The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman Art

7/28/2019 The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman Art

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-sacrifice-in-armor-in-roman-art 1/22

Societe d’Etudes Latines de Bruxelles

The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman ArtAuthor(s): Fred S. KleinerSource: Latomus, T. 42, Fasc. 2 (AVRIL-JUIN 1983), pp. 287-302Published by: Societe d’Etudes Latines de Bruxelles

Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41532826 .

Accessed: 22/04/2013 07:43

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of

content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms

of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

.

Societe d’Etudes Latines de Bruxelles is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to

Latomus.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 89.180.70.132 on Mon, 22 Apr 2013 07:43:26 AMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=selbruxelles

http://www.jstor.org/stable/41532826?origin=JSTOR-pdf

http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp





http://www.jstor.org/stable/41532826?origin=JSTOR-pdf

http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=selbruxelles



The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman Art

The offeringf sacrifice othegodswas an essentialpartof Roman life,bothpublic and private, nd scenes of sacrifice re ubiquitous n Romanart.Monuments incorporatinguch scenes are among the earliestandlatestRoman works of artsurviving rom ntiquity.A now-classic 1955monograph by Inez ScottRyberghas been dedicatedexclusivelyto theritesof the statereligion n Roman art ') and individualdiscussions ofRoman scenes of sacrifice re numberless.Nevertheless, espitethevastbibliography n sacrifices n Roman art,there has been no attempt oisolate and analyzewhat have come to believe is themostcuriousgroupof such scenes- the sacrifice n armor.A

studyf this

groupofsacrifices

yieldsunexpected nsights nto the changingnature of the Roman stateand of imperialpictorialpropaganda 2).

The earliest reserved epresentationfa Roman official or, nfact, fany historicalperson - performing sacrificewhile dressed in armorappearson a silver up of ateAugustanor more ikely arlyTiberiandatefound in a villa at Boscoreale. The cup, which has been carefullyscrutinized y a host of scholars fornearlya century, tilldefies cono-graphical xplication.The problems hat urround heBoscorealesacrificeand thefact hat t s the first

istorical acrifice n armor nRoman artand, as we shall see, the last for 150 years- demand that the cup bediscussed n detail.

The Boscoreale cup is one of a pairofsilver kyphoiwithscenes fromRoman historythat are part of a silver treasure of over 100 pieces

(1) I. S.Ryberg,itesfhe lateReligionnRoman rt,nMem. mer. cad.Rome,22,1955.

(2) While reparinghis rticle benefitedrom iscussionsith arissa onfante,Theodore

uttrey,ruce

McBain,ndJohn ollini.am

gratefulo hem,o he taffsftheGermanrchaeologicalnstitutend heAmericancademynRome,nd speciallytoDianaE. E. Kleiner,hoprovidedommentsnd riticismt verytagend eadhefinal raftfthemanuscript.owea debt f more eneralatureo the ateOtto .Brendel,ho aught e o ook tdetailsong eforebegan esearchn this roblem.







288 F. S. KLEINER

acquired in 1895 by Baron Edmond de Rothschildi3).The bulk of thehoard was deposited ntheLouvre,where t s stillon view. Severalcups,including he two withhistorical cenes,were retainedby thebaron forhis privatecollection n Paris. These were removedto GermanyduringWorld War II ; one of the historical ups - thatcelebratingAugustus-was destroyed, he other- with the sacrificial cene - was severelydamaged,butsurvivedthewar (4). Fortunately,xcellentphotographs fthe cups were published in 1899 ; those illustratinghe cup with the

sacrificing eneralare reproducedhereas Figures 1-6 5).On what is generally designatedas Side A of the cup (Figs. 1-3) achariotprocessionis depicted.At the left,behind the chariot,are fourtunic-cladmen crowned with aurel wreaths.One ofthem,who turnshishead abruptlyto converse with those behind him, carries two laurelbranches and wears a torques, an award for distinguishedmilitaryservice 6). n front f thisgroupfourhorsespull an ornate hariotwith arelief representation f Victory attachingarms to a trophy. She isaccompaniedbya femalefigure funcertaindentityotherfiguresn the

far ide of the car are hidden fromview. Two men stand n thechariot.The granderof the two, almostuniversally dentified s Tiberius in hisrole as triumphator7),wears a toga, presumably he toga picta of thesuccessfulgeneralawarded a triumph,nd holds an eagle-topped cepterin his efthandand a laurel branch nhisright and.Behind him a youngman in a tunic crownsthetriumphator ith thecorona aurea ; he is thestate lave who, we are told, s also whisperingn thecommander's ar :Respice postte,hominem e esse memento.Accompanying hechariot n

(3) A. Héronde Villefosse, e trésor e BoscorealeFondationugènePiot.MonumentstMémoires,),Paris, 99.Apreliminaryeportf he iscoverywithoutmentionfthe up nquestion waspublishedfewyearsarlierF. Winter, erSilberschatzon oscorealeinAA 11,1896, .74-87.

(4) H.Jucker,pse uosGeniusdsit isurusonores, nG. Schwarz-E.ochmarski(eds.). lassica tProvincialia.estschriftrnaDiez Graz, 978, .94. E. Künzl, esriches écors nreliefe 'argenterieePompei,nDossiers istoiretArchéologie,4,1981, . 19. I owethe attereferenceoJohnollini).(5) Héron eVillefosse,l.34-36.(6) Puny,N.H. 15.137. estus, 04L.L. BonfanteWarren, oman ostumes.

GlossaryndSome truscanerivations,nANRW,, 4, 1973, .613.

(7) On thetriumph,ee H. S. Versnel, riumphus.n nquirynto heOrigin,DevelopmentndMeaningf heRoman riumph,eiden, 970. . Bonfante arren,Roman riumphsndEtruscaningsTheChangingaceof heTriumph,nJRS, 0,1970,p.49-66.C. Barini, riumphalia.mpresed onorimilitariurante'imperoromano,urin,952.AUwith itationsf ncientources.







THESACRIFICEN ARMORN ROMAN RT 289

footare fivemore men whose figures re obscured in large partby thefourhorses much damaged).All five wear laurel wreaths two of themcarry asces and thesetwo, f notall five, re lictors. n front f thechariotgroupa steer s being led to sacrificeby three attendants. he animal isdecked out with a dorsuale its hornsare filleted,nd a triangular rameadorned with an eagle restsupon its head ; thesteerwill be slain in honorof Jupiter,whose bird is the eagle. The threeattendants,who like theotherfiguresn theprocessionare crowned with aurel,wear tunicsthat

leave their hestsbare,at least in part.One uictimarius eads thesteer,second brings up the rear and looks back at the chariot while graspingtightly ith both hands the animal'shalter ope.The third ttendant, howalks beside thesteer, s a popa ; he holdstherope in his righthand andcarries n axe over his left houlder.

Side В (Figs. 4-6) representshesacrifice f a generalbefore temple.The general himselfwas severelydamaged even when the cup wasdiscovered,but he is universallythoughtto be the same man as thetriumphatorfSide A. He standsbefore tripod ltar oofferacrifice, ut

no longerwears the иest s triumphals. He carries spearwhichrestsonhis eft houlder nd is dressed n loricaandpaludamentum. ix men,fiveofwhom fixtheirgaze upon thegeneral,form semicircle round himand the altar.One, furthest o the right, s the traditional aureateflute-player,buthe wears a tunic nsteadof theusual toga.The fiveothers reclad intunics nd mantles.Threecarry asces and arecertainlyictors thetwo othersmaybe as well. The lictor t the far efthas an axe attached ohis bundle ofrodsand looks back- apparentlyt the chariotprocessionand establishes linkbetween the two sides of thecup. To theright f the

altar a steer is being slain. Four figures, ll bare-chested nd wearinglaurel wreaths,performthe ritual slaughter.In the foregroundtwouictimarii neel beside the animal ; one holdsa knife, he otherpresses heanimal'shead to theground.This motif f the foreshortenedteerreadyforslaughterhas been shown by Brendel to be based upon a fourth-centuryGreekpainting yPausias displayed n theporticus fPompeyinRome ; this is the earliest extantadaptationof the motiffor a Romansacrificial elief8). Behind the steer s a thirduictimarius nd thepopa,who is vigorously winginghis axe. The immolatio akesplace in front f

a templeon a highpodium. The temple s of a standardRoman type-tetrastylend prostylewith fluted onic columns. It is richlygarlanded

(8) O. Brendel,mmolatioourn,nRM,45,1930, .204,210.







290 F. S. KLEINER

and is clearly dentifieds beingdedicated oJupiter, ecause hiseagle onan orb adorns thepediment.

The earliest nterpretationf these two scenes appeared in the initialfolio publicationof the Boscoreale treasureby Héron de Villefosse in1899 (9). The authoraccurately dentifiedhe protagonist f the cup asTiberius and entertained he idea that the chariot procession was atriumph, utrejected hat xplanationbecause of the absence ofcaptives,trophies, nd soldiers n theprocession, nd because the lictorsdid not

have axes attached to theirfasces. Instead he postulatedthat Side Adepicted processusconsularis, heprocessionof a consul (dressed ike atriumphator)n the first ayof his office efore aking olemnvows andsacrificingo Jupiter t theTemple ofJupiter apitolinus.AccordingtoHéron de Villefosse,theprocessus consularis in question was that ofTiberiusonJanuary 13 B.C. ,the first ayofhis firstonsulship, ndtheBoscorealecup was the earliest reserved epresentationf thisceremonyinRoman art0°). Side B, however, n the authorsview,didnotrepresentTiberius' sacrifice n thatday,because theemperor-to-beo longerwore

thetoga,but had donned thepaludamentum fthemilitaryommander.Tiberius was shown takingthe auspices (nuncupatiouotorum)on theCapitolinehill before hegreat emple fJupiter eforedepartingwiththeRoman armyin 12 B.C. for thewar in Pannonia. Héron de Villefosseacknowledged hat heancient extswere unclearas topreciselywhenthegeneralexchangedthegarment f thecitizenfor hatof thearmyofficer{paludamentomutarepraetextam), nd that pinionwas dividedbetweenthemoment hat hegeneral eft hepomerium nd the timeof thetakingof the oath on theCapitolinehill,but believed that the evidence of the

Boscorealecup was conclusive n favorof the atter nd also provedthatthe ictors ttached xes to their asces at the same time.The Tiberiuscupthusformed pendant o theAugustancup,whereAugustuswas likewisedepictedtwice - once as civil magistrate, nce as army commander.Héron de Villefosse was also convinced that the scenes on the twoBoscoreale cups were not inventedby the silversmith, ut were copied

(9) Héron eVillefosse,. 134-168.(10) Ifonerejectséron e Villefosse'sdentification,he arliestepresentationf

processusonsularishenppearsn the rajanic onumentfPhilopapposnAthens.M.Santangelo,lMonumentoiС.Julius ntiochushilopapposnAteneinASAene,N.S.3-5, 941-1943,. 153-253. .Travlos, ictorialictionaryfAncientthens,ewYork,971, .462-465. . E. E. Kleiner,heMonumentf hilopapposnAthens,ome,1983.







THESACRIFICENARMORNROMANRT 291

from publicmonumentnRome,perhaps ost reliefs rom heAra PadsAugustae. In any case, he believed that despite the absence of anexplanatorynscription,hesubjectof the scenes on theTiberiuscup was"clear" and their ignificance certain".Nevertheless, o myknowledgeonlyReinach has acceptedHéron de Villefosse explanationn).

In 1907 Eugénie Strong's classic survey of Roman sculpturewaspublished and the Boscoreale cups were among the monumentstreated12).The cups were discussedagain byMrs. Strong npublications

in 1923 and 1934 (13). n these studiesStrongrejectedHéron de Ville-fosse's nterpretationf the two sides of the Tiberiuscup as two separateevents and maintained hatthe two scenes "constitute ne act,ofwhichthesequel appearson the other ide of the vase" (14).The act in question,according oStrong,was Tiberius4 riumphnd subsequent acrifice ttheTemple of JupiterCapitolinus upon his successful returnfrom thecampaignin Germanyof 8-7 B.C. againsttheSugambri.This thesishasbeen echoed by otherscholars,among them Willers 15),Rostovtzeff16),and Simon 17).A similar nterpretation,ut with the Tiberian triumph

placed in A.D. 12 afterhis returnfromPannonia, was advanced as apossibility by Mrs. Strong in 1934 (18), and has been followed byBrendel 19), Charbonneaux 20), Ryberg 21), Kiithmann22), and Ver-meule 23), mong others24).Charbonneaux asserted hatthecup scenes

(11) S. Reinach,épertoireereliefsrecst romains1,Paris, 909, .92-97(12) E. (Mrs.A.) Strong, omanculpturerom ugustusoConstantineLondon,

1907, .83-88.(13) E. Strong,a sculturaomanaaAugustoCostantinoFlorence,923, .80-84,

101. d., nСАН Pl. V, 1934, . 128.

(14) Strong, omanculpturep.87.(15)H.Willers,Geschichteerrömischenupferprägungom undesgenossenkriegbis ufKaiser laudiusLeipzig-Berlin,909, . 178-179.

(16)M.Rostovtzeff,ugustusinRM,38-391923-24),.295-296.d.,The ocialandEconomicistoryf heRomanmpireOxford,926, .76.

(17) E. Simon,nEAA4 , 1966, .941, .v.Toreutica.(18) Strong,АНp. 128.(19)О. J.Brendel,nAJA,3,1939, .307.(20)J.Charbonneaux,'art u siècle 'AugusteParis, 948, .78-84.(21)Ryberg,. 140-144.(22)H.Küthmann,eiträgeur päthellenistischennd rührömischenoreutikKall-

munz, 959, .76-80.

(23)C. C. Vermeule,ugustusndJulioClaudian ourt ilverinAntK6, 1963,p.35-36.d.,Romanmperialrtn Greece ndAsiaMinorCambridge,ass., 968,p. 133-134.

(24)Cf.D. MusTiLLi,arte ugusteanAugustus.tudi noccasioneelbimillenarioaugusteoRome, 938, .343-344. GarcíayBellido,Arte omanoMadrid,955,







292 F. S. KLEINER

were based upon a Tiberian marbletriumphal rieze n whichthe eventsof Tiberius' Pannonian triumphwere set forth nd in which one seesTiberiusexchange"selon le rite, e costumecivilpour la tenuemilitaire"beforesacrificingo Jupiter t theCapitolinetemple. Ryberg suggestedthat the silver reliefs opied two companion reliefs n the lost Arch ofTiberiuserectedn Rome in A.D. 16,reliefs hatwould have been situatedlike those in the bay of the Arch of Titus in the Forum Romanům. Avariant olution s thatputforward yDomaszewski in 1910,namely hat

the silversmith ubstituted iberius' features orAugustus' and that themodel for the silvercup was the reliefdecorationof the chariot of thestatue fAugustusas triumphatorn theForum ofAugustus nRome andthat heoriginalAugustanreliefs epictedAugustus'Actiantriumph ndhis sacrifice pon his return rom heSpanishcampaign 2S).

Mrs. Strong's interpretationf the Tiberius cup as a continuousnarration f a Romantriumphwas notseriously uestioneduntil 1955. Inthatyear LuigiPolacco, the authorof the standard ook on theportraitureofTiberius,published n articledevoted olelyto the Boscorealecup - an

article that seems to have been almost totally gnored in subsequentdiscussions ftheproblem 26).Polacco's articleremains he most detailedexamination f the Tiberiuscup to date,buthis conclusions are unlikelyto attractmanyconverts. olacco believedthatboth BoscorealecupswereAugustan in date and that both theprocessus consularis / nuncupatiouotorumtheoryof Héron de Villefosse and the continuous-narrationtriumph heory f Strongand her followerswere incorrect. he earlier

p.262.G. KaschnitzonWeinberg,ömischeunstI.ZwischenepublikndKaiser-zeit.ReinbekeiHamburg,961, .92-95.G. Becatti, 'arte omanaMilan, 962,p.62.G.-C.Picard,Roman aintingLondon, 968, .28. L. Byvanck-QuarlesanUfford,Le kyphose Tibère'un kyphose Claude nFestoen.pgedragenan A.N.Zadoks-Josephusittaijhaar eventigsteerjaardag,roningen-Bussum,976, .201-208, uggestshat he riumphs that fClaudiusfter isBritannicictorynd hat hescene f acrificefterhe rocessions based pon neof he eliefsf heAraPietaisAugustaefA.D. 43. Theauthor oesnot xplain,owever,hy he riumphatorastheunmistakableeaturesf Tiberius. f.L. Polacco, I volto i Tiberio.aggiodicriticaconograficaRome, 955, . 126, 32-133. ucker,nFestschrift. Diez p.94,pl.35.8-9.

