Portrait Head of Caligula
This bust of Emperor Caligula, was thought to have been made somewhere within Asia Minor, around the year 40 AD. There is no known record of who sculpted this bust, and no accurate record of who it was made for or why it was made. It was sculpted entirely out of marble.
After Caligula was murdered by his guards in 41 AD, almost all recorded statues and portraits of him were destroyed, as well as a lot of writings that were done about him. This led to modern day historians having to use later historians writings about him, which has led to possible inaccuracies and bias about Caligula.
Portraits of Roman Emperors have long been used as a means of conveying messages to the public, as well as conveying an emperor’s
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He has been purposely set apart from other portraits of this time, yet borrows heavily from Augustus’s hair style. This was purposely done to link Caligula to Augustus as a way of communicating Caligula’s divine right to rule.
Ironically, this portrait is the complete opposite of the image given to us by Roman historians like Suetonius. He writes that Caligula was “tall, pallid, hairy and badly built, thin, spindly, had sunken (eyes)” and that his scalp was “almost hairless, especially on top. Because of his baldness and hairiness he announced that it was a capital offense either for anyone to look down on him as he passed or to mention goats in any context.”
Emperor
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He reigned from 117 AD to 138 AD. Emperor Trajan named him his successor shortly before dying in 117 AD. Hadrian is considered on the five good Emperors by many historians, as he was seen to be a humanitarian by most. He was responsible for the building of Hadrian’s Wall in Britannia, as well as rebuilding the pantheon, and also the construction of the temple of Venus and Roma. Hadrian was also noticeably philhellene in his tastes, which explains well his desire to make Greece the cultural capital of the Roman Empire. His love of all things Greek, lead to the Greek culture being considered one the most popular cults in ancient times. During his reign, Hadrian travelled to nearly every province within the Empire, as well as being very involved with the military. He would often wear military uniforms or armours, and also slept and dined with Roman soldiers.
After Emperor Trajan died in 117 AD, Hadrian quickly secured legitimacy to his claim to power through endorsement from the Senate and the Syrian armies. Various public ceremonies were also organized. One specific Egyptian papyri tells of one such ceremony organized somewhere between 117-118 AD, in which it was praised that Hadrian had been divinely chosen by his deified father and by the gods
The emphasis accorded these contingencies of physiognomy and the resolute refusal of any concession to our - or, so it would appear, antiquity’s - ideas of desirable physical appearance lead one easily to the conclusion that those portraits are uncompromising attempts to transcribe into plastic form the reality of what is seen, innocent of any “idealization” or programmatic bias. These are the portraits of the conservative nobility (and of their middle-class emulators) (luring the death-agonies of the Roman republic. There is no need to doubt that much of their character refers to quite real qualities of their subjects. These are men in later life because the carefully prescribed ladder of public office normally allowed those who followed it to attain only gradually and after many years to such eminence as would allow the signal honor of a public statue. One may well suppose that these hard-bitten and rather unimaginative faces closely reflect the prevailing temperament of the class and society to which they belong, and the twisted and
Emperor Hadrian concentrated more on how the Empire was run verses making it larger. He also helped start the Pax Romana (Roman Peace). (Mahoney, 2001)
Marcus Ulpius Trajanus, notoriously known as the Roman Emperor Trajan was born September 18, most likely in the year 52 AD of Spanish origin. He was an educated man with a powerful, masculine figure. A bronze sculpture at Harvard University showcases his physique in ceremonial armor standing as if addressing his troops. He possessed a true sense of dignity and humbleness which to the Romans made him an emperor of true virtue. He was an emperor who truly enjoyed war; his passion for war came from the fact that he was very good at it. He was a brilliant general, as shown by his military achievements. He was naturally very popular with the troops, especially due to his willingness to share in the hardships alongside his soldiers.
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.
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.
