Art 108 Ancient to Medieval

1. Roman Historical Relief

2. Portraiture was unique invention of the Romans, but he “historical relief,” which records
an actual event in the way a camera might do today, was another uniquely Roman
invention

3. War phtographers in World War I; image source: http://www.vintag.es/2014/05/old-portraits-of-photographers-in-first.html
If photography existed, Roman emperors would have undoubtedly employed an army of
photographers to record their military campaigns and victory parades

4. But since the camera hadn’t been invented, they used artists who made paintings (now
lost) and carved reliefs that chronicled historical events

5. The Roman approach to documenting historical events was different from the
Greeks

6. While Greek artists used stories from mythology to reference contemporary
events, the Romans dispensed with this universalizing approach, preferring to
document actual historical battles

7. The Romans were therefore much closer to the Assyrians in their taste for
detailed historical accounts of military battles

8. Arch of Titus, c. 81 BCE
An example of Roman historical relief can be found on this Triumphal Arch,
erected by the Emperor Domitian to commemorate his brother Titus’ capture of
Jerusalem in 70 AD

9. Arch of Titus, c. 81 BCE
Triumphal arches were also a unique Roman invention. They were permanent
monuments to military victory, and were used as props in victory parades

10. Conquering armies would march through the arch carrying booty and captives to
the Temple of Mars in the forum

11. Arch of Titus, c. 81 BCE
This is the subject of the relief on the inside of the arch

12. It portrays Titus’ army returning from their military campaign in Jerusalem

13. In this relief we see Titus’ army marching through a triumphal arch (just like the
arch upon which the relief is carved), carrying the spoils from their military
campaign in Jerusalem (including the menorah looted from the temple)

14. The style is daringly naturalistic, and emphatically historical; the relief strives to
suggest a factual report of an actual historical event, much like a modern news
photograph

15. On the other side, Titus appears in his chariot, emerging out of the depth in
foreshortened perspective

16. He is accompanied by a figure of Victory who places a wreath on his head, while
personifications of Honor and Valor lead the horses

17. These allegorical figures serve to glorify the emperor, and to elevate the brute
facts of military conquest and plunder to the level of myth

18. Triumphal Columns were also popular as military monuments

19. Column of Trajan, Forum of Trajan, Rome,
c. 112 BCE
Trajan’s Forum, 112 CE
Trajan’s Column commemorated the Emperor’s campaigns in Dacia, and was
placed in the forum he built in Rome

20. The column is 128’ high, carved from solid drums of marble, and the spiral frieze
is 625’ long

21. It provides a “blow-by-blow” account of Trajan’s military campaigns in Dacia
(modern day Romania), which was a defining event for the emperor

22. “In back-to-back wars fought between A.D. 101 and 106, the emperor Trajan
mustered tens of thousands of Roman troops, crossed the Danube River on two
of the longest bridges the ancient world had ever seen, defeated a mighty
barbarian empire on its mountainous home turf twice, then systematically wiped it
from the face of Europe.
Trajan’s war on the Dacians, a civilization in what is now Romania, was the
defining event of his 19-year rule. The loot he brought back was staggering. One
contemporary chronicler boasted that the conquest yielded a half million pounds
of gold and a million pounds of silver, not to mention a fertile new province.”
“A War Diary Soars Over Rome,” National Geographic
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/trajan-column/article.html

23. The story unfolds in more than 150 episodes, with over 2,500 figures carved in
astonishing detail

24. The detail would have been difficult to see from the street level, but (like most
ancient sculptures and reliefs) it was originally painted, which would have
enhanced the legibility of the imagery

25. The story begins at the bottom,
as Trajan’s armies march
across a pontoon bridge over
the Danube River (symbolized
by a river god)

26. Above, Roman soldiers build fortifications

27. The imagery contains brutal scenes of warfare, where Roman supremacy is a foregone
conclusion

28. In this scene, we see Romans battling their barbarian enemies (identifiable by
their trousers)

29. In this detail, a Roman soldier clutches the severed head of barbarian in his teeth

30. This scene shows the Roman military strategy known as a “turtle formation” where
soldiers use their shields to form an impregnable shell

31. Recalling the convention used on the stele of Naramsin, the enemies appear
disorganized, while Trajan’s army is clearly superior in its organization

32. The Emperor appears throughout the relief as a recognizable portrait (in fact, he
appears 58 times), and is the clear “hero” of this epic story

33. In this detail we can see the resemblance to numerous surviving portrait busts

34. He is easy to pick out because he is always standing in the dignified contraposto
pose, appearing like the good “bringer of culture” rather than a ruthless tyrant

35. Here we see him making a sacrifice to the gods, dressed in the costume of a priest

36. Here we see him receiving prisoners

37. In each of his roles, the emperor is portrayed as a pious ruler, a great and
generous statesman, and a decisive commander of his troops

38. As a work of propaganda it sent a powerful message about the invincible power
of the Roman army, and of the benefits of Roman Imperial rule

39. Thanks for listening!