(25)A. vonDomaszewski,wei ömischeeliefs,n itzungsberichteerHeidelberger

AkademieerWissenschaften.hilosophisch-historischelasse, 910,Abh. ,p. 1-6.(26) L. Polacco, I trionfoi Tiberioella azzaRothschilda Boscoreale,nAttiMemorieell'Accademiaatavina iScienze ettered Arti.MemorieellaClassediScienzeMorali etteredArti, 7, 3, 1954-1955,.253-270.d., l volto i Tiberio,p. 126, 32-133.







THESACRIFICEN ARMORNROMAN RT 293

solution should be rejected.Polacco argued,because in Augustantimesthe consul wentup to theCapitolineby foot,whereas the "new consul"on thecup rides n a chariot in a processusconsularis veryone hould betogate,whereas on thecup onlyTiberius s so dressed no one should bearmed nRome, as Tiberius s on thecup, and the ictors houldnotcarryaxes in their asces in Rome, as one does in the sacrifice cene ; and bothconsuls should be sacrificing ogether, ut here only one performs herites. Polacco also rejected the theorythat one of the two pompae

triumphaleselebrated yTiberius n7 B.C. and A.D. 12 was represented.In his view it was "fuor di dubbio" that continuous-narrationriumphwas the subjectof the cup, but the ceremony depictedcould not be inRome where Tiberius' two triumphs nd all otherofficial riumphs ookplace. Polacco's argument or triumph utsideRome rests hiefly n thecostume of the sacrificing eneraland the appearanceof the templeonSide B. Accordingto Polacco, the ancientwritten ources make it clearthat hetriumphatoreverexchangedtheuestistriumphalis or militarycostume at the Capitolinehill indeed we read of instanceswhere the

triumphatorrolongedhis momentof gloryby continuing o wear thetriumphalrobes after the ceremony was completed. Moreover, thetriumphwas a cleansingritual freligious ignificancend it would havebeen improper owear the mpurebattledresswhilesacrificingoJupiter.In any case, Polacco states, he general only changedintomilitary arbupon leaving the pomerium(paludamentomutare praetextam exirepaludatus) ; Tiberiuscould notbe so dressedwithin hecity.Furthermore,Polacco arguedthat heuniversally eld opinionthat hesacrifice f SideВ takes place at the Temple of JupiterCapitolinuswas erroneous. In

Tiberius'daythatgreat emplewas hexastylewithfree-standingolumnson thesides as well as three rows of columns on thefront,hetemple'scolumns were Tuscan, the templesat on a low podium with statues ofdivinities nd a quadrigaon theroof, nd ithad a rich tatuary roup n itspediment.The Boscorealetemple set on a highdoublepodium,prostyleand tetrastylewith Ionic columns and modest sculpturaldecoration-

could not be the great Capitoline temple. Polacco's solution was topostulate hat he Boscorealetriumphwas a triumph utsideRome at thesanctuary fJupiter atiaris in monteAlbano specifically triumph hat

mighthave been awarded to Tiberius on January16, A.D. 10, when hewas forced o postponehis Pannonian triumph ecause of themourningfor Varus' defeat and death. The Boscoreale cups could thus be datedprecisely o A.D. 10-12,because afterTiberiuscelebrated triumph n







294 F. S. KLEINER

Rome itself t would have been pointlessto commemoratethis lesserevent.

Since Polacco's discussionhas gone almostunnoticed n thescholarlyliterature, o replyhas ever been published,but it is unlikelythatthesubstitute-triumphheorywill have many adherents27).The author'sreidentificationfthe Boscoreale templedeservesconsideration, ut it isnot, believe,conclusiveeven as a negative rgument.Artists requentlytake ibertieswhen representinguildings t smallscale and abbreviations

and distortionsre regular eatures f,e.g.,numismatic epresentationsfarchitecture28). The silversmithhas effectively ommunicated theessential - a temple to Jupiteron a hill this could be, but is notnecessarily,hetemple oJupitern theCapitolinehill, venthough t hastoo fewcolumns,etc. Polacco's argument hata triumphator ould notand did not sacrifice n armor is, in my opinion, conclusive. I do notbelieve,however, hat uch a costumewould be anymoreappropriatet asacrifice n Latium than in Rome. Indeed,thechange in costume is thebest reasonfor rguing gainsta continuousnarration f events nside or

outside Rome. It is, in fact,notonlyTiberiuswho has changedclothesfromSide A to Side B. On Side В the lictorshave donned mantles andremoved heiraurel wreaths nd one has fixed n axe to his asces. Surelythe entirecortègedid not stop on its way to the temple and changegarments eforeproceedingfurtherThe laurel branches have also beendiscarded on Side В and some of the actors in the play have beenchanged the oldierwith orqueshas disappeared nd a flute-playernd athird ictimarius ave arrived.Héron de Villefossewas, after ll, correctthere re twoevents,notone, depictedon the Tiberiuscup, as there re

two eventsrepresented n the pendantAugustuscup in the Boscorealetreasure.That Strong nd Polacco and others re rightn identifyingheprocessionof Side A as the pompa triumphalis f Tiberius cannot be

(27)A. Frova, 'arte i Roma del mondo omanoTurin, 961, .202,mentionsPolacco'shesiswithoutitation),utdoesnot upportrrejectt.On the anctuaryfJupiteratiarisee,most ecently,. Coarelli,Dintornii RomaRome-Bari,981,p.111.P. Finocchi,I "templům"i uppiteratiarisulMöns lbanus,nArcheologiaLaziale 3, 1980, . 156-158.

