scholarly journals Statue of an Emperor in the British Museum

1885 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 378-380
Author(s):  
C. T. Newton
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Roman Emperor ◽  
History Of

In the last number of the Journal of Hellenic Studies (VI. No. 1) Mr. Wroth tries to prove that the torso of a Roman Emperor from Cyrene in the Graeco-Roman Gallery at the British Museum originally belonged to a statue of Hadrian. This torso is described in my Guide to the Graeco-Roman Sculptures, 1877, Pt. I. p. 21, No. 46, as the ‘Torso of a Roman Emperor’; it was found at Cyrene in a building which Messrs. Smith and Porcher in their History of Discoveries, p. 76, conjecture to have been the palace of a Roman governor, but which in the ‘List of Sculptures,’ which forms one of the Appendices of the same work, p. 104, may, it is suggested, have been an Augusteum, inasmuch as two busts and one head of emperors of the Antonine period were found in the same building.Mr. Wroth supposes that the torso in question is that of Hadrian, because ‘when complete it constituted a substantial replica’ of a statue found at Hierapytna in Crete, which is published in the Gazette Archéologique for 1880 (pp. 52–55, Pl. 6), and is now in the Imperial Museum at Constantinople. But how far can the Cyrene torso be considered a replica of the Cretan statue, of which latter I have before me a photograph? I cannot agree with M. Sorlin-Dorigny, who, in publishing this figure in the Gazette Archéologique, states that it is worthy to rank among the finest Iconic statues of the Roman Empire.

Two ‘Virtues’ of Tiberius: A Numismatic Contribution to the History of his Reign

1939 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. H. V. Sutherland
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Roman Emperor ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Creation

Mr. M. P. Charlesworth's Raleigh Lecture, ‘The Virtues of a Roman Emperor: Propaganda and the Creation of Belief,’ serves admirably to illuminate a new aspect of the history of the Roman Empire, in which the debt of pure history to numismatics (and notably to the work of Mr. Mattingly in the British Museum Catalogues) will be plain. From the numismatic point of view there is, indeed, one curious omission in Mr. Charlesworth's argument; and attempts to make good the omission have opened up a series of speculations which are here discussed.

The Beginnings of State Jurisdiction in International Law until 1648

2019 ◽  
pp. 24-39
Author(s):  
Kaius Tuori
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
International Law ◽  
Universal Jurisdiction ◽  
Roman Emperor ◽  
Nation States ◽  
First Case ◽  
International Legal Order ◽  
History Of ◽  
First Time ◽  
Traditional Image

This chapter examines the evolution of sovereignty, universal jurisdiction, and state authority prior to the existence of the Westphalian international legal order, studying three cases from the Roman and medieval practice. The first case is a reply by Roman emperor Antoninus Pius on the limits of his jurisdiction with regards to the high seas. The second case revolves around the Constitutio Antoniniana, a disputed legal rule that gave citizenship to all inhabitants of the Roman Empire, for the first time invoking the territoriality principle. The third case relates to the principle of universal jurisdiction and the pope’s universal authority and its implications for the development of international jurisdiction. These cases highlight that the traditional image given in the literature of the history of the world being divided into a premodern world based on the personality principle and the ‘post-Westphalian’ world dominated by nation states and the territorial principle is misleading.

Sarcophagi from Xanthos

1933 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerhart Rodenwaldt
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Cultural History ◽  
British Museum ◽  
The Other ◽  
Fundamental Importance ◽  
History Of ◽  
The City

Sir Charles Fellows writes on p. 503 of Travels and Researches:— ‘On the plain at the foot of the elevation upon which the city Xanthos was placed, we disinterred the remains of a mausoleum. In this room, which had vaults beneath, stood four sarcophagi, raised upon pedestals. … I have collected the fragments of each sarcophagus.’ The four sarcophagi are in the British Museum and are described in Vol. II of the Catalogue of Sculpture, nos. 957–960. As far as I am aware, there is no other reference to any of them in archaeological literature. Their obscurity in the Museum (no. 957 in the Mausoleum Room Annexe, the other three in the Sepulchral Basement), and also their association in the Catalogue with older, Greek sculptures have combined to withdraw attention from them. It can be readily understood that amid masterpieces of the archaic and classical periods these sadly fragmentary remains of late art failed to attract the eye. To-day, when sarcophagi are recognised as material of fundamental importance for the artistic and cultural history of the provinces of the Roman Empire, it seems appropriate to reconsider these fragments; for their provenience is certain and identical, and they present some new features to our study.

The solidus hoard of Casa delle Vestali in context

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 107-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Svante Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Roman Emperor ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Gold Coins ◽  
Late Roman

In this paper, I discuss the context of a Late Roman solidus hoard found in the Casa delle Vestali on the Forum Romanum in Rome. The hoard consists of 397 solidi, Late Roman gold coins. Most of the hoard consists of uncirculated solidi struck in the name of the Western Roman emperor Procopius Anthemius (AD 467–472). By means of situating the hoard within the context of the reign of Anthemius and the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the aim of this paper is to determine if the coins in the Vestal hoard can be related to other contemporary coin hoards by means of numismatic typology; this information could add to our understanding of why Anthemius’ reign is considered such an unmitigated failure and why the Empire collapsed soon after his murder. In this article, the composition of the hoard is examined, and the contents are compared to other contemporary solidus hoards in the Mediterranean, Gaul, Poland and Scandinavia. I argue that this comparison shows that the Vestal hoard is not part of a larger network but that the hoard constitutes the remains of an isolated occurrence—as initially suggested by its unusual composition and location.

