THE ROMAN EMPIRE GARDNER CHAPTER 10 3 PP

THE ROMAN EMPIRE GARDNER CHAPTER 10 -3 PP. 254 -259

EARLY EMPIRE § § Murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE leads to civil war Octavian, the nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar wins the civil war by crushing the naval forces of Mark Antony and Queen Cleopatra of Egypt In 27 BCE the Senate grants Octavian the title “Augustus” Augustus is also granted the titles PRICEPS(first citizen), CONSUL, IMPERATOR(commander in chief), and PONITFEX MAXIMUS (chief priest) § PAX AUGUSTA § PAX ROMANA § Commissioning of public works -> roads, bridges, theaters, amphitheater, and public baths § Erection of imperial portrait statues and monuments § The use of art and architecture for propaganda

q (2 -43) AUGUSTUS OF PRIMA PORTA Imperial Roman Early 1 st century C. E. Marble FLASHCAR D § AUGUSTUS AS IMPERATOR § Portrait of Augustus as general, from Prima Porta, Italy, early 1 st century copy of a bronze orginal § Portraits of Augustus depict him in many different roles in the Roman state § Idealized portraits of Augustus were modeled on Classical Greek statues and depict him as a never aging son of a god § portrait presents him as general/imperator -> he wears a cuirass decorated with scenes of the return of the Roman standards from the Parthians § Cupid at his feet recalls his divine descent -> Caesar’s family traces their ancestry back to Venus and Cupid was her son

LIVIA Portrait bust of Livia, early 1 st century CE, marble, 1’ 1” high Wife of Augustus Sporting the latest Roman coiffure w/ hair rolled over forehead and knotted in back Youthful appearance and sharply defined features derive from images of Greek goddesses Coiffure changes in different portraits, but she never ages

q (2 -Additional) ARA PACIS AUGUSTAE Early Roman Empire Rome, Italy 13 -9 C. E. FLASHCARD § Figural reliefs and acanthus tendrils adorn the walls § 4 panels depict mythological subjects § Altar of Augustan Peace, Rome, 13 -9 CE § Monument celebrates his greatest achievement -> est. of peace § Presents his new order as a Golden Age equaling Periclean Athens

ARA PACIS AUGUSTAE § Female personification/Tellus? (mother earth), panel from east façade of Ara Pacis § Seated mother w/two lively babies on her lap -> she epitomizes the fruits of the Pax Augusta § Earth in bloom, animals living side by side in peace, flanked by refreshing breezes -> a picture of peace and fertility § Procession of the imperial family, detail of south frieze of Ara Pacis § Inspired by the Panathenaic procession frieze of the Parthenon -> this depicts a specific event w/ recognizable figures § Augustus promoted marriage and child bearing -> art to promote social and political agendas

THE FORUM OF AUGUSTUS Ø His most ambitious project in Rome -> new forum built next to Julius Caesar’s forum -> white marble from Carrara in Italy, a new source -> from a city of bricks to a city of marble Ø Portrait statues of the Julian family lined the forum -> it becomes a kind of public atrium filled w/imagines

NIMES – MAISON CARREE Ø Maison Carree, Nimes, France, ca. 1 -10 CE Ø Exceptionally well preserved Corinthian pseudoperipteral temple exemplifies the conservative Neo-Classical Augustan style

q (2 -Additional) PONT-DU-GARD Early Roman Empire Nimes, France ca. 16 C. E. § Pont-du-Gard, Nimes, France, ca. 16 BCE § Aqueducts built to bring water from mountain sources to cities § Illustration of the skill of Rome’s engineers § Transported water 30 miles using gravity only -> gradual decline to move the water § 3 story structure -> 82 foot arch span -> upper level has three arches above each arch below and carries the water channel § The structure is both practical and aesthetic FLASHCARD

PORTA MAGGIORE Porta Maggiore, Rome, Italy, ca. 50 CE Double gateway that supports the water channels of two important aqueducts Outstanding example of Roman RUSTICATED (rough) masonry popular under Claudius Augustan style had been smooth precisely shaped Greek style blocks

NERO’S GOLDEN HOUSE Severus and Celer, section and plan of the octagonal hall of the Domus Aurea/Golden House of Nero, Rome, Italy, 64 -68 CE NERO = stepson and successor of Emperor Claudius -> huge fire destroys large sections of Rome -> city is rebuilt using new concrete construction Nero has constructed an extravagant country villa in the heart of the city “Good, now I can at last begin to live like a human being!”