A History of Roman Art

Steven L. Tuck

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781119653301
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Ancient & Classical Literary Criticism
• Index: Literature

A HISTORY OF ROMAN ART

The new edition of the leading textbook on Roman art, updated with new images and expanded geographic and cultural scope

A History of Roman Art is an expansive survey of the painting, mosaic, sculpture, decorative arts, and architecture of ancient Rome. This acclaimed textbook provides a fully-illustrated narrative history of Roman art that spans a millennium, from the early origins of Rome to the era of Emperor Constantine. Interwoven throughout the text are themes of Rome's cultural inclusiveness and the importance of art in promoting Roman values, helping students understand how diverse cultures contributed to Roman life. Accessible, chronologically-organized chapters provide numerous examples of the arts, their cultural and historical context, descriptions of artistic techniques, and writings by ancient authors—enabling students to develop a rich appreciation of art's importance in the Roman world.

Now in its second edition, this market-leading textbook features thoroughly revised content throughout. Additional images and excerpts from literary sources are complemented by new historical discussions of metalwork, carved gems, glass, and sarcophagi. This edition features more maps and illustrations, in-depth analysis of iconography, greater emphasis on the types of objects used to decorate the lives of ordinary Romans, expanded coverage of freedmen and women as artists, subjects, and patrons, and much more. A number of works that represent popular art have been added. That is, art in the everyday Roman world, rather than just the large scale works of sculpture and architecture of elite patrons. It also reveals patterns of artistic workshops, trade, and social and economic networks. Additionally, this edition takes into account new approaches in scholarship. This comprehensive textbook:

• Provides a thorough introduction to Roman art history featuring more than 400 high quality images and illustrations
• Includes a full set of pedagogical tools, such as historical timelines, key term definitions, and updated references and further reading suggestions
• Offers "Scholarly Perspective, " "A View from the Provinces, " "More on Myth, " and "Art and Literature" textboxes in each chapter
• Includes a companion website containing PowerPoint slides and additional instructor resources

A History of Roman Art, Second Edition is an ideal primary or secondary text for courses on Roman art and archaeology, Roman art and architecture, Greek and Roman art, and general Roman civilization, history, and culture.

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INTRODUCTION TOROMAN ART HISTORY

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• Cultural Property Controversies
• Dating Dilemmas in Roman Art History
• Restoration Issues in Roman Art History
• The Role of Elites in Public Art and Architecture
• Italic versus Classical Styles and Forms I: Temples
• Italic versus Classical Styles and Forms II: Portraiture
• Female Portraiture and Embedded Values
• Romans Judging Roman Art: Values and Class
• Art, Context, and Social Status I: The Tomb of Vestorius Priscus
• Art, Context, and Social Status II: The Roman House
• Narrative Moment
• Suggestions for Further Reading

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This introduction is (as the Roman dictator Sulla called Roman government) a bit of “a two‐headed dog.” It is designed to introduce you, the reader, to both Roman art and the study of art history. In other words, to some of the overarching themes and forms of the art that follow as well as some of the ways that art historians operate and analyze that art. Let’s start with the controversies.

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provenance

the place of origin or earliest known history of something. In art it can refer to the chain of ownership of a piece from origin to the present day.

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CULTURAL PROPERTY CONTROVERSIES

As I write this, and no doubt as you read it as well, one of the major controversies in art history and archaeology is over matters of cultural property. Museum professionals, academics, legal authorities, law enforcement officers, and diplomatic corps around the world have debated the question of who owns the past. Works that made their way into museum collections from the art market, such as the example below, legally purchased in an auction in New York at Sotheby’s or Christie’s and now in a small museum, are gaining increased scrutiny from foreign governments and art historians.

Some governments have called for the return of all such objects arguing that their provenance, the chain of ownership from the ground to the present day, cannot be proven and they might be the result of looting and illegal export. Art historians are drawn into this debate as they wrestle with issues of whether museum acquisition or even publication of these objects encourages the looting of archaeological sites by creating or encouraging the market in this material. Add to that the problem of fake or forged objects and it becomes very complicated and potentially controversial to handle objects that have recently come to light through the art market. Some have advocated for cut off dates that would prohibit the study and publication of recently acquired works while others have gone so far as to argue that professionals should only publish works with unbroken strings of legal ownership. Virtually all professionals, no matter where they stand in the debate, agree that we must be aware of and acknowledge issues of poor provenance. We should be aware that the lack of precise provenance information does limit what we can say about particular works. The example above could be from any one of a number of contexts: a tomb, a house, or a dedicatory statue in a public space such as a forum. Each one of those spaces would carry its own meaning and change how the work was viewed in antiquity and, given its provenance on the art market, we will never know that. But we will never know that for the vast majority of ancient art, even works that have eyewitness accounts of their excavation. Factor in the lack of documentation even for indisputably legitimate works such as the Portland Vase (Figure 5.29) and Ficoroni Cista (Figure 3.18) with long chains of ownership and it is clear that we cannot limit ourselves only to a discussion of works whose exact placement from the ancient world is transmitted to us. There are, however, works that should be and currently are being questioned, challenging our assumptions about what we know with confidence.

1.1 Julio‐Claudian man, portrait from Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park Ancient Sculpture Museum, Hamilton OH.

Photo courtesy Steven L. Tuck.

DATING DILEMMAS IN ROMAN ART HISTORY

Most dates assigned to works of art from the Roman world are not absolute. That is, they are not linked to a firm calendar, but are relative, determined by comparing an art work to one or more other examples with more or less similar characteristics. This gives us a series of relative, and sometimes very insecure, dates all based on some key works of art. When the dates of those key works are questioned, it has the potential to throw the whole system off. A case study in that issue is one of the most iconic works of Roman art, the Capitoline Wolf statue. This bronze statue of the she‐wolf that saved Romulus and Remus, on display in Rome since 1471, has long been a staple work of art history texts. It has been republished and discussed for over two hundred years as an Etruscan masterpiece of the fifth century BCE.

Some authors have argued that it was in fact the same piece of sculpture mentioned by the Roman politician/author Cicero in the first century BCE. Since 2006, however, the scholarly world has reevaluated this based on a number of arguments including the type of casting process and the results of scientific tests such as thermoluminescence dating. These combined with reexamination of the style of work have led to new conclusions that the wolf is actually a medieval work, not an Etruscan one, perhaps dating to...