire: c 27 BCE – 96 CE -by 1 st century BCE, nearly 1 million people lived in Rome -46 BCE, Julius Caesar gains autocratic power over Rome; assassinated 2 years later -Caesar’s 19 year old adopted heir, Octavian assumes control; over next 17 years, Octavian establishes order in Roman provinces; beginning of Pax Romana; era of peace and stability in Rome that lasted over 200 years -27 BCE; Octavian named Augustus (“exalted one”) by Roman senate -12 CE; Augustus named Pontifex Maximus (“high priest”) -Augustus becomes Rome’s highest religious official and political leader and rules for nearly 60 years -Augustus established the Western ideal of Empires and imperial rule

View of the Roman Forum Forums and basilicas: central administrative and legal centers

Early Imperial (Augustan) Art: -new style; idealized but grounded in the appearance of the real world Augustus of Primaporta; 1 st cent CE; 6’ 8” high (constructed at the end of his life)

Ara Pacis Augustae (altar of Augustan Peace), view of west side; Marble; approx. 34'5" X 38‘; 13–9 BCE

Imperial Procession; height 5'2“; Detail of a relief on the south side of the Ara Pacis -altar shows combination of the specific and the idealized; characteristic of Roman art Allegory of Peace; height 5'2“; Relief on the east side of the Ara Pacis

Roman cities and homes: -cities divided into quarters (like Etruscans) -insulae: brick apartment blocks for housing -women enjoyed a public life outside the home (unlike Greeks) -know much about the city structures and homes from ruins at Pompeii Aerial View of The City of Pompeii; Street in Pompeii; 79 CE

Peristyle Garden, House of The Vettii; Pompeii Wall Niche; Mosaic; 43¾ X 31½“; Mid-1st century CE; From a garden in Pompeii.

Initiation Rites of the Cult of Bacchus (?) Wall painting c. 60–50 BCE; In the Villa of the Mysteries, Pompeii Wall painting: -interiors of Roman houses had plain, smooth plaster surface and were painted -painting originally imitated marble, later portrayed shallow stage sets or natural scenes

Seascape and Coastal towns Detail of a wall painting From Villa Farnesina, Rome Late 1st century CE atmospheric perspective: objects appear hazy in the distance

Cityscape Detail of a wall painting From a bedroom in the House of Publius Fannius Synistor Late 1st century CE intuitive perspective: uses diagonal lines (that the mind perceives as parallel) to show an object receding in space

Roman dynasties and rulers: Early Empire: -Augustus27 BCE – 14 CE Julio-Claudians: (named for Augustus’ lineage from Julius Caesar and Tiberius’ father, Tiberius Claudius Nero) -Tiberus 14 – 37 CE -Caligula 37 – 41 CE -Claudius 41 – 54 CE -Nero54 – 68 CE Flavians: CEMilitary rulers who restored confidence after rule of Nero High Empire: establish tradition of selecting successors until Marcus Aurelius’ son Commodus rules (likely insane) -Nerva96 – 98 CE -Trajan98 – 117 CE -Hadrian117 – 138 CE -Antoninus Pius138 – 192 CE -Marcus Aurelius161 – 180 CE -Commodus180 – 192 CE Late Empire: -Septimius Severus193 – 211 CE -Caracalla211 – 217 CE -Alexander Severus222 – 235 CE -Diocletian284 – 305 CE; began Tetrachy (rule of 4): 293 – 305 CE -ConstantineI312 – 337 CE; 1 st Christian leader -Death of last emperor in the West476 CE good leaders until Nero led period of flourishing art and expansion

-Early Empire lasts from 27 BCE to 96 CE -suicide of Nero in 68 CE ends Julio-Claudian dynasty (Augustus’ dynasty) -brief period of civil war follows; ends when Vespasian of Flavian dynasty gains control -Flavians rule from 69 – 96 CE (end of Early Empire) -Flavians are military men who restore confidence in Roman government after Nero and built the Coliseum and Triumphal Arches

The Arch of Titus Concrete and white marble height 50' c. 81 CE (Restored 1822–24) Rome -triumphal arch is distinctive Roman structure; -commemorates a specific triumph or formal victory celebration -essentially a free standing gateway with a passage covered by a barrel vault -originally served as a base for a statue of a 4-horse chariot and driver sculpture; typical triumphal symbol

Reliefs from the Arch of Titus; c. 81 CE - Spoils from the temple in Jerusalem

Flavian Amphitheater (Colosseum) from the air; outer wall; 70–80 CE; Rome held 50,000 spectators; 76 entrance doors; 3 levels of seats

High Empire: 96 – 192 CE -last Flavian, Domitian was assassinated in 96 CE -succeeded by Nerva (96 – 98 CE), who designated Trajan as his successor -next 3 emperors select their successors, with great success and the empire is ruled by brilliant, capable administrators -under Trajan (98 – 117 CE), empire reaches its greatest extent -next, Hadrian (117 – 138) consolidates borders and imposes far-reaching social, governmental and military reforms -second-to-last emperor, Marcus Aurelius, leaves son Commodus to rule and in 12 years he destroys the government his predecessors had built

