Gates Charles. Ancient Cities: The Archaeology of Urban Life in the Ancient Near East and Egypt, Greece and Rome
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382 ANCIENT ITALY AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
one cannot discern the complete shape of this dome. Instead, the dome appears shallow, only
slightly curved.
The inside reveals unimpeded the full hemisphere. The dome is decorated with coffers, or
squares one inside the other. Originally a gilded bronze rosette decorated the center of each
coffer; with light reflecting on them, these rosettes must have seemed like stars. At the top is an
oculus, an opening to the sky. The worshipper can look up into the heavens; sunlight and rain
and even snow penetrate the temple. The sun as it crosses the sky illuminates a different spot
with each passing minute. Drain holes in the floor carry off water.
The dome of the Pantheon had great influence on post-antique architecture. In religious
architecture the embodiment of the divine, the celestial, as in the Byzantine Haghia Sophia or
the Islamic Dome of the Rock, in a secular building such as the Capitol in Washington, D.C., the
dome represents the triumph of human thought and rationalism, the symbol of a certain idea
of Roman civic order. No need to be surprised, then, by the first three lines of an inscription
installed in 1632 by Pope Urban VIII at the rear of the Pantheon’s porch: “The Pantheon, the
most celebrated edifice in the whole world” (MacDonald 1976: 94).
The Temple of Venus and Roma
The Temple of Venus and Roma, magnificently constructed with lavish materials, survives only
in ground plan (see Figure 20.8). Begun after the Pantheon, in 121, and dedicated probably in
135, it was completed in the region of Antoninus Pius. To erect it, Hadrian had the colossal
statue of Sol (the Sun, formerly Nero) transferred to the north-west of the Flavian amphitheater
(the Colosseum). The large temple (136m × 66m) sits raised on a high stylobate of seven steps,
standing free in the center of a large platform (145m × 100m) at the east end of the Forum
Romanum. The platform is bordered by a colonnade of Egyptian gray granite columns on the
long sides only; the formal entrance to the precinct lies on the south, through a propylon in the
middle of the colonnade.
The temple itself looked Greek from the exterior, being a rectangle surrounded by a typical
Greek peristyle, ten Corinthian columns on the short ends, twenty on the long. Inside, there were
two cellas, the western, facing the Roman Forum, for the goddess Roma (Rome), the eastern for
Venus. The temple was made of concrete faced with brick, then covered with marble imported
from Greece. Technical details of the architectural decorations indicate that the workmen, too,
came from the Aegean region. The use of foreign materials and workmen, a shift in the habits of
the previous century, reflects the wide-ranging tastes of the well-traveled Hadrian, but also indi-
cates the increasing prominence of cities and regions outside the capital and Italy. Apollodorus,
Trajan’s chief architect, criticized the building as lying too low; if placed on a higher platform, its
unusual width would have had greater visual impact. Such frank comments were not appreciated
by Hadrian, especially since they followed earlier expressions of contempt. Eventually Hadrian
had Apollodorus put to death.
COMMEMORATIVE MONUMENTS
Before we continue with important civic buildings of the capital, further donations of emper-
ors, let us turn to two commemorative monuments whose sculptural decorations were impor-
tant visual reminders of the military successes of their imperial donors. The Arch of Titus
and the Column of Trajan carry on the tradition of historical relief sculptures made for public
ROME FROM NERO TO HADRIAN 383
exhibition, a distinctive tradition in Roman art seen first in the Ara Pacis that will continue into
the late empire even after the capital shifted to Constantinople.
The Arch of Titus
When a general won a great victory, he was entitled to a parade in Rome. The general rode in
splendor, accompanied by his soldiers. Captives were forced to march, and captured booty was
carried for all to see. The victory parade, or triumph, was
often commemorated afterwards by a monumental arch.
The first of these was built in 196 BC, but no longer sur-
vives. Of those that do remain, two are of particular inter-
est for us: the Arch of Titus and the Arch of Constantine
(Chapter 25).
The Arch of Titus is a monumental free-standing single
arch made of stone, the curved arch framed inside a recti-
linear shape (Figure 23.12). Built after 81 by Domitian to
honor his deceased brother Titus, the Arch commemo-
rated the earlier suppression, in 70, of a Jewish revolt in
Palestine by Vespasian and Titus, his son. Notable among
the decorations are the two panels of relief sculptures
placed just above eye level on the inside of the arched
passageway. These two scenes illustrate not the war, but
two moments in the triumphal procession held in Rome
after the victory had been secured.
