Ancient Rome - the art of sculpture. Sculpture of ancient Rome - photo and description Famous sculptors of ancient Rome

Monuments of Roman culture of the 2nd-1st centuries. BC e. not very numerous. This, for example, is the so-called “Brutus”, made of bronze. The main streets of the city of Rome in the late Republican period were decorated with magnificent marble statues, mostly copies of Greek masters. Thanks to this, the works of famous Greek sculptors have reached us: Myron, Polycleges, Praxiteles, Lysippos.
From the end of the 3rd century. BC The remarkable Greek sculpture begins to exert a powerful influence on Roman sculpture. While plundering Greek cities, the Romans captured large number sculptures that delight even the practical and conservative Romans.
Roman sculptures were much different from Greek ones. The Greeks very often depicted Gods in the form of statues, and the Romans tried to give the image of a person: his appearance. They made huge, full-length busts and statues. In the II century. BC the forum was so cluttered with bronze statues that a special resolution was issued by which many of them were removed.

According to legend, the first sculptures in Rome appeared under Tarquinius the Proud, who decorated the roof of the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitol, which he built according to Etruscan custom, with clay statues. In sculpture, the Romans were far behind the Greeks, although their portraits show individuality and an attempt to convey a specific image (unlike the idealized Greek statues). At the same time, Roman sculpture of the Republican period is characterized by some simplicity and angularity of forms. The first bronze sculpture was a statue of the fertility goddess Ceres, cast at the beginning of the 5th century. BC From the 4th century BC they begin to erect statues of Roman magistrates and even private individuals. Many Romans sought to erect statues of themselves or their ancestors in the Forum. In the II century. BC e. the forum was so cluttered with bronze statues that a special resolution was issued by which many of them were removed. Bronze statues were usually cast in early era Etruscan masters, and starting from the 2nd century. BC - Greek sculptors. Mass production of statues did not contribute to the creation good work, but the Romans did not strive for this. For them, the most important thing in the statue was its portrait resemblance to the original. The statue was supposed to glorify this person, his descendants, and it was therefore important that the person depicted not be confused with someone else. Monuments of Roman culture of the 2nd-1st centuries. BC e. not very numerous. This, for example, is the so-called “Brutus”, made of bronze. The main streets of the city of Rome in the late Republican period were decorated with magnificent marble statues, mostly copies of Greek masters.
The development of Roman individual portraiture was influenced by the custom of removing wax masks from the dead, which were then kept in the main room of the Roman house. These masks were taken out of the house during ceremonial funerals, and the more such masks there were, the more noble the family was considered. During sculptural work, the masters apparently widely used these wax masks. On the emergence and development of Roman realistic portrait influenced by the Etruscan tradition, which was guided by Etruscan craftsmen working for Roman customers.
From the end of the 3rd century. BC on roman sculpture remarkable Greek sculpture begins to exert a powerful influence. During the plunder of Greek cities, the Romans captured a large number of sculptures, which delighted even the practical and conservative Romans. A flood of Greek statues literally poured into Rome. For example, one of the Roman commanders brought 285 bronze and 230 marble sculptures to Rome after his campaign, another carried 250 carts with Greek statues in triumph. Greek statues are exhibited everywhere: in the forum, in temples, baths, villas, and in city houses. Despite the abundance of originals exported from Greece, there is a great demand for copies of the most famous statues. Moves to Rome large number Greek sculptors who copied originals famous masters. The abundant influx of Greek masterpieces and mass copying slowed down the flowering of Roman sculpture itself. Only in the field of realistic portraiture did the Romans, using Etruscan traditions, contribute to the development of sculpture and create several excellent works (Capitolian She-Wolf, Brutus, Orator, busts of Cicero and Caesar). Under the influence Greek art the Roman portrait begins to lose the features of naturalism characteristic of the Etruscan school, and acquires the features of some generalization, i.e. is truly realistic.

Initially, the Romans completely imitated Greek sculpture, considering it the height of perfection, they often made copies from the surviving Greek statues they liked best (thanks to which we can judge the existing originals). But if the Greeks sculpted gods and mythological heroes, then the Romans appeared sculptural portraits of specific people. Roman sculptural portrait is considered outstanding achievement ancient culture. Its creation was influenced by the republican custom of removing a plaster mask from the face of the deceased.
In funeral processions, relatives carried masks of their ancestors; it seemed that all the elders of the family were participating in the funeral. Noble Romans, proud of their origins, ordered their statues with portraits of their ancestors from sculptors. Very few early republican sculptural portraits have survived. Masters of the 1st century BC, working on a portrait, they followed nature exactly, often, probably already based on a dead face, without changing anything, preserving all the small details. A magnificent portrait of a moneylender from Pompeii. The character of the cunning and evil man who had no sympathy for people.