From Stonehenge to Samarkand

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Fagan
Keyword(s):  
Gustave Flaubert ◽  
Central Africa ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Holy Land ◽  
Cruise Ship ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
Ancient Civilization ◽  
Machu Picchu ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Silk Road

Ever since Roman tourists scratched graffiti on the pyramids and temples of Egypt over two thousand years ago, people have traveled far and wide seeking the great wonders of antiquity. In From Stonehenge to Samarkand, noted archaeologist and popular writer Brian Fagan offers an engaging historical account of our enduring love of ancient architecture--the irresistible impulse to visit strange lands in search of lost cities and forgotten monuments. Here is a marvelous history of archaeological tourism, with generous excerpts from the writings of the tourists themselves. Readers will find Herodotus describing the construction of Babylon; Edward Gibbon receiving inspiration for his seminal work while wandering through the ruins of the Forum in Rome; Gustave Flaubert watching the sunrise from atop the Pyramid of Cheops. We visit Easter Island with Pierre Loti, Machu Picchu with Hiram Bingham, Central Africa with David Livingstone. Fagan describes the early antiquarians, consumed with a passionate and omnivorous curiosity, pondering the mysteries of Stonehenge, but he also considers some of the less reputable figures, such as the Earl of Elgin, who sold large parts of the Parthenon to the British Museum. Finally, he discusses the changing nature of archaeological tourism, from the early romantic wanderings of the solitary figure, communing with the departed spirits of Druids or Mayans, to the cruise-ship excursions of modern times, where masses of tourists are hustled through ruins, barely aware of their surroundings. From the Holy Land to the Silk Road, the Yucatán to Angkor Wat, Fagan follows in the footsteps of the great archaeological travelers to retrieve their first written impressions in a book that will delight anyone fascinated with the landmarks of ancient civilization.

Urban Space and Aristocratic Power in Late Antique Rome

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Machado
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Cultural History ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Late Antiquity ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
The Social ◽  
Traditional Elite ◽  
History Of ◽  
The City

This book analyses the physical, social, and cultural history of Rome in late antiquity. Between AD 270 and 535, the former capital of the Roman empire experienced a series of dramatic transformations in its size, appearance, political standing, and identity, as emperors moved to other cities and the Christian church slowly became its dominating institution. Urban Space and Aristocratic Power in Late Antique Rome provides a new picture of these developments, focusing on the extraordinary role played by members of the traditional elite, the senatorial aristocracy, in the redefinition of the city, its institutions, and spaces. During this period, Roman senators and their families became increasingly involved in the management of the city and its population, in building works, and in the performance of secular and religious ceremonies and rituals. As this study shows, for approximately three hundred years the houses of the Roman elite competed with imperial palaces and churches in shaping the political map and the social life of the city. Making use of modern theories of urban space, the book considers a vast array of archaeological, literary, and epigraphic documents to show how the former centre of the Mediterranean world was progressively redefined and controlled by its own elite.

Roman Imperial Culture

2019 ◽  
pp. 256-276
Author(s):  
Davina C. Lopez
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
New Testament ◽  
Visual Representation ◽  
Power Relationships ◽  
Roman Emperor ◽  
Imperial Culture ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Imperial Ideology

This chapter discusses several aspects of Roman imperial culture that offer resonances with the study of the New Testament. Herein several gendered and sexualized tropes of Roman imperial ideology, which serve to discursively naturalize power relationships and differences in hierarchy, are considered. These include the impenetrable manliness of the Roman emperor, the link between military conquest and sexual violence and feminization of conquered barbarian “others,” and the characterization of the Roman Empire as an endlessly fertile family. Special attention is given to the rhetorical and representational dimensions of Roman imperial culture, and particular emphasis is afforded to visual representation. Finally, the article considers several areas wherein the intersection of gender, sexuality, Roman imperial culture, and the study of the New Testament might further be explored.

Phoenicia in the Roman Empire

2019 ◽  
pp. 110-124
Author(s):  
Julien Aliquot
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
First Century ◽  
New Order ◽  
History Of ◽  
Local Traditions

This chapter traces the history of Phoenicia from the advent of Rome in Syria at the beginning of the first century bce to the foundation of the Christian empire of Byzantium in the fourth century ce. It focuses on the establishment of Roman rule and its impact on society, culture, and religion. Special attention is paid to the establishment of Roman rule and its impact on society, culture, and religion. The focus is on provincial institutions and cities, which provided a basis for the new order. However, side trails are also taken to assess the flowering of Hellenism and the revival of local traditions in the light of the Romanization of Phoenicia and its hinterland.

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