In both scenes the figures march westward toward the
Temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline, the revered center of
Roman religion. On one side we see the high point of the
parade, the victorious general in his chariot pulled by four horses, with spear-holding soldiers
around (Figure 23.13). In this fictitious recreation the divine joins in with the mortal, for Titus’s
chariot is guided by Roma, the female personification of the city of Rome, while the winged
goddess Victory crowns Titus with a wreath. The figures are in motion, all different, even those
standing or barely walking. The upper part of the panel is largely empty except for the spears,
whose lines create striking patterns. The visual force of the scene is emphasized by the deep cut-
ting of the relief, which allows for strong shadows.
The panel on the opposite side of the walkway shows another moment in the procession, the
carrying of important spoils from the Temple of Jerusalem, sacked and destroyed: the menorah,
or huge seven-branched candlestick; the gold table with ritual objects; and the long thin ceremo-
nial horns (Figure 23.14). In two synecdochic scenes, then, we get the essence of the imperial
triumph and the crushing defeat of one of the many subject peoples.
Trajan’s Column
In contrast, Trajan’s Column offers a long continuous spiral of pictures in order to convey a
similar message (Figure 23.15). The first of several columns carved with narrative bands that
were erected in Rome and Constantinople, this column commemorates the emperor Trajan
not only with the sculpted images of his victorious campaigns in Dacia (modern Romania) but
also with a bronze statue of him on top; in addition, his ashes were kept in a golden urn in the
Figure 23.12 Arch of Titus, Rome.
View from the south-east
384 ANCIENT ITALY AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
Figure 23.13 Emperor in Triumphal Procession, relief sculpture, Arch of Titus
Figure 23.14 Triumphal Procession with menorah, relief sculpture, Arch of Titus
ROME FROM NERO TO HADRIAN 385
base. The column, made of Luna marble from
the Carrara quarries, measures 29.78m in height,
3.83m in diameter at its base, 3.66m at the top; it
sits on a rectangular block 5.37m high. Its seven-
teen drums contained an internal staircase of 185
steps, in rectilinear flights in the base but spiral
inside the column proper. Forty-three window
slits cut into the column provide air and light to
the stairs. Today, other elements of the Forum
of Trajan (see below) – the flanking libraries, the
adjacent Basilica Ulpia, and the nearby Temple
to the divine Trajan – survive only in founda-
tions, and the statue of Trajan was replaced in
1588 by one of St. Peter, but the sculpted scenes,
one of the major monuments of Roman art, are
still in place.
The sculpture shows Trajan’s two Dacian
campaigns of 101–102 and 105–106. The narra-
tive is arranged on a continuous band that begins
at the bottom and winds in a spiral to the top of
the column, for a total length of 200m. Battles,
preparations, marching, transporting, the rivers
and hills, the camps – with over 2,500 figures
in 155 scenes, the sculpture gives us a pictorial
record of a military campaign unparalleled in
ancient art (Figure 23.16). The source may have
been paintings done by artists on the campaigns,
both on panels and on scrolls, as attested by
ancient authors. Although some concession was made for viewing the sculptures – the bands
become taller as the column gets higher: 0.89m at the bottom vs 1.25m at the top – these pictures
would have been difficult to see even for the viewer with perfect eyesight willing to climb up in
both libraries. The monument must have commanded respect more for its artistic concept than
for its ability to impart information to the passer-by.
CIVIC BUILDINGS
Civic buildings in Rome were also vehicles for imperial largesse, important elements of propa-
ganda for the emperors. The best known from our period of architectural innovation are the
Colosseum, Trajan’s Forum (in which the Column stood) and Market, and the Baths of Trajan.
Colosseum (Flavian amphitheater)
The most famous amphitheater in Rome was built under the Flavian emperors, begun by Vespa-
sian and dedicated by him in 79, finished by Titus and rededicated in 80 (Figure 23.17). Formally
known as the Flavian amphitheater, the building became better known from
AD 1000 as the Col-
osseum, thanks to the colossal statue of Sol (the Sun) that stood nearby during the later empire.
Figure 23.15 Trajan’s Column, Rome
386 ANCIENT ITALY AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
As noted at Pompeii (Chapter 22), the amphitheater, or double theater, is an architectural type
prominent in towns of Italy and the central and western parts of the empire, but rarely seen in
the eastern half. The Colosseum, a large oval (arena: 86m × 54m; overall building: 188m × 156m),
was built on the site of the artificial lake of Nero’s Domus Aurea; the Flavians thus reclaimed part
of the city center for the people. The building was used for gladiatorial games and for shows with
wild animals (venatio, pl. venationes), including hunting. The last gladiatorial combats took place in
404, but the venationes continued well into the sixth century. The destruction of the building
began in the ninth century, excavation and restoration in the nineteenth century.