With the establishment of the empire, one of the main themes in Roman art was the glorification of the emperor. The first emperor Octavian Augustus himself and his assistants carefully supported those trends in literature and art that corresponded to the spirit of the official ideology. The glorification of the “divine Augustus,” the glorification of the Roman world, and the idealization of antiquity became the main motives of the work of Roman poets and artists. The majestic style of Pheidias and the ideal athletic beauty of the statues of Polykleitos were best suited for the expression of new ideas. The sculptural images of this period differ significantly from the sculptural portraits of the Republican period.
In famous images, Octavian Augustus is shown wearing the military armor of a commander. The cupid on the dolphin at his feet recalls the divine origin of Augustus (the dolphin is an attribute of Venus, which the Julius family considered their divine ancestor). The emperor's face and figure are too embellished. It is known that Augustus had large ears, sunken cheeks, and a weak and stooped body. The face is devoid of signs of age. The hero, the demigod, addressing the troops is confident in their devotion. The emperor's armor depicts the gods of heaven and earth, allegorical figures represent the conquered provinces of Gaul and Spain - a narrative relief.
Augustus, although shown in ceremonial armor, is depicted barefoot, like a Greek god and hero. The statue, like the Greek one, was painted. The statue of Augustus is based on classical sculpture from the school of Polykleitos. This statue was located near the altar of the Temple of Mars during the construction of his forum by Augustus. But here is Augustus seated on the throne with the goddess of victory Nike in his right hand and a rod in his left as a sign of power over the world. This famous composition V ancient world: composition of a statue of Olympian Zeus (5th century BC) made of gold and ivory, executed by Phidias. Augustus is half-naked, as it was customary to depict gods and heroes in Greek art.
The sculptural portrait changes over time. Since the time of Hadrian (2nd century AD), Roman sculptors have stopped painting marble: the iris, pupil, and eyebrows are now rendered with a chisel. The surface of the naked parts of the body is polished to a high shine, while hair and clothing remain matte. On multi-figure reliefs, the coloring continued to be preserved.
In numerous portraits of emperors, their wives, members of their families and private individuals, portrait likeness is always strictly observed, individual characteristics facial structure and hairstyle. But all portraits also have common features: This is an expression of sad reflection, self-absorption, sometimes sadness. The ideas of the official philosophy of Stoicism were imbued with pessimism and disappointment in earthly goods. This can be read in the face of Marcus Aurelius in his portrait statue (equestrian statue of the 160s - 170s AD).
It was considered a special honor to capture an emperor, military leader or other political figure on a horse (the horse was an ancient symbol of the sun). The fate of the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius is interesting because, accepted in the Middle Ages as an image of the Emperor Constantine, revered as a saint by the Christian Church, it was not destroyed as pagan, it was carefully preserved and became a model for equestrian statues of the Renaissance.
The image of Commodus, represented as Hercules (190 AD), is full of dreamy melancholy, although such an expression does not at all correspond to the rude and cruel character of this last ruler from the Antonine dynasty. He has a lion's skin on his shoulders, a club in his right hand, and magic apples in his left that restore youth.
Of particular brilliance in the 2nd century. Relief reached. Reliefs decorated Trajan's Forum and the famous memorial column. The column with a Doric capital stands on a plinth with an Ionic base framed by a laurel wreath. The top of the column was crowned with a bronze gilded statue of the emperor; his ashes were buried in a golden urn in the base of the column. The reliefs on the column make 23 turns and reach 200 m in length. The relief of Trajan's Column accurately tells the protocol about all the details of the campaigns of the Roman troops on the Danube in 101-102 and 105-106. against the Dacians.
The composition of the entire relief belongs to one author, but there were many performers, all the masters went through the school of Greek, or rather Hellenistic, art, but in different directions, which is especially noticeable in the interpretation of the figures and heads of the Dacians. The entire multi-figure frieze (more than 2000 figures) is subordinated to one idea: a demonstration of the strength, organization, endurance and discipline of the victorious Roman army. Trajan was depicted 90 times. The Dacians are characterized as brave, courageous, but unorganized barbarians. The images of the Dacians turned out to be more expressive than the images of the Romans, their emotions openly come out.
The relief was variegatedly painted, the details were gilded; it looked like a bright picturesque tape, full of lively dynamic pictures. In the last third of the century, in the reliefs of the column of Marcus Aurelius, the features of a change in style, its “barbarization” already clearly appear. This process received intensive development in the 3rd-4th centuries.
Only strong-willed, energetic, stern rulers could retain power in their hands during the ensuing period of crisis and collapse of the empire. Portraits depicting soft sadness and melancholy give way not to the depiction of any mood, but to the revelation of character. Such, for example, is the portrait of Philip the Arabian (3rd century AD). This ruler killed his predecessor and, relying on troops loyal to him, came to power. Outstanding sculptor conveyed the gloomy expression on the face of Philip the Arabian, his energetically closed lips, and the weathered skin of the soldier. The portrait reveals courage and strength, as well as suspicion and mistrust of others. The portrait of Emperor Caracalla is equally expressive.
The triumph of the Christian Church was accompanied by the destruction of many monuments of ancient sculpture.