(28)M.Jessoprice-B. . Trell,Coins nd their ities. rchitecturen theAncient

Coins fGreece, ome,ndPalestine,ondon-Detroit,977.G. Fuchs. rchitekturdar-stellungenufrömischenünzen erRepublikndder rühenaiserzeitAMuGS1),Berlin,969. or mall-scaleepresentationsf empleedimentsith iguraiculpture,see P. Hommel,tudienu denrömischenigurengiebelnerKaiserzeit,erlin,954(p.102,note 35 BoscorealeempledentifiedsTemplefJupiterapitolinus).







THESACRIFICENARMORNROMAN RT 295

doubted. Could Héron de Villefossebe correct n identifyinghe sacrificeof Side В as thenuncupatiouotorum f Tiberiusat theTemple ofJupiterCapitolinus? This is preciselywhatwas suggested yKähler in 1960 (29),and this conflation f the Héron de Villefosseand Strong nterpretationshas gained increasingfavor in recentyears. Accordingto Kähler and,morerecently, oeppel (30) nd Hölscher 31), ide В is reallySide A in achronological sequence and the cup presents kind ofprofectiovowsbefore eavingRome) and aduentus (triumphalhomecoming) uxtaposi-

tion,a standardpairing n Roman art.There remains one serious problem with the nuncupatio uotoruminterpretationf the sacrificeof Tiberius Polacco's objection that thesacrifice annot be withinthepomeriumbecause Tiberiuswears loricaandpaludamentum nd one of his lictorshas an axe attached ohisfasces.As has been stated arlier, he ancientwritten ources are ambiguousas topreciselywhen thedonning f thepaludamentum nd theattaching f theaxes occurred.That the general,after akinghis vows on the Capitol,departed hecitypaludatus is certain,but whetherhe donned themantle

atthegateof thepomerium r wore italreadywhile sacrificingoJupiteris unclear "). The sensational rossingof the Mulvian bridgebyVitelliusin A.D. 69 dressed npaludamentum nd accompaniedby soldiers withdrawn swords "in violation of all laws, human and divine" and hissubsequent change at the urgingof his councillors into a toga beforeenteringRome proper ") would lead one to believe that n Tiberius'daythe military loak was not worn and arms were not carriedwithin the

(29)H.Kahler, om nd eineWelt,Munich, 960, .225-227.(30)G. Koeppel,rofectiondAdventus,nBonnJbb.,69,1969, . 148.(31)T.Hölscher,ieGeschichtsauffassungnder ömischenepräsentationskunstn

Jdi95,1980, .281-290.(32) The ourcesre ollectednddiscussedyT.Mommsen,ömischetaatsrecht1

Leipzig, 871,p.96-97,295-296, 47. Cf. G. Bloch, n С. Daremberg-E.aglio,Dictionnaireesantiquitésrecquest romaines,, Paris, 873,p. 1462,1467, .v.Consul. .Alföldi,nsignienndTracht er ömischenaiser,nRM,50, 1935, .47-49. L. Wilson,TheClothingftheAncientomans, altimore,938,p.100-104.Hölscher,nJdl, 5,1980, .282,note 9.

(33) Suet.,Vit.,1 Vrbemeniquedclassicumntroiitaludatuserroqueuccinctus,interigna tqueuexilla,agulatisomitibus,c detectisommilitonumrmis.M gisdeindeсmagismni iuinoumanoqueure eglecto,lliensiie ontificatumaximumcepit,omitiandecernnnos rdinauiteque erpetuumonsulem.ac.,Hist., .89 pseVitelliusponte uluionsigniquo, aludatusccinctusque,enatumtpopulumnteeagens, uominus tcaptam rbemngrederetur,micorumonsilioeterritus,umptapraetextatcompositogminencessi!.







296 F. S. KLEINER

pomerium.That the lictors lso did notfixaxes to their asces untiltheyleftRome is suggested ythe carefuldistinctionsmadebythesculptors fthe famous Domitianicreliefsfrom hePalazzo della Cancelleria 34). nFriezeA, where theprofectio f Domitian is represented,he lictors hatstandbeside or behind Roma bearfasces without xes ; the ictorsnexttoMars and in front f Roma (i.e., alreadyoutsideRome, as is Domitian,who wears thepaludamentum) arry asces with axes attached. n FriezeB, where theaduentus ofVespasian is depicted, ll the ictors o theright

ofRoma and the VestalVirgins i.e. those outsideRome) wear tunics ndcarry asces withaxes ; the ictor othe eft fRoma (insidethepomerium)is clad in a toga and hisfasces has no axe. Moreover,the BoscorealeTiberiusdoes notmerelywear themilitaryloak,thepaludamentum heis armed,bothdefensivelylorica)and offensivelyhasta),and this ppearstobe especially nappropriatewithin hecity, t leastduring heRepublicand early Empire. The sacrifice n armor of Tiberius to Jupiter annothave occurred n Rome.