Figure 23.16 Relief sculpture (detail), Trajan’s Column
Figure 23.17 Colosseum (Flavian amphitheater), Rome
ROME FROM NERO TO HADRIAN 387
The Colosseum was built of concrete, with occasional brick facing, and with a façade of high-
quality travertine quarried near Tivoli. The seating was covered with marble. The exterior con-
sisted of four stories (Figure 23.18). The first three featured arches flanked by attached columns,
a Roman decorative combination. The lower story had columns in the Tuscan order; the second
story Ionic; the third, Corinthian. The top story was a solid wall with Corinthian pilasters, with a
rectangular window between every other pair. The total height of the exterior was 48.5m. Statues
may have been intended to fill the arches of the second and third stories; although they are shown
on coins, they may not have existed, for no statue bases were found.
The cavea, or seating, held ca. 45,000 people. Placed above five annular passages, the seating
rose at differing slopes. The outer two passages were vaulted, carrying additional vaults above.
Stairs led to the seats. Spectators had tickets, or tokens, for their reserved seat, marked with the
number of their vomitorium (entrance way), gradus (row), and locus (seat). Some seats would be
protected from the sun by awnings attached at the top of the arena. A narrow passage, probably
for patrolling armed guards, and a fence separated the spectators from the arena. The emperor’s
box was on the south, opposite a box for magistrates; both were reached by separate ceremonial
entrances.
The arena was surfaced with wood. Below it lay a complex warren of four parallel rows of cells
surrounded by three annular passages, an area provided with drainage. At one end machinery
lifted wild animals up to the arena.
Figure 23.18 Cross-sectional view, Colosseum
388 ANCIENT ITALY AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
Trajan’s Forum
Trajan’s Forum was the last, largest, and most complex of the imperial fora, a group of five
formal public spaces adjacent to the Forum Romanum and the Capitoline hill. Begun by Julius
Caesar and Augustus, the fora were augmented by (a) Vespasian’s Forum Pacis (Forum of Peace)
of 75, Vespasian’s commemoration of his bringing peace after the chaos that followed Nero’s
death; then by the (b) Forum Transitorium, or Forum of Nerva, a narrow space with a Temple of
Minerva on a high podium at one end, begun by Vespasian, finished by Domitian, but dedicated
by Nerva; and finally by (c) Trajan’s Forum (see Figure 21.2).
The Forum of Trajan was designed by Trajan’s favorite architect and engineer, Apollodorus of
Damascus, and dedicated in 113. The Forum served as a location for affairs of government, notably
certain law courts and archives. It consists of several parts: a porticoed square with exedrae on the
north and south – a deliberate echo of the Forum of Augustus; a basilica; two libraries with Trajan’s
Column in between; and a temple to the deified Trajan at the rear. The Market of Trajan lies to the
north, built, like one section of the forum, after a partial leveling of the Quirinal hill.
One entered the square through a gate with three openings that resembled a triumphal arch,
originally decorated on top with a statue group showing the emperor, fresh from his triumphant
campaigns in Dacia riding in a chariot pulled by six horses. In the center of the square stood an
equestrian statue of Trajan. Beyond the square lay the Basilica Ulpia, placed transversely, so that
its entrances were on the long sides, not the short, in contrast with the typical basilican plan.
Inside, this basilica had the expected nave and two side aisles. Unusual, however, was the use of
apses at both of the short ends. A statue of Liberty stood in the north apse; here slaves were set
free. The south apse may have been devoted to the imperial cult.
Two libraries lay beyond, one devoted to Latin works, the other to Greek. Between them
stood the remarkable Column of Trajan, and beyond, the Temple to the Divine Trajan.
Trajan’s Market (Mercati Traiani)
According to the inscription on its base, the height of Trajan’s Column equaled the depth of
earth removed from the Quirinal Hill in the preparation of the Forum and adjacent Market of
Trajan. This large commercial complex, at least six stories high, is nestled in the deepest part of
the cut, just north of – and physically separate from – the northern exedra of the forum’s square
(Figure 23.19). Its more than 170 rooms and halls have traditionally been identified as shops and
offices, devoted to the trade in food and to governmental activities. Food sold included such
spices as pepper (hence the name of the street, the Via Biberatica, that winds through the third
level) and fish (fish tanks have been discovered).
The large basilical hall off the Via Biberatica ranks as an important creation in the Roman
architectural revolution. Made of concrete, it consists of a tall nave with a clerestory crossed by
seven intersecting vaults (groin vaults) supported on piers – a feature that would recur in the
huge bath buildings of the later empire. Two stories of shops lay to either side of the nave. The
market hall, indeed the whole complex, with its complicated asymmetrical multi-storied plan,
contrasts with the contemporary but conservative Augustan design of the Forum of Trajan. Both
approaches had their value in the imperial architecture of the capital city.
Baths of Trajan
Public baths were an essential feature of a Roman town, as we have seen already at Pompeii.
In the capital city with its large population, baths were frequent; thanks to the properties of
ROME FROM NERO TO HADRIAN 389
concrete, they could also be large, with huge spaces covered by vaults. Emperors of the later
empire, eager to demonstrate their generosity, often chose the bath complex as an appropriate
way both to provide a public service and to express imperial grandeur.