Trajan is considered by many historians as one of the greatest Roman emperors. He conquered Parthia and Dacia, expanding Rome’s borders. He was also the first non-Roman emperor in Rome’s history. Trajan was born in Italica, Baetica (modern-day Spain) on September 15th, 53 CE, and he died on either August 8th or August 9th, 117 CE in Selinus, Cilicia (modern-day Turkey). Trajan started his career as a legionary staff tribune in Syria, where his father was governor. After that, he became a praetor, which qualified him for command of a legion in Spain in 89 CE. One day, he was ordered to march his troops to Rome to help a revolt against emperor Domitian, but the revolt was suppressed by the time he arrived. In 91 CE, Domitian allowed him
When discussing Augustus and Caligula it is simple to bring up the subject of public works and law. Augustus had the most success with his many projects, including the Temple of Mars the Avenger, the Palatine Temple of Apollo, and the Temple of Jupiter the Thunderer on the Capitol. Many colonnade, basilica, and theater were erected and named after relatives. He urged many renowned
Stylistically, his painting is an example of the “smooth” manner, characterized by fine technique in the portrayal of illusionistic form. In this painting, Calabrese uses strong directional lighting from the top, left corner of the painting to highlight the scene. It is Caravagesque in the way
Vespasian sat on the Roman throne from AD70-79. (Sims et al., 1999) proposes that ‘Vespasian was the emperor who restored order after Nero.’ Many emperors of Ancient Rome satisfied the needs of their citizens with the giving of bread and entertainment, Vespasian wanted to impress visitors and the general public. Being able to build a vast structure showed that the government took care of its people and was wealthy. It essentially also showed the emperor’s power. Emperor Vespasian used the construction of the Colosseum to gain popularity and support throughout his empire. His name was not to be forgotten, as well as Titus who was the successor and heir of Vespasian. Jewish slaves assisted in the construction of the Colosseum in a form of slave labour.
This region most likely was a nodus coiffiture, or a knot of hair worn directly above the center of the forehead. The nodus style was popularized by Livia, wife of Nero. It was often worn by women of the imperial court or those of higher status (Cormack 167). We are led to believe that she was a freeborn woman because her natal family would have been the ones to commission her monument and using these conclusions they could have afforded to do so. Because this sculpture is very simular in style to many others found in Rome, we can conclude that she was Roman in ethnicity (Johansen 246-7).
In this essay I will be expressing the research of three different rulers throughout three different time periods based upon their most famous works of art. So I can get a wide range of information, I have picked the following rulers from different periods: Queen Nefertiti of Ancient Egypt, Edward IV from Medieval England and finally Elizabeth I from the English Renaissance. I will be comparing and contrasting each ruler and how each of them changed the face of history.
The paper serves as a critical analysis of Thomas F. Mathews’ “The Mistake of the Emperor Mystique” chapter in his book The Clash of Gods: A Reinterpretation of Early Christian Art. The scope of the analysis extends only to the chapter, the works included in the chapter and some supplemental sources by other art historians. It examines Mathews’ central argument and auxiliary claims, paying attention to his use of sources. Additionally it probes the validity of his assertions, drawing comparisons to other works or historians.
Before analyzing Giambologna's use of diagonal lines to create various focal points and energy in the work; first, the most compelling aspect of the sculpture must be examined which is his utilization of implied textures. For instance, there is an implied texture of thickness and body to each character's hair which is achieved through fine grooves to show individual locks as well as deep grooves to create shadows and thus the idea of the hair's volume. In comparison, a similar concept is seen in the beards of the two men where the deep grooves and shadow give the appearance of a thick beard in the
One of the pieces defining characteristics, what makes it such a marvel, is how the physique is anatomically perfect. This speaks of a highly developed culture, with an intricate understanding of anatomy and physiology. But, also of a culture that privileges physical strength and beauty. The Greeks of the time were either artists or warriors, or often both, so strength and beauty were central in their world. Laocoon and His Sons is a much more naturalistic piece than earlier Greek works; in which the figures were often idolized; lacking luster, life, emotion, humanity. Cleobis and Biton, a set of sculptures from the Archaic Period, exemplify this quite well; posing, rigid, golem like figures; lacking the humanity they are supposed to represent. The Hellenistic baroque style of Laocoon and His Sons gives us a much more true-to-life representation in comparison to earlier works. This work has inspired artists and regular humans alike down through the centuries, one of whom it is particularly well known to have influenced greatly was Michelangelo; as can be seen in some of his pieces; e.g: The rebellious Slave.
He carried his head oblique. The greatest artists of the time made portraits of him. Lysippus made sculptures, Apelles made paintings and Pyrgoteles made gems. Among the surviving monuments, we have no completely certified portraits, except the Tivoli herm and the coins struck by his successors.