Initially, the Romans completely imitated Greek sculpture, considering it the height of perfection, and often made copies of the surviving Greek statues they liked best. But still, Roman sculptures were much different from Greek ones. The Greeks very often depicted Gods in the form of statues, and the Romans tried to convey the image of a person: his appearance. They made huge, full-length busts and statues. In the II century. BC e. the forum was so cluttered with bronze statues that a special resolution was issued by which many of them were removed.
The first bronze sculpture was a statue of the fertility goddess Ceres, cast at the beginning of the 5th century. BC From the 4th century BC they begin to erect statues of Roman magistrates and even private individuals. Many Romans sought to erect statues of themselves or their ancestors in the Forum. For the Romans, the most important thing about the statue was its portrait resemblance to the original. The statue was supposed to glorify this person, his descendants, and therefore it was important that the person depicted was not confused with someone else. In numerous portraits of emperors, their wives, members of their families and private individuals, portrait resemblance and individual features of facial structure and hairstyle are always strictly observed.
The conquest of Greece and the Hellenistic states was accompanied by a grandiose plunder of Greek cities. Along with slaves, various kinds of material assets were exported to Rome in a huge number Greek statues and paintings. This is how the works of Scopas, Praxiteles, Lysippos and many other great Greek masters were transported to Rome.

The main advantage of Ancient Roman sculpture is the realism and authenticity of the images. First of all, this is due to the fact that the Romans had a strong cult of ancestors, and from the very beginning early period In Roman history, there was a custom of removing wax death masks, which were later used by sculpture masters as the basis for sculptural portraits.

The very concept of "ancient" roman art"has a very conventional meaning. All Roman sculptors were Greeks by origin. In an aesthetic sense, all ancient Roman sculpture is a replica of Greek. The innovation was the combination of the Greek desire for harmony and Roman rigidity and the cult of strength.

The history of ancient Roman sculpture is divided into three parts - Etruscan art, sculpture of the Republic era and imperial art.

Etruscan art

Etruscan sculpture was intended to decorate funeral urns. These urns themselves were created in the shape of a human body. The realism of the image was considered necessary to maintain order in the world of spirits and people. The works of ancient Etruscan masters, despite the primitiveness and schematic nature of the images, surprise with the individuality of each image, its character and energy.

Sculpture of the Roman Republic

Sculpture from the times of the Republic is characterized by emotional stinginess, detachment and coldness. The impression of complete isolation of the image was created. This is due to the accurate reproduction death mask when creating a sculpture. The situation was somewhat corrected by Greek aesthetics, the canons by which the proportions of the human body were calculated.

Numerous reliefs of triumphal columns and temples that date back to this period amaze with their grace of lines and realism. Particularly worth mentioning is the bronze sculpture of the "Roman She-Wolf". The fundamental legend of Rome, the material embodiment of Roman ideology - this is the meaning of this statue in culture. The primitivization of the plot, the incorrect proportions, and the fantastic nature do not in the least prevent one from admiring the dynamics of this work, its special sharpness and temperament.

But the main achievement in the sculpture of this era is the realistic sculptural portrait. Unlike Greece, where when creating a portrait, the master one way or another subordinated everything to the laws of harmony and beauty personality traits models, Roman craftsmen carefully copied all the subtleties of the models’ appearance. On the other hand, this often led to simplified images, rough lines and a distance from realism.

Roman Empire Sculpture

The task of the art of any empire is to exalt the emperor and the power. - is no exception. The Romans of the imperial era could not imagine their home without sculptures of ancestors, gods and the emperor himself. Therefore, many examples of imperial equipment have survived to this day. plastic arts.

First of all, the triumphal columns of Trajan and Marcus Aurelius deserve attention. The columns are decorated with bas-reliefs telling about military campaigns, exploits and trophies. Such reliefs are not only works of art, striking with the accuracy of their images, multi-figure composition, harmonious lines and subtlety of work, they are also priceless historical source, allowing you to restore household and military details from the era of the empire.

The statues of emperors in the forums of Rome are made in a harsh, rough manner. There is no longer a trace of that Greek harmony and beauty that was characteristic of early Roman art. The masters, first of all, had to portray strong and tough rulers. There was also a departure from realism. Roman emperors were depicted as athletic and tall, despite the fact that rarely any of them had a harmonious physique.

Almost always during the Roman Empire, sculptures of gods were depicted with the faces of the ruling emperors, so historians know for sure what the emperors of the largest ancient state looked like.

Despite the fact that Roman art, without any doubt, entered the world treasury of many masterpieces, in its essence it is only a continuation of ancient Greek. The Romans developed ancient art, made it more magnificent, more majestic, brighter. On the other hand, it was the Romans who lost the sense of proportion, depth and ideological content of early ancient art.