Recently,n a stillunpublisheddissertation,ohnPollinialso contended

that he Tiberiansacrifice ad to takeplace outsidethepomerium ecauseof the general'smilitary ress. Pollini suggestedthatthe sacrificewasperformedustoutsidethepomerium t the foot f theCapitolinehill.Thetempledepictedon thecup would be theTemple ofJupiter apitolinus,buttheceremony tselfwould be locatedrather t theTempleof Bellona.The sacrificanťs pear,according oPollini,would thenbe theone kept nBellonas templewhich was dipped n blood when war was declared ").This interpretationf the Boscoreale cup, which retains heprofectioaduentussignificancef Kahlers solution nd has the merit fplacingthe

sacrifice utside thepomerium,must nevertheless lso be rejected.As weshall see below, in Roman artwhen a sacrificant ears armor,he almostalways bears a spear, regardlessof the occasion depictedor the deityhonored.More important,here s no parallel n ancient rtof whichI amaware for herepresentationf a sacrifice o a deitywhere thedeity tself(or a statueof thesame) or thedeity's hrine s omitted, ut theshrineofanotherdeity s depicted.The pictorial onventions f ancient rtmake it

(34) F.Magi, rilievilavi elPalazzo ella ancelleriaRome, 945.G.Bendinelli,

rilieviomizianeielPalazzo ellaCancellerianRomaTurin,949.J.M.C.Toynbee,The lavian eliefsromhe alazzodellaCancellerianRomeLondon,957.(35)J.Pollini, tudiesnAugustanHistorical eliefsDiss.Berkeley,978, .285-

291 1 m ndebtedoProf. ollini orending ephotocopiesf he elevantages fhistypescript.hepublicationf revisedersionfhisdissertationsplanned.







PLATE V

Fig.1and2.- Silverupfromoscoreale,ideA : Triumph







PLATEV

Fig.3.- Silverupfromoscoreale,ideA Triumph

Fig.4. - Silverupfromoscoreale,ideВ Sacrifice







PLATEVI

Fig.5 and6.- Silverupfromoscoreale,ideВ Sacrifice







PLATEVII

Fig.7.- Cività astellana,athedralSacrifice(Photo Deutsch. rch.nst., ome)







PLATEVIII

иоs"СcdслОС«ао

2 о.2 ли Š.0 ^(30-*£ IЗ3

1 2Sáя ecdо'3>

oó

6£







THESACRIFICEN ARMORN ROMAN RT 297

clear thatwhereverTiberiussacrifices, e does so in honor ofJupiterndnot of Bellona or anyoneelse.

Given the ambiguous nature of our ancient written and pictorialdocuments, t s perhapsbest to leave open thequestionsofwhen,where,and whyTiberius is sacrificing, ut it seems to me thatTiberius' armedsacrificemust takeplace in the fieldrather han n Rome (Зб) nd that hescenewas probablymeant o form pendant o that fAugustusgrantingclemencyon the frontier n the otherRothschild up fromBoscoreale.

Ourpictorial ocumentsdo, however,make one thing ertain, lthoughno one has drawn attention o it before in all of Roman artpriorto ca.A.D. 200, with the sole exceptionsof the Boscoreale cup and one othercase discussedbelow, no historical igure verperforms sacrificewhilewearing rmor not nanyarchitectural rieze rpanelrelief, n anycoinorgem, n any painting, n any sarcophagus,not even on thecolumns ofTrajan and Marcus Aurelius, where sacrificial rites in the field arecommon. That such sacrificesdid occur under some circumstances sattested o by the Boscoreale cups, which were probably producedby a

workshop in the capital and reproduceat least the main elements ofofficialrelief culptures.The cups and their models are most likelyofTiberian date because of the association of Tiberius with the divineAugustus,who receives the homage of the gods on one side of theAugustuscup. The Boscorealecups (and others ikethem)mayevenhavebeen commissionedby the emperorhimself s presentation ieces forfavoredrecipients n special occasions("). In such an official ontext hecostume worn byTiberius cannot be an error.And yetthere s no otherpictorialor written ecord of a sacrifice n armorby a historicalfigure

duringtheRepublic or early Empire. The inescapableconclusion is thatpayinghomage to the gods while in battle dress and armedwas, ifnotillegal or impious, at least considered to be somewhat inconsistent rcontradictory especially n the era of the Pax Romana - and as a rule

(36)W. Rist,DieOpfer errömischeneeresDiss.Tübingen,920, ollects hewrittenources ormilitaryacrifices,oth nRome nd n he ield. he ncientourcesinfrequentlyentionhe ostumef he acrificant,ut eversthe ostumetatedobecuirass.

(37) D. E. Strong, reekndRoman oldnd ilverlate, ondon, 966, . 136. d.,

Roman rt, armondsworth,976, .49-50. f.G.Rodenwaldt,unst mAugustus,nDie Antike13,1937, . 178-180=Kunst mAugustus,erlin, 943, .56-58).M.Della Corte, leopatra, .AntonioOttavianoelle llegorietorico-umoristicheelleargenterieel tesoro iBoscoreale,ompeii,951, sp.p. 14-16. olacco, l trionfoiTiberio,.265-266. ahler, omund eineWelt, .227.







298 F. S. KLEINER

artistsemployed both by the state and privatelyavoided such re-presentations. he sacrifice n armor s, however,standard n Roman artforone legendaryfigure Aeneas.