The Baths of Trajan represent an important step in the monumentalization of the bath com-
plex (Figure 23.20). The principles of public bathing had been established already in the Repub-
lic, with rooms of varying degrees of heat, and a cold water pool. Although following the design
of earlier baths in the imperial capital, notably those of Titus, Trajan’s bath building measured
three times the size of Titus’s, containing not only bathing facilities but also rooms for a variety
of social and recreational purposes, such as lecture rooms, libraries, meeting rooms, and gar-
dens. The layout would set the model for bath complexes of the next several centuries, such
as the much better preserved baths of Caracalla (211–216) (Figure 23.21) and Diocletian (ca.
298–306).
Erected on the Oppius Hill (the south slope of the Esquiline), on a terrace atop the ruins of
the Domus Aurea, the baths were the work of Apollodorus of Damascus. The bath building lies
Figure 23.19 Trajan’s Market (reconstruction), Rome
390 ANCIENT ITALY AND THE ROMAN EMPIRE
in the middle of a large platform, 250m × 210m. The east and west sides of the platform are lined
with small rooms; in between, surrounding the main building on three sides, were gardens. The
main rooms, entered from the north, lay on a north–south axis, with subsidiary rooms arranged
symmetrically on either side. After entering, one reached first the swimming pool, surrounded by
colonnades on three sides, with exedra on the south. To either side of the pool lay small rooms,
uniform in size, and two rotundas with niches, possible frigidaria. Continuing beyond the pool,
one came to a central hall (with, to the east and west, palaestras, or rectangular courtyards for
exercising, with hemicycles attached), then bathing rooms and finally, in the southernmost posi-
tion to catch the sun, the caldarium, with three vaulted bays supplied with rectangular niches and
semicircular apses.
IMPERIAL TOMBS
Tombs, as we have seen, often served as vehicles for the prestige of the occupant or his surviving
successors. Indeed, the monumentality of the pyramids at Giza and the lavish sculptural deco-
ration of the Mausoleum at Halikarnassos immortalized the names of those buried within. But
tombs need not be grandiose. Even kings might prefer their burials hidden, as in New Kingdom
Egypt. In the Roman Empire, both styles prevailed, the simple and the grand. We shall look at
a few examples of the grand: the Mausolea of Augustus and Hadrian, and, briefly in Chapter 25,
those of Diocletian and Constantine.
Figure 23.20 Plan, Baths of Trajan, Rome
ROME FROM NERO TO HADRIAN 391
The prototype for the imperial mausoleum is the Mausoleum of Augustus, the tomb of Augus-
tus, his family, and most of his Julio-Claudian successors. He built it early in his reign, ca. 28–23
BC, a period when he must have considered monumentality a necessary reinforcement of his
rule. The mausoleum was centrally located near the Tiber and the Via Flaminia in a park open to
all. Ordinary people, in contrast, were buried outside the city. The tomb consisted of a circular
mound 87m in diameter, 44m in height, formed by concentric concrete walls and vaulted pas-
sages covered by earth and decorated with trees and, on top, a bronze statue of Augustus. This
circular tomb recalled traditional Etruscan and Italic tumuli – another careful choice of image on
the part of Augustus.
Augustus was cremated, as was the fashion from ca. 400 BC into the second century AD. Tra-
jan, too, was cremated, his ashes placed in the base of his commemorative column. During the
second century, inhumation gradually replaced cremation throughout the empire, with carved
stone sarcophagi becoming popular. Burial rites of the emperors varied, when known at all. The
treatment of Hadrian’s body, for example, is uncertain. Hadrian did, however, begin a new impe-
rial tomb, which would be used by emperors and their families from Hadrian through Caracalla,
a mausoleum whose external appearance followed the Augustan precedent. From the outside,
the tomb resembled the Augustan mound: a circular building 64m in diameter placed inside a low
square platform, rising toward the center, with trees and a statue of Hadrian in a quadriga. Inside,
the plan differed from that of Augustus’s mausoleum. A spiral ramp led to three square burial
chambers placed one on top of the other, with access by stairs from one to the other. Strategically
located along the west bank of the Tiber, the mausoleum became part of the city’s fortifications
in the sixth century. Renamed the Castel Sant’Angelo after the re-erection of a statue of the arch-
angel Michael, the mausoleum would serve the papacy as a fortress into modern times. Lovers of
Italian opera know it well: from its parapet Floria Tosca leaps to her death.
This colorful post-antique career of Hadrian’s Mausoleum reminds us that the stories of these
buildings and monuments do not end with the fourth century
AD, the end of pagan antiquity
Figure 23.21 Air view, Baths of Caracalla, Rome