1. INTRODUCTION

2. HOW THE FIRST SCULPTURES WERE BORN

3. SCULPTURE OF THE REPUBLIC PERIOD

4. SCULPTURE OF THE EMPIRE PERIOD

5. CONCLUSION

6. LIST OF REFERENCES USED

7.APPLICATIONS

1. INTRODUCTION

Roman sculptures were much different from Greek ones. The Greeks very often depicted Gods in the form of statues, and the Romans tried to give the image of a person: his appearance. They made huge, full-length busts and statues. In the II century. BC the forum was so cluttered with bronze statues that a special resolution was issued by which many of them were removed.

The purpose of my essay is: a description of sculptures - the origin and sculptures in different periods of Rome (republican and imperial).

2. HOW THE FIRST SCULPTURES WERE ORIGINED

The development of Roman individual portraiture was influenced by the custom of removing wax masks from the dead, which were then kept in the main room of the Roman house. These masks were taken out of the house during ceremonial funerals, and the more such masks there were, the more noble the family was considered. During sculptural work, the masters apparently widely used these wax masks. The emergence and development of Roman realistic portraiture was influenced by the Etruscan tradition, which was guided by Etruscan masters working for Roman clients.

From the end of the 3rd century. BC The remarkable Greek sculpture begins to exert a powerful influence on Roman sculpture. During the plunder of Greek cities, the Romans captured a large number of sculptures, which delighted even the practical and conservative Romans. A flood of Greek statues literally poured into Rome. For example, one of the Roman commanders brought 285 bronze and 230 marble sculptures to Rome after his campaign, another carried 250 carts with Greek statues in triumph. Greek statues are exhibited everywhere: in the forum, in temples, baths, villas, and in city houses. Despite the abundance of originals exported from Greece, there is a great demand for copies of the most famous statues. A large number of Greek sculptors moved to Rome, copying the originals of famous masters. The abundant influx of Greek masterpieces and mass copying slowed down the flowering of Roman sculpture itself. Only in the field of realistic portraiture did the Romans, using Etruscan traditions, contribute to the development of sculpture and create several excellent works (Capitolian She-Wolf, Brutus, Orator, busts of Cicero and Caesar). Under the influence of Greek art, the Roman portrait begins to lose the features of naturalism characteristic of the Etruscan school, and acquires the features of some generalization, i.e. is truly realistic.

3. SCULPTURE OF THE REPUBLIC PERIOD

Initially, the Romans completely imitated Greek sculpture, considering it the height of perfection, and often made copies of the surviving Greek statues they liked best (thanks to which we can judge the existing originals). But if the Greeks sculpted gods and mythological heroes, the Romans created sculptural portraits of specific people. The Roman sculptural portrait is considered an outstanding achievement of ancient culture. Its creation was influenced by the republican custom of removing a plaster mask from the face of the deceased.

In funeral processions, relatives carried masks of their ancestors; it seemed that all the elders of the family were participating in the funeral. Noble Romans, proud of their origin, ordered their statues with portraits of their ancestors from sculptors (ill. 63). Very few early republican sculptural portraits have survived. Masters of the 1st century BC, working on a portrait, they followed nature exactly, often, probably already based on a dead face, without changing anything, preserving all the small details. A magnificent portrait of a moneylender from Pompeii. The character of a cunning and evil man who did not know sympathy for people is truthfully conveyed.

The conquest of Greece and the Hellenistic states was accompanied by a grandiose plunder of Greek cities. Along with slaves and various kinds of material assets, Greek statues and paintings were exported to Rome in huge quantities. This is how the works of Scopas, Praxiteles, Lysippos and many other great Greek masters were transported to Rome.

4. SCULPTURE FROM THE EMPIRE PERIOD

In famous images, Octavian Augustus is shown wearing the military armor of a commander. The cupid on the dolphin at his feet recalls the divine origin of Augustus (the dolphin is an attribute of Venus, which the Julius family considered their divine ancestor). The emperor's face and figure are too embellished. It is known that Augustus had large ears, sunken cheeks, and a weak and stooped body. The face is devoid of signs of age. The hero, the demigod, addressing the troops is confident in their devotion. The emperor's armor depicts the gods of heaven and earth, allegorical figures represent the conquered provinces of Gaul and Spain - a narrative relief.

Augustus, although shown in ceremonial armor, is depicted barefoot, like a Greek god and hero. The statue, like the Greek one, was painted. The statue of Augustus is based on classical sculpture from the school of Polykleitos. This statue was located near the altar of the Temple of Mars during the construction of his forum by Augustus.

But here is Augustus seated on the throne with the goddess of victory Nike in his right hand and a rod in his left as a sign of power over the world. This is a famous composition in the ancient world: the composition of the statue of Olympian Zeus (5th century BC) made of gold and ivory, executed by Phidias. Augustus is half-naked, as it was customary to depict gods and heroes in Greek art.

The sculptural portrait changes over time. Since the time of Hadrian (2nd century AD), Roman sculptors have stopped painting marble: the iris, pupil, and eyebrows are now rendered with a chisel. The surface of the naked parts of the body is polished to a high shine, while hair and clothing remain matte. On multi-figure reliefs, the coloring continued to be preserved.

In numerous portraits of emperors, their wives, members of their families and private individuals, portrait resemblance and individual features of facial structure and hairstyle are always strictly observed. But all portraits also have common features: an expression of sad reflection, self-absorption, and sometimes sadness. The ideas of the official philosophy of Stoicism were imbued with pessimism and disappointment in earthly goods. This can be read in the face of Marcus Aurelius in his portrait statue (equestrian statue of the 160s - 170s AD).

It was considered a special honor to capture an emperor, military leader or other political figure on a horse (the horse was an ancient symbol of the sun). The fate of the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius is interesting because, accepted in the Middle Ages as an image of the Emperor Constantine, revered as a saint by the Christian Church, it was not destroyed as pagan, it was carefully preserved and became a model for equestrian statues of the Renaissance.

The image of Commodus, represented as Hercules (190 AD, ill. 64), is full of dreamy melancholy, although such an expression does not at all correspond to the rude and cruel character of this last ruler from the Antonine dynasty. He has a lion's skin on his shoulders, a club in his right hand, and magic apples in his left that restore youth.

Of particular brilliance in the 2nd century. Relief reached. Reliefs decorated Trajan's forum and the famous memorial column (Fig. 61). The column with a Doric capital stands on a plinth with an Ionic base framed by a laurel wreath. The top of the column was crowned with a bronze gilded statue of the emperor; his ashes were buried in a golden urn in the base of the column. The reliefs on the column make 23 turns and reach 200 m in length. The relief of Trajan's Column accurately tells the protocol about all the details of the campaigns of the Roman troops on the Danube in 101-102 and 105-106. against the Dacians.

The composition of the entire relief belongs to one author, but there were many performers, all the masters went through the school of Greek, or rather Hellenistic, art, but in different directions, which is especially noticeable in the interpretation of the figures and heads of the Dacians. The entire multi-figure frieze (more than 2000 figures) is subordinated to one idea: a demonstration of the strength, organization, endurance and discipline of the victorious Roman army. Trajan was depicted 90 times. The Dacians are characterized as brave, courageous, but unorganized barbarians. The images of the Dacians turned out to be more expressive than the images of the Romans, their emotions openly come out.

The relief was variegatedly painted, the details were gilded; it looked like a bright picturesque tape, full of lively dynamic pictures. In the last third of the century, in the reliefs of the column of Marcus Aurelius, the features of a change in style, its “barbarization” already clearly appear. This process received intensive development in the 3rd-4th centuries.

Only strong-willed, energetic, stern rulers could retain power in their hands during the ensuing period of crisis and collapse of the empire. Portraits depicting soft sadness and melancholy give way not to the depiction of any mood, but to the revelation of character. Such, for example, is the portrait of Philip the Arabian (3rd century AD). This ruler killed his predecessor and, relying on troops loyal to him, came to power. The outstanding sculptor conveyed the gloomy expression on the face of Philip the Arabian, his energetically closed lips, and the weathered skin of the soldier. The portrait reveals courage and strength, as well as suspicion and mistrust of others. The portrait of Emperor Caracalla is equally expressive.

The triumph of the Christian Church was accompanied by the destruction of many monuments of ancient sculpture.

5. CONCLUSION

sculpture roman statue ceres

The first bronze sculpture was a statue of the fertility goddess Ceres, cast at the beginning of the 5th century. BC From the 4th century BC they begin to erect statues of Roman magistrates and even private individuals. Many Romans sought to erect statues of themselves or their ancestors in the Forum. For the Romans, the most important thing about the statue was its portrait resemblance to the original. The statue was supposed to glorify this person, his descendants, and therefore it was important that the person depicted was not confused with someone else.

It was considered a special honor to photograph an emperor, military leader or other political figure on horseback. The conquest of Greece and the Hellenistic states was accompanied by a grandiose plunder of Greek cities. Along with slaves and various kinds of material assets, Greek statues and paintings were exported to Rome in huge quantities. This is how the works of Scopas, Praxiteles, Lysippos and many other great Greek masters were transported to Rome.

6. LIST OF REFERENCES USED

1. Tutorial in cultural studies, publishing house of the Russian Economic Academy named after G.V. Plekhanov, Moscow, 1994.

