THE ROMAN EMPIRE GARDNER CHAPTER 10-7 PP

DIOCLETIAN AND THE TETRARCHY  Emperor Diocletian (r ) -> in 293 he decides to share power w/ his rivals -> established the TETRARCHY rule by four  Divides the empire into eastern and western spheres -> results in the Latin West and Byzantine East in the Middle Ages

TETRARCHIC PORTRAITURE  Portrait of the four tetrarchs, from Constantinople, 305 CE  Diocletian established the tetrarchy to bring order to the Roman world  Made of porphyry/purple marble -> four emperors depicted as identical partners in power, not as distinct individuals  Large cubical heads on squat bodies -> drapery is schematic, bodies are shapeless, faces are emotionless masks Idealism, naturalism, individuality, and personality are now in the past

PALACE OF DIOCLETIAN  Diocletian abdicates in 305 CE -> retires to Dalmatia -> builds a palace Split on the Croatian coast  Well-fortified suburban palace -> fortress walls, watch towers and gates  Two avenues intersect at the forum-like colonnaded courtyard leading to the emperor’s residential quarters

CONSTANTINE  Portrait of Constantine, from the Basilica Nova, Rome, Italy, ca , 8’6” high -> whole statue must have been over 30’ seated  Part of an enormous figure that sat as the focal point of the Basilica Nova in Rome  Parts of the body that show were done in marble -> lost now are the wooden elements that represented the torso, perhaps covered in bronze  Colossal size and seated pose likens him to Jupiter  Idealized portrait, timelessness -> image of eternal authority

ARCH OF CONSTANTINE  Arch of Constantine, Rome, Italy, CE  Great triple passageway arch sited next to the Colosseum  Much of the sculptural decoration comes from monuments of Trajan, Hadrian, and Marcus Aurelius  Sculptors recut the heads of the earlier emperors with Constantine’s features  Reuse of sculptures = decline in creativity and technical skill in the waning years of the pagan Roman Empire

CONSTANTINIAN FRIEZE  Distribution of largesse, detail of the north frieze of the Arch of Constantine, Rome  Constantine is frontal and majestic on a throne as grateful recipients approach from left and right  Figures do not move according to any Classical principles of naturalistic movements -> mechanical and repeated stances and gestures of puppets  Not narrative action, but actors frozen in time -> rigid formality reflects new values A decline in form?

COLOSSUS OF CONSTATINE

 Constantine becomes emperor in 312 CE  Edict of Milan -> ends persecution of Christians  Constantinople -> city of Constantine founded at Byzantium  Council of Nicea 325 CE -> Christianity becomes the de facto official religion of the Roman Empire  Paganism declines rapidly  Transfer of power from Rome to Constantinople and the recognition of Christianity mark the end of antiquity and beginning of the Middle Ages

BASILICA NOVA, ROME  Restored cutaway view of the Basilica Nova, Rome. Italy, ca CE  From the apse the seated colossus of Constantine dominated the interior of the basilica  Coffered barrel vaults in the aisles  Groin vaults over the nave  Fenestration of the concrete groin vaults provided lighting

AULA PALATINA, TRIER  Aula Palatina, Trier, Germany, early 4 th century CE  Basilica like audience hall  Austere brick exterior is typical of later Roman architecture  Two stories of lead framed panes of glass take up most of the surface area

AULA PALATINA – INTERIOR  Flat, wooden, coffered ceiling  Interior has no aisles  Semicircular apse at one end  Interior is quite severe -> has close parallels in many early Christian churches