Model of the Forum Romanum and Imperial Forums, Rome c. 325 CE -building programs designed to exert the importance of Rome as center of the empire, begun under Julius Caesar and Augustus, are continued by Trajan and Hadrian -this image reflects Rome’s dense building plan -last and largest imperial Forum built by Trajan and finished by Hadrian (red circle) c. 117 CE

apse basilica = general purpose administrative building -designed by Greek architect with rounded apse at each end; where judges held court when in session. -design later appears in Christian churches Plan of Trajan's Forum c. 110–113 CE

Column of Trajan; Marble; overall height with base 125' column alone 97'8“; relief 625‘ long c. 117 CE; Rome

Pantheon c. 118–128 CE; Rome ancient street level Pantheon -maybe most impressive surviving example of ancient Rome -name means “all the gods”—temple dedicated to Olympian gods -originally stood on a podium approached by stairs, but street building has covered them -built by Hadrian, but inscription dedicates it to Marcus Agrippa, an advisor to Augustus who originally built on this site—Hadrian’s nod to history -holes on pediment indicate there used to be sculpture there, but we don’t know exactly what

coffers; sunken panels oculus: central opening -behind colonnaded front porch is a giant rotunda with 20’ thick walls, 75’ high, which support a dome 143’ in diameter and 143’ high at the top of the dome -spherical building

143’ high x 143’ in diameter

-view inside the pantheon -shows light from the oculus -rain comes in and drains off as planned by original engineers

Hadrian’s Wall; 2nd century CE; Great Britain.

The Unswept FloorThe Unswept Floor; Mosaic variant of a 2nd-century BCE painting by Sosos of Pergamon; 2nd century CE emblemata -mosaic work shows great artistry during the High Empire -most floor mosaics designed to fit the purpose of the room

Commodus as Hercules; Marble; height 46 ½" c. 191–92 CE Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius; Bronze, originally gilded; height 11'6“; c. 176 CE

Late Empire: 200 – 400 CE -reign of Commodus (180 – 192 CE) left Rome in political and economic decline -barbarian groups put pressure on Roman borders and imperial rule became increasingly authoritarian -Severan emperors succeeded Commodus (192 – 235 CE) -arts continue to flourish under the Severans, despite political turmoil -after Severans, more than 2 dozen so-called “soldier emperors” try to rule Rome for the next 70 years -Diocletian follows soldier-rulers in 284 CE; establishes tetrachy (rule by 4) -empire divides in 395 CE

Septimius Severus, Julia Domna, and Their Children, Geta and Caracalla; Painted wood; diameter 14“; c. 200 CE Caracalla; Marble; height 14 ½“; Early 3rd century CE Severan dynasty: 1 st ruler; Septimus Severus; father, born in Africa, married to Syrian wife Children; sons Greta and Caracalla

Baths of Caracalla; Plan of The Baths of Caracalla, Rome; c. 211–17 CE -baths were recreational and educational centers -entire complex covered 50 acres, and included gardens, a stadium, libraries, a painting gallery, auditoriums, and huge water reservoirs

Baths of Diocletian; c. 298–306 CE. Converted into a church by Michelangelo in good example of what the interior of the Baths of Caracalla would have looked like

Battle Between The Romans and The Barbarians, detail of the Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus Marble; height approx. 5“; c. 250 CE

The Tetrarchs; Porphyry; height of figures 51“; c. 300 CE Brought from Constantinople in 1204, installed at the corner of the façade of the Cathedral of Saint Mark, Venice Tetrarchy: -soldier-emperor rule ended with the rise of Diocletian (brilliant politician and general) in 284 CE -Diocletian divided the empire in 2; he adopted the name of Augustus and ruled the eastern part -appointed a second Augustus, Maximian, to rule the west -each Augustus named a Caesar; subordinate and heir -these 4 rulers were the tetrarchy, “rule of four”

Constantine The Great; Marble; height of head 8'6“; 325–26 CE -in 305 CE, Diocletian gave up his rule and forced the other Augustus to do the same; the succession of Caesars failed and a power struggle ensued -Constantine I eventually prevailed as ruler -won a battle against rival Maxentius (Maximian’s son) to gain control -attributed his win to a vision he had the night before that showed a Christian cross -showed his gratitude by ending persecution of Christians and establishing a law of religious tolerance in Rome; Edict of Milan -Edict of Milan becomes a model of religious tolerance -c. 330 CE, Constantine renames port-city of Byzantium Constantinople and makes it the capitol of the empire -following this, Rome further declines in importance

Visual Comparison See illus on p. 118 in textbook

Dish; Silver; diameter approx. 24“; Mid-4th century CE; Mildenhall, England Priestess of Bacchus (?), right panel of the Diptych of Symmachus; Ivory; 11¾ X 4¾“; c. 390–401 CE

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