2. Life and history in antiquity / Ed. G.S. Knabe. M., 1988.

3. History of Ancient Rome / Ed. V.I. Kuzicin. M., 1982.

4. Kebe G.S. Ancient Rome - history and modernity. M., 1986.

5. Culture of Ancient Rome / Ed. E.S. Golubtsova. M., 1986. T. 1 and 2.

6. Truhit I.11. Politics and policies of the "golden age" of the Roman Republic. M., 1986.

7. Shtaerman EM. Social foundations of religion in Ancient Rome. M., 1987.

In the era of the empire, relief and round plastic were further developed. In the Roman Forum, the Altar of Peace is being erected, the upper part of which ends with a multi-faceted relief depicting the solemn procession of strict, battle-hardened Roman patricians, endowed with sharp portrait characteristics. Historical reliefs glorifying the exploits of Roman weapons and the wisdom of rulers adorn the triumphal arches. A two-hundred-meter strip of reliefs of Trajan's triumphal column tells in detail and dispassionately the campaign of Roman troops against the Dacians

However, the portrait still occupies the leading place in Roman sculpture. In the age of Augustus, the character of the image changes dramatically - the ideal of classical beauty and the type of new person that republican Rome did not know emerge in it. Full-length ceremonial portraits appear, filled with calm restraint and grandeur. The marble sculpture of Augustus from Prima Porta (early 1st century AD, Rome, Vatican) depicts the emperor as a commander in armor and with a staff in his hand. The pose of the athletically built Augustus is simple. The posing of the figure with support on one leg is reminiscent of the style of Polykleitos. But the inviting gesture of the raised right hand, addressed to the legions, is powerful and laconic - it changes the basic rhythm of the figure, emphasizing the decisive movement up and forward. The head is constructed strictly, the facial features are generalized, the volume is sculpted with finely modeled large planes, connected by a smooth rhythm and soft chiaroscuro. In a frowning face with sharply protruding cheekbones and chin, in a sharp gaze, in compressed lips, tension of will, mental energy, self-control, and internal discipline are expressed.

The austere style of Augustus under the Flavians (69-96 AD) is replaced by a more spectacular and pompous full-length portrait; at the same time, sharp realism is being revived again, mercilessly reproducing man with all his ugly features - Lucius Caecilius Jucundus (second half of the 1st century AD, Naples, Museum). In contrast to the verism of the republican era, artists achieve versatility, generalization of characteristics, enrich artistic language new means. In the portrait of Nero (Rome, National Museum), with a low forehead and a heavy, suspicious gaze, reveals the cold cruelty of the despot, the arbitrariness of base, unbridled passions, and conceit. The heavy shapes of the face and strands of thick hair are conveyed by a combination of large pictorial masses. The artists abandon traditional frontal compositions and place the sculpture more freely in space, thereby destroying the closed image of the republican portrait. These features can be observed in the “Portrait of a Roman Woman” (Rome, Capitoline Museum), where the image is enlivened by a barely noticeable movement, a tilt of the head. The relaxed posture is proud, the face is full of self-confidence. Lush hairstyle of picturesque masses of curls crowns the arrogant features of a young woman. After the restraint and stinginess of the images of the era of Trajan at the time of the crisis of the ancient worldview under the Antonines (2nd century), features of spirituality, self-deepening and at the same time an imprint of sophistication and fatigue characterizing a dying era appear in the Roman portrait. People appear humane, but filled with anxiety, with sad gazes directed into the distance. The contemplative mood is emphasized by the interpretation of the eyes with sharply inset pupils, half-covered by soft, heavy eyelids. The finest chiaroscuro and brilliant polishing of the face make the marble glow from the inside, destroying the sharpness of the lines;

picturesque masses of hair highlight the transparency of features. The features of “The Syrian Woman” (second half of the 2nd century, Leningrad, Hermitage) are ennobled by the most subtle experiences, reflecting the world of sad and hidden thoughts. The facial expression that changes depending on the lighting reveals a hint of subtle irony.

The equestrian sculpture of Marcus Aurelius (c. 170), installed again in the 16th century, dates back to this era. according to the design of Michelangelo on the square: Capitol in Rome. Alien to military glory, Marcus Aurelius is depicted in a toga, seated on a slowly walking horse. The image of the emperor is interpreted as the embodiment of the civic ideal and humanity. The concentrated face of the stoic is filled with an unclouded calm of spirit; he addresses the people with a wide, pacifying gesture. This is the image of a pensive philosopher, the author of “Reflections Alone with Myself.” The figure of the horse seems to echo the movements of the rider, not only carries him, but also complements his image. “A more beautiful and smarter head than the horse of Marcus Aurelius,” wrote the German art historian Winckelmann, “cannot be found in nature.” Third century - era the heyday of Roman portraiture, increasingly liberated from the traditions of the past. This flourishing takes place in conditions of decline, decomposition of the Roman state and its culture, but at the same time the emergence of new creative trends in its depths. The influx of barbarians, often at the head of the empire, infused new, fresh energy into the fading Roman art. It outlines the features that developed in the Middle Ages in the West and East, in the portrait of the Renaissance. Full of extreme energy, lust for power, and brute force, images of people appear, born of the brutal struggle that gripped society at that time. In the bust of Emperor Caracalla (early 3rd century, Naples, National Museum), Roman realism reaches its peak. The individual image of Caracalla grows into a typical embodiment of a despot.

Ruthless realism is enriched with psychological insight into inner world, full of dramatic tension and environmental conflicts. The composition is based on sharp contrast shoulders and a sudden angry turn of the head. The energetically carved face is distorted by convulsions of anger; the expressive image is dramatized by contrasts of light and shadow. Portrait images of this period are contrasting. They differ in characteristics and artistic techniques. The sculptor reveals not only the brutal struggle of man’s rough and strong passions, but becomes sensitive to the subtle nuances of moods. The “Portrait of a Boy” (first half of the 3rd century, Moscow, Pushkin Museum) with large sad eyes, in which hidden reproach shines through. The sculptor notices in the touching tenderness and defenselessness of the child a shade of weak-willedness that appears in the line of the slightly open mouth. In this portrait the artist refuses to work with a drill, which was usually used to crush the sculptural mass, causing a dynamic play of light and shadow, as was observed in the portrait of Caracalla. The psychological richness in the portrait of the boy is achieved by extreme restraint of plastic means, solidity of compact volumes, and at the same time an unusually subtle development of facial plasticity. The transparency of marble enhances the impression of pain on the face, and light shadows, light and air vibrating on its surface spiritualize it.

The late period of development of the portrait is marked by an external coarsening of the appearance and increased spiritual expression, appearing in the burning gaze. Philip the Arabian (244-249, Leningrad, Hermitage) - a stern soldier, the son of a robber, the embodiment of the image of “barbarian” Rome; the sculptor highlights the most important things in his face, outlines the hair with only a few lines and notches, builds the composition in large masses, thereby achieving almost architectural monumentality. In the portrait of Maximin Daza (4th century, Cairo, Museum), schematism wins, internal tension acquires superhuman strength. IN " Portrait of a woman"(4th century, Leningrad, Hermitage) in a frozen gaze directed into the distance, a spiritual impulse anticipates the iconic faces of early Byzantine art. A person seems to turn to the outside world, which he perceives as the embodiment of unknown supernatural forces. The will to live disappears, submission to fate begins to dominate - a person recognizes himself as a weak being. Within Roman art, spiritualism was born, characteristic of the emerging medieval art. In the image of a person who has lost the ethical ideal in life itself, the harmony of the physical and spiritual principles, characteristic of the ancient ideal of personality, is destroyed.

Ruins of Ancient Rome.

In the 1st millennium BC. e. A state arose around the city of Rome, which began to expand its possessions at the expense of neighboring peoples. This world power existed for about a thousand years and lived through the exploitation of slave labor and conquered countries. Rome owned all the lands adjacent to the Mediterranean Sea, both in Europe, Asia and Africa. Therefore, art, especially architecture, was called upon to show the whole world the power state power. Endless wars, the thirst for conquest, in which Rome matured and grew, required the exertion of all forces, so the basis of Roman society was firm discipline in the army, firm laws in the state and firm power in the family. Above all, the Romans valued the ability to rule the world. Virgil stated:

You rule the people with authority, Roman, remember!
Behold, your arts will be: to impose the conditions of peace,
Spare the downtrodden and overthrow the proud!
("Aeneid")

The Romans subjugated the entire Mediterranean, including Hellas, but Greece itself captivated Rome, because it had a strong influence on the entire culture of Rome - in religion and philosophy, in literature and art.

Etruscan she-wolf, who, according to legend, nursed Romulus and Remus (Etruscan casting)

Legend has it that the usurper Amulius seized the throne of his brother, the king of Alba Longa, Numitor - the grandfather of the twins Romulus and Remus, and ordered the babies to be thrown into the Tiber. The twins' father, Mars, saved his sons, and they were nursed by a she-wolf sent by God. The boys were then raised by the shepherd Faustulus and his wife Akka Larentia. When the brothers grew up, they killed Amulius, returned power to their grandfather, and founded a city in the place where the she-wolf found them. During the construction of the walls of the new city, a quarrel broke out between the brothers, and Romulus killed Remus. The city was built and named after Romulus by Rome, and Romulus himself became its first king. Part of the culture was borrowed by the Romans from other peoples. Much - among the Etruscans, but most of all - among the Greeks. The Romans borrowed from the Etruscans gladiator fights, stage games, the nature of sacrifices, and belief in good and evil demons. The Romans, like the Etruscans, preferred sculpture among the arts, and not sculpture, but modeling - from clay, wax, bronze.

Building decorated with semi-columns

However, the main predecessor of Roman art was still Greece. The Romans even took many of their beliefs and myths from the Greeks. The Romans learned to build arches, simple vaults and domes from stone.
They learned to build more diverse structures, for example, the round building of the Pantheon - the temple of all gods, it had a diameter of more than 40 meters. The Pantheon was covered with a giant dome. which has been a model for builders and architects for centuries.
The Romans learned the ability to build columns from the Greeks. The Romans built triumphal arches in honor of their generals.
The buildings intended for the entertainment of the Roman nobility were particularly splendid. The largest Roman circus, the Colosseum, accommodated 50 thousand spectators. It was an amphitheater - in a similar way, circuses and stadiums are built now.
Roman baths, which were called thermae, were also unique places for recreation and entertainment. There were washrooms, locker rooms, swimming pools, exercise rooms, sports grounds and even libraries. The spacious halls were covered with vaults and domes, the walls were lined with marble.
At the edge of the squares, large judicial and commercial buildings were often built - basilicas. In Rome, palaces of rulers and multi-storey buildings for the poor. Romans with average incomes lived in separate houses, which were surrounded by an open courtyard - and in the middle of the atrium there was a pool for rainwater. Behind the house there was a courtyard with columns, a garden, and a fountain.

Arc de Triomphe Emperor Titus

In 81, in honor of Emperor Titus and his victory over Judea, a single-span, 5.33 m wide, Arc de Triomphe was erected on the sacred road leading to the Capitoline Hill. The marble arch was 20 meters high. An inscription dedicated to Titus was carved above the span; the arch was also decorated with reliefs depicting the victorious procession of the Romans, made in complex turns and movements.

Pantheon - view inside

The Pantheon was erected under Emperor Hadrian (117-138). The temple is built of stone, brick and concrete. The round building has a height of 42.7 m and is covered with a dome 43.2 m in diameter. From the outside, the building is quite modest; it is decorated only with a portico with Corinthian columns made of red granite. But the interior was an example of technical excellence and luxury. The floor of the temple is paved with marble slabs. The wall is divided in height into two tiers. In the lower tier there were deep niches in which stood statues of gods. The upper part is divided by pilasters (rectangular projections) made of colored marble. The lighting of the temple is provided by a hole in the dome, a “window” with a diameter of 9 m, the so-called eye of the Pantheon. The floor under this “eye” has a barely noticeable slope for water drainage.

Pantheon outside

The name of the building speaks for itself - “pantheon”, a temple to the pantheon of ancient Roman gods. It should be noted that the building, which still stands today, is not the first temple on this site. Under Emperor Augustus, the first temple was built, but then it burned down in a fire in Ancient Rome. In memory of the first builder, an associate of Emperor Augustus, Marcus Agrippa, the inscription “M. Agrippa l f cos tertium fecit.”

Colosseum outside

Under the emperors Vespasian and Titus, in 75-82. a huge amphitheater was built for gladiator fights - the Colosseum (from the Latin “colosseum” - colossal). In plan, it was an ellipse, 188 m long, 156 m wide, 50 m high. The wall is divided into three tiers. In the upper one they pulled out an awning from the rain and sun. There were statues in the lower ones. The arena could accommodate up to 3,000 pairs of gladiators. The arena could be flooded with water and then naval battles would take place.

Colosseum inside

Aqueduct

The Roman Aqueduct is a plumbing system, but at the same time functional and carefully designed, perfect art. At the top there was a channel separated by a cornice, below there were arches, and even lower there were supports visually separated from the arches. Long continuous horizontal lines hid the height and emphasized the infinity of the water pipeline stretching into the distance.

Equestrian statue Marcus Aurelius in Rome

The sculpture was initially imported from Greece. Then they began to copy it from Greek. However, there was also an independent, Roman sculpture. These were sculptural portraits and relief images, monuments to emperors and generals.

Portrait of a Roman

Portrait of a young man

Relief sculpture

Statue of Emperor Augustus from Prima Porta.

The period of the reign of Octavian Augustus is called by ancient historians the “golden age” of the Roman state. The established “Roman world” stimulated a high rise in art and culture. The Emperor is depicted in a calm, majestic pose, his hand raised in an inviting gesture; it was as if he appeared in the garb of a general before his legions. Augustus is depicted with his head uncovered and his legs exposed, which is a tradition in Greek art of representing gods and heroes naked or semi-nude. Augustus's face bears portrait features, but nevertheless is somewhat idealized. The whole figure embodies the idea of the greatness and power of the empire.

Trajan's Column in Rome

A column built by the architect Apollodorus in honor of Emperor Trajan has survived to this day. The height of the column is more than 30 meters, made of 17 drums of Carrara marble. There is a spiral staircase running inside the column. The column ended with a bronze figure of Trajan, which was replaced in the 16th century by a statue of the Apostle Peter. The column is lined with slabs of Parian marble, along which a bas-relief stretches in a 200-meter spiral, in historical sequence depicting the main events of Trajan's campaign against the Dacians (101-107): the construction of a bridge over the Danube, the crossing, the battle with the Dacians, their camp, the siege of the fortress, the suicide of the Dacian leader, the procession of prisoners, triumphant return Trajan to Rome.

Fragment of Trajan's Column

At the end of the 4th and 5th centuries, the “great migration of peoples” took place - a large tribe of Goths settled on the territory of the Roman Empire, they were warmly supported by the rebellious slaves and peoples enslaved by Rome. Hordes of nomadic Huns sweep through the empire like a destructive whirlwind. The Visigoths, then the Vandals, captured and destroyed Rome itself. The Roman Empire is falling apart. And in 476 the final blow was dealt to Rome and power passed to the barbarian squads. The Roman Empire fell, but its culture left an indelible mark on human history.