1. CONSTANTINE EMPEROR OF THE DAY: Reign: 305 - 337AD Achievements:
Reunified the Roman empire
Styled himself after the “five good emperors” of the 100s
Changed the course of history by adopting Christianity as the religion of the Rome

2. THE ARCH OF CONSTANTINE

3. THE ARCH OF CONSTANTINE
c.315AD
Made of Marble
Rome, West of the Colosseum
Height: 21m
Built to commemorate Constantine’s victory at the battle of Milvian Bridge over his rival Maxentius

4. Main Features of the Arch
Inscription: SPQR to Constantine – who saved Rome from ‘tyrant’ Maxentius
The Colosseum is next door
Corinthian Columns surround arch
Main arch and two secondary arches

5. The Inscription
Photo:
“To the emperor Caesar Flavius Constantine Maximus, Pius Felix Augustus, since through divine inspiration and great wisdom he has delivered the state from the tyrant and all his factions, by his army and noble arms, the Senate and the Roman People, dedicate this arch decorated with triumphal insignia.”

6. Constantine’s ‘Recycled’ Sculpture
                                                                                       
Why?
Lack of skilled artisans in Rome at the time
Lack of time to complete the required reliefs
Constantine’s desire to be identified with ‘good emperors’
To make the best arch ever!

7. The ‘Good Emperors’ MARCUS AURELIUS r.161-180
Scenes from Marcus Aurelius’ campaigns against Germanic tribes (eg making a speech to his men and speaking to captives). The man standing on the right is a Dacian prisoner from Trajan’s Forum.

8. The ‘Good Emperors’ TRAJAN r.98-117
This is part of a frieze from Trajan’s campaigns against the Dacians, showing the emperor in battle on horseback. The Trajanic works all came from Trajan’s Forum.
Photo:

9. The ‘Good Emperors’ HADRIAN r.117-138
This roundel shows Hadrian on a boar hunt. The head of the Emperor has been remodelled to look like Constantine.

10. The ‘Good Emperors’ HADRIAN r.117-138
The Emperor also hunts a lion. On the alternate roundels, the Emperor Hadrian / Constantine makes a sacrifice to a god (Silvanus, Diana or Apollo).

11. The Constantianian Reliefs
Winged Victories in the spandrels of the arch represent the triumph of Constantine / the strength of Rome

12. The Constantianian Reliefs
The roundels on outsides of the arch have representations of the Sun (Sol) and Moon (Luna) gods.

13. The Constantinian Frieze
Content of frieze: Scenes from Constantine’s campaign against Maxentius (for more details, see Campbell, pages 35-39)

14. The Constantinian Frieze
CONSTANTINE r
Constantine’s troops march into battle, laying siege to Verona. Shows the organisation and discipline of Constantine’s army.

15. The Constantinian Frieze
CONSTANTINE r
Constantine’s troops slaughter Maxientius’s troops. Shows strength and superiority of Constantine’s army.

16. The Constantinian Frieze
CONSTANTINE r
The donatio relief shows Constantine giving out money to Romans – he is a generous Emperor. Note the people turned towards him.

17. The Constantinian Frieze
CONSTANTINE r
The oratio relief shows Constantine making a speech to Romans – he is an engaging speaker/orator. Note that he is on a higher level.

18. MARCUS AURELIUS HADRIAN TRAJAN
CONSTANTINE
MARCUS AURELIUS
HADRIAN
TRAJAN
Match the reliefs with the correct emperor by drawing lines between the names and the reliefs

19. 1 2 3 4
See if you can complete the diagram by writing the number for each Emperor on the correct reliefs.

20. A Clash of Styles

21. A Clash of Styles

22. Oratio – Style / Composition

23. Making Comparisons – Constantine vs. Titus

24. A brilliant website: