Augustus Prima Porta Sculpture Analysis

     Rome's vast empire lasted for an amazing one thousand-year reign. Half of it referred to as the republic, and the other as the empire. However, after its fall in 5oo-a.d. Rome has still remained in existence through its strong culture, architecture, literature, and even religion (Spielvogel 175). Even after its disappearance as a nation Rome left behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. Its ideals and traditions have been immolated, and adopted for over two thousand years. Whether, it is through its language of Latin, its influence of religion, or its amazing architectural ability Rome has influenced almost every culture following its demise. The heritage of Rome has

During Pax Romana it was more peaceful than usual, inside the empire and with other places; money was not being spent on war; so the art, architecture, and economy was good. Before Pax Romana the leader of Rome tried to make peace with Parthia, but failed. The task was left to Augustus, who arranged to give back the Parthian king’s son in exchange for the Roman treasures. Since the trade happened peacefully and with out bloodshed Augustus became famous and got his face on Roman coins. Throughout this time period Rome was leader in law, government, engineering, and literature. The Roman alphabet was made and set as normal. Comfortable cities had water, sewage systems, public baths, and heating.

As well as the Roman Army and the Roman roads, the Pax Romana was another factor that led to the empire’s great success. Pax Romana, Latin for “Roman Peace”, was the peace established by the Romans in their empire, where the inhabitants benefitted from the law and order that was enforced by the Romans, and no more land was to be conquered. The Pax Romana was one of the most stable periods of the empire. This brought relative civilisation across the empire and kept the peasants happy, which was essential to keeping the empire under control.

The artwork I chose to talk about is on page 232. Figure 8.16, Funerary Relief of a Circus Official, Ostia, 110-130. The medium of the artwork is made from Marble relief. The Tombs in the old days of roman families built outside of the city walls, along roadways entering the city. The vision of the monuments is to preserve individual’s fame, family honor, and status in the society. The extended family of the deceased also held feasts and putting out food and drink for the dead for enjoying. The large figure in the picture is the official himself, holding hands with his wife at the left side. The handshake symbolizes in the Roman art the indication of marriage. The palm branch symbolizes the victory. There are many accents in the artwork

Emperor Augustus commissioned these sculptures around 20 B.C.E. to be distributed around the Empire as propaganda. This statue communicates his ideology and power. Before Augustus came to power, Roman political culture valued older, wiser men for positions of political power. He decided the Roman empire need to return to the classical idea of an emperor who was a strong, youthful military victor. According to Fischer, “...by modeling the Primaporta statue on such an iconic Greek sculpture created during the height of Athens’ influence and power, Augustus connects himself to the Golden Age of that previous civilization.” Both Augustus of Primaporta and Leviathan Zodiac are both trying to curate an idea of power and masculinity. While Augustus of Primaporta propagandistic in nature, Wiley’s work is trying to send out an innocent but powerful message about how we perceive marginalized groups of

An example of Augustus’ artistic propaganda is the statue Augustus of Primaporta from 20 BCE. The statue is a depiction of Augustus as commander of the army. Augustus is depicted as very youthful and perfect. The statue is very idealized but does include some of Augustus’ true features. He is dressed in military clothing while standing in a pose as if he is addressing his troops. Augustus is portrayed barefoot with cupid riding a dolphin at his side which represents his divinity. His armor also endorses the political agenda that the gods are

Gaius Octavius Thurinus is a adopted son of Julius Caesar, He is the first true emperor of the Roman Empire, he was believed to be one of the most important emperor of Roma. In 43 EBC, Octavian gathered his army to kill the senate who planned the assassinate targeting Julius Caesar, his adoptive father. Then, he defeat Mark Antony and Cleopatra who was his allies but later betrayed him. Thus , he ended the war continued for decades and brought the great peace to Rome, In 29 EBC Octavian declared the pax romana, also know as the Roman peace. In 27 BCE, he was bestowed the title of Augustus by the Roman senate which was actually reestablished by Augustus himself. In order to remind the Romans the emperor’s power, Augustus ordered sculptor to sculpt the idealized form of him and send those sculptures to every provinces (Module 5 Session 6). The Augustus of Prima Porta is a great example of them.

He preserved all of the traditional offices while slowly taking many of the offices for him self. He was both consul and tribune. Commander and chief of the military and the senate also gave him direct control of many provinces, these provinces supplied men for his armies and food for them also, not to the senate. Augustus knew the importance of religion in roman society, he then named himself pontifex maximus which means supreme priest. He encourages the construction of temples dedicated to Rome and Augustus. None of these innovations in his ruling method altered the Roman constitution. The laws he did change however were the laws of the provinces of Rome which made them more romanized, so Augustus could be open about his actions so the senate would not bring him down and be with him. The Romans had a strong sense of there traditions and were fascinated by there history they loved when they could point out how the gods operated in there empire and allowed them much conquest of the western world. Before Augustus it looked for the romans as if the gods had left them, for they killed each other in revolutions and civil wars. Augustus’s many military victories and expansion of the empire through land and a political sense, show that the gods where on his side. He glorified Rome by hiring painters, sculptures, architects, and painters to design and build beautiful structures. He has paved the way for future Roman emperors to come.

In this paper, I will describe the sculpture, Augustus of Primaporta, beginning with the Emperor’s head, one would note the definition of Augustus’ hair, individual locks that coalesce to form an idealized, dome-shaped style. His forehead displays two proportional, prominent bumps, likely muscles that control brow movement. His pencil-thin eyebrows are set quite low and impress a calm disposition.

Augustus is known to be the first Roman emperor, and the founder of Rome, known for politically transforming the Roman republic to the early Roman Empire. During his rule his influence on artwork and architecture illustrated a classical style, and often they was a reflection of the “public image” of his rule, as well as his “new agenda”. (115) Augustus was quickly seen as a restorer of Rome. Augustus commissioned many large scale building projects such as the Campus Martius, as well as elaborate pieces of portraiture that illustrate his power and the peace of the new Rome under his rule. Augustus acknowledged his power and wealth but at the same time never formally declared himself emperor in order to maintain his citizenship. Although he was keen on denying title of emperor, he emphasized that he was a descendant of the great Julius Caesar considering himself his adopted son and his predecessor, in which he reinforces in some of the temples he commissioned. Overall Augustus was seen as a man of change and power, the one who brought prosperity to Rome when it became shaken by the assassination of Julius Caesar. The age of Augustus brought forth a classical style, influenced by Greeks, and the usage of marble and concrete to create complex buildings and sculptures. This was important because as a result of Augustus’ reign Rome obtained a very classical style, in which would later be reintroduced in order to mimic his greatness by other Emperors.

The Augustan Age was marked as one of the greatest time periods in Roman history, where the Empire flourished with prosperity and power. Augustus was careful not to declare himself as an emperor or any kind of title to state his kingship, but he referred to himself as “Princeps” or the First Citizen (Mark). Although he gave back power the senate, by doing so he establish central authority to himself. By calling himself Princeps, he held tremendous power. Also,because his uncle, Julius Caesar identified himself as a god, Augustus also represented himself as son of a god, something that is depicted in many of his portraits such as the one found in Prima Porta. During his reign, Augustus enacted an effective social and cultural program enlisting literature and the other arts revived time-honored values and

Thirdly, the Arch of Titus presents Rome as well governed and powerfully led. In honor of Titus, who had died when it was built, this arch presents the ruler well. It shows him as powerful, equal with gods and fully supported by the senate. To support and reaffirm the people’s sense of security in their roman leaders, the sculptor uses techniques to create a god-like aura around Rome’s leaders. Titus is shown celebrating victory, leading a victory procession. He stands on a chariot with a winged victory, symbolically being led by a ‘valor’. He stands taller than these deities, symbolizing his equality to them. Additionally the ‘genius senatus’ stands behind the chariot. He is bearded which shows his age and wisdom. The presence of the senate member in the procession of Titus shows he has their support in his endeavors. This is propaganda, showing the romans that they are in a republic governmental system, not a

To reassure Roman Citizens that prosperity was evident Augustus set about reconstructing the city of Rome. Coins from the period (http://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=443) illustrate the ‘health of the republic’ which was an essential part in reinforcing the feelings of stability that the Augustus wanted his people to encompass. The use of propaganda was also in an attempt to bolster his power. The reconstruction of the city involved creating essential services such as roads and aqueducts and also glorified Augustus and set in stone his achievements.

The art and architecture in the Augustan regime fundamentally reflected the new order and glorified the position and power of Augustus. Initially, at the beginning of his political career, Augustus wished to portray himself appropriately, therefore devised a new image as the first leader of the restored Republic. The academics Walker and Burnett comment that this plan included the melting down of eighty silver statues of Augustus, as the metal was “considered inappropriate for images of living persons and should be reserved for gods” (Walker and Burnett, 1981, 17); the silver was then offered to the Temple of Apollo. Nevertheless, Augustus’ intention to limit the use of his image can appear to be

Julius Caesar was a Roman statesman who lost it all to foolishly becoming a dictator with king like qualities. Caesars great-nephew, Augustus (then Gaius Julius Caesar) inherited through his late great-uncle, a civil-war torn, distressed country. Throughout the next 40 years from the beginning of Augustus’ reign in 27 BCE to his death in 14 AD, he transformed Rome into a place of great peace. Peace in Rome lasted from 27 BCE to 180 AD, long after Augustus’ death because of the development of the Principate, the reconstruction and social reform of Rome and the Pax Romana. Augustus’ Empire was undoubtedly the most important Empire in Roman history and the peace Augustus created was his greatest achievement during his reign.