One of the earliestrepresentationsf a cuirassed and armedAeneasperforming sacrifice ppears on a circular base datable about 40 B.C.which is presently ocated in the atriumof the Cathedral of CivitàCastellana Fig. 7) (38).The reliefs f the base depict beardedwarrior nthepresenceofMars, Venus,Vulcan andVictory.The warrior-sacrificant

is bare-footed,wears a helmetand cuirass,and holds a spear in his lefthand and a patera in his righthand. As Victorypreparesto crown himfrombehind,he offers sacrifice t a flaming ltar.Mars (who is alsoshown in armorand who carries trophy nd spear),Vulcan and Venuslook on. The sacrificant as beenconvincinglydentifieds Aeneas, freshfromvictory n battle,offeringhanks to the god of war, his goddess-mother, nd the divinesmithwho fashionedhis armor.

Roughlycontemporarys a fragmentfa friezen thecollectionof theMuseo GregorianoProfano of theVatican of uncertainprovenance,but

perhapsalso fromCività Castellana (Fig. 8) (39). n thisfrieze beardedsacrificant a legendaryfigure, robablyalso Aeneas - standsbetweentwo altars nd two statues, ne ofwhich is preserved nly n smallpart ttheright. he sacrificing arriorhimselfs also in large partrestored, utit scertain hathe is dressed n a loricaandpaludamentumandthathe ishelmeted nd barefooted.Behind him are a uictimarius a flute-player,and a popa ; two bulls await sacrifice. he one preserved tatueportraysMars,who wears a cuirassand a plumedhelmetdecoratedwiththe uparomana nursingRomulus and Remus. A second fragmentf the same

marblefrieze epicts notheruncertain vent out of the egendary astofRome.

Aeneas appears again in armor as sacrificant n the reverseof asplendidbronze medallion in Berlin struck bout A.D. 145 duringthe

(38)R.Herbig,ömischeasis nCività astellananRM,42, 1927, . 129-147. .Borda,ArkesílaosinВС, 73,1949-19501953), .200-201. yberg,ites, .27.G.K.Galinsky,eneas,icilyndRome, rinceton,969, .22-24. . M.FellettiMaj,Latradizionetalica ell'arteomana, ome, 977, . 190-191.ig.7,courtesyeutsches

Archäologischesnstitut,ömischebteilung.(39)G. Kaschnitz onWeinberg,culture el magazzinoel MuseoVaticano,Vatican,937, . 189-190,o.417.Helbig4,, 1963, .803-804,o. 1122E. Simon).FellettiMaj,Tradizionetalica, . 191-192.ig.8,courtesyuseiVaticani,hows herelief ith tsmodem estorations.








reign of Antoninus Pius and bearing an obverse portraitof MarcusAurelius as Caesar (40).Aeneas, with head veiled, but dressed n loricaoffers sacrifice t an altar hat tandsbefore temple.Two attendantsrepresent s is the victim a pig) and youngAscanius with his distinctivePhrygian ap. Aeneas has been giventhe features f the newpius Aeneas,Antoninus, nd the medallion s one ofa series inking heemperorwiththe legendaryhero.

A cuirassedAeneas offeringacrifice lso seems to havebeen a popular

pattern-bookmotif orsarcophagiof theera ofAntoninusPius, to udgefrom wo ancientfragments one in thePalazzo Camuccini nCantalupo,a second discoveredearlyin thiscentury mong the ruinsof a Romanvilla at Torre Nova on thevia Labicana - and a Renaissancerelief n theGalleria degliUffizi n Florence thatcopies a third,ostsarcophagus 41).In these reliefs Aeneas appears in full battle dress, with cuirass,paludamentum drawn over his head as a veil), and possiblysword andspear.He is accompaniedbyAscanius and threeunarmedmen in tunics,whilea seatedfigure, robablyVirtus,watches the heroand a uictimarius

prepareto sacrifice hesow at LaviniumafterAeneas4disembarkationnItaly 42).

This seriesofrepresentationsf Aeneas sacrificinglearlydemonstratesthat the martialaspects of Aeneas, the greathero whose armor wasfashionedby Vulcan himself, re not suppressedeven when the piusforefatherf the Romans performs solemnsacrifice43).So inseparableare Aeneas and hisfamousarmsthatVergiltoo portrays imwithswordand "brightwith starflashing hield and celestial armor" when he

(40) F. Gnecchi,medaglioniomaniMilan, 912, I,p.37,no.84,pl.66.6.P. L.Strack, ntersuchungenur ömischeneichsprägunges weitenahrhunderts.II.DieReichsprägungurZeitdes Antoninusius Stuttgart,937, .70. J. M. C. Toynbee,RomanMedallionsNewYork, 944, .218-219. .P.C. Kent, oman oinsLondon,1978, .297,no.313,pl.91.(41)G. E. Rizzo, eggendeatine ntichissime.ltorilievoi un arcofagoomanoin

RM 21,1906, .289-306,98-402. . ieveking,er arkophagon orre ova nd asAeneasrelieferUffizienin RM 32, 1917,p. 168-171.G. Q. Giglioli, l rilievoCamucciniel icloeggendarioiEneanel azio nВС, 67,1939, . 109-1 6.Galinsky,Aeneas, .25-26.

(42)Anothernstancehere eneasmayhave een hownacrificingnarmorH.StuartJones, Catalogue f theAncientculpturesreservedn theMunicipalCollectionsfRome. heSculpturesftheMuseoCapitolinoOxford,912, . 33-34,no.23a.

(43)Galinsky,eneasp.25.








and sacrifices n armor become ubiquitous in the designsfor the mostwidely circulated mperial pictorialmonumentsof all - the coins. TheRome mintbeginsabout200 tostrike housandsofaurei anddenariiwiththe emperor'sportrait n the obverse and, on the reverse, he image ofSeptimiusSeverus,laureateand cuirassed,holdinga spear and a pateraand sacrificing t a lightedtripodaltar 48).At the same time a bronzemedallion, now in Paris, was issued with Caracallas portrait n theobverseand a jointsacrifice yCaracalla andGeta- both oricate, earing

spears,and crowned by Victory stampedon the reverse49).About adecade later estertiiwere issued nGeta s name,withhisobverseportrait,and reverse ypeofCaracalla andGeta crownedbyVictories nd claspingrighthands over a flamingaltari50).A cameo in the BibliothèqueNationale in Paris which may also be dated to this decade portraysSeptimiusSeverus between his two sons beforea burningaltar. Theemperor ndGeta offeracrifice,while Caracalla holdsa globe.Both sonsare being crowned by Victories all threewear loricae and paluda-mento 51).The inscriptionn thegem- "Victory ftheEmperors" and

those of thecoins- RESTITVTOR VRBIS andCONCORDI AE AVGG -suggeststhat sacrifices n armor were now performed n a varietyofoccasions. This is confirmedby two reversetypesof aurei struckforCaracalla as emperor n A.D. 214 and 215, where Caracalla sacrifices narmorbefore roundtempleofVesta and to Aesculapius 52).Coins andmedallions of Alexander Severus also show the emperor in armorsacrificing the legends are IOVI CONSERVATORI and FIDES MILI-TVM (53).Similarnumismatic ypescontinue to be popular throughoutthe century nd by the time of the tetrarchyt the latest a sacrifice n

armorappearsin monumental elief culpture n the ArchofGaleriusat

(48)BMC,EmpireV, p. 189,no. 178 p. 193-194,os. 200ff. p.222,no.362pl.31.8, 2.1-2, 6.13.Cf.p.287,no.671,pl.44.12.

(49)Gnecchi,I,p.77,no.2,pl.95.3.(50) BMC, mpireV,p.391,no.178, l.57.2.(51) E. Babelon, atalogue es camées ntiquest modernese la Bibliothèque

NationaleParis, 897, . 157, o.301, l.34.A. M.McCann,he ortraitsf eptimiusSeverusA.D. 93-21), nMem.Amer. cad.Rome30, 1968, . 182, emh,pl.92.T.

Hölscher, ictoriaomanaMainz, 967, .20,note 9,pl.1.14.(52) BMC, mpireV,p.450,nos. 101-102p.458,no. 148 pl.70.5-6, 1.8.(53) BMC, mpireVI,p. 182,nos. 81-683p. 186,nos. 26-728p. 187,nos. 34-

736 pl.23-25.Gnecchi,I,p.80,no.6 ; p.84,nos.4-5 pl.97.3, 8.6,101.3-4III,p.42,no. 36 p.45,no.18 pls.152.15, 53.6-7.







302 F. S. KLEINER

Salónica (54). t is thusapparent hat n the third enturytwas no longerconsidered rregular r impiousto don battlegearand sacrifice efore heRoman gods.

The sudden flowering f the sacrifice n armorin Roman artof theSeveřanage and thepersistence f the themethroughouthe ateEmpireafter enturiesnwhicharmedsacrifices re almostunknown n artapartfrom epresentationsfthe Aeneas legendarehighly ignificant.Whereaspriorto 200 only Aeneas - whose "celestial armor" is an almost in-

dispensableattribute consistentlyacrificesn armor,from hetimeofthe Severanson the martial spectofimperialpower is so importanthatthe emperors re regularly hown in battle dresswhile sacrificing. hedesire to project an image of the soldier-emperor s soldier takesprecedenceover any considerationof impropriety. he historyof thesacrifice n armor n Roman artthus documentswhat we knowtobe truefrom o manyother ources the militarizationfthe Roman state nd ofRoman imperial conographyn the time of Gibbon's decline and falloftheRoman empire 55).

BostonUniversity. Fred S. Kleiner.

(54)Ryberg,ites, . 139-140, ig. 6. H. P. Laubscher,erReliefschmuckesGaleriusbogensnThessalonikiBerlin, 975, .52-57, l.40-42Frieze I 17).M. S.PondRothman,heThematicrganizationf he anel eliefsn he rchfGaleriusnAJA, 1,1977, .440-442,ig. 0.

od; aeeesp. . alfoldi, nsignienna racnt erromiscnenaiser,mкм, эи, у d,p.43-68, or he hangingconographyf he mperor.

AddendumAfter his rticle as submittedoLatomus,ulvioCancianťsntrynAineias

appearednLexiconconographicumythologicaelassicae,ZurichndMunich,981,p.381-396.hefollowingonumentsiscussedbove re lso reatedyCancianiAraPads Augustaep.391, no. 165 p.396),PalazzoCamucciniarcophagusp.391,no. 166 p.396),medallionf Antoninusius (p.391; no. 172 p.395f.), ivitàCastellanaase p.392,no.177 p.395).

Mentionhouldlsobemade f ne nstancenRomanrt f Greek eroacrificingwhilewearingrmor Jason. or Roman arcophagiepictinghe oricate asonsacrificing,eeC. Robert, ie antikenarkophagereliefsII, Berlin, 890, .201-203,no.190, l.61,fig. 90' p.215f., o.201,pl.65,fig. 01a.L. Musso,n A.Giuliano,

MuseoNazionale omano. e sculture,, 2, Rome,1981,p. 138-243, ith arlierbibliography.

The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman Art

Documents

Transcript of The Sacrifice in Armor in Roman Art