6th CLASSICS: Roman Art & Architecture notes
VITRUVIAN ARCHITECTURE, ELEMENTS OF ARCHITECTURE,
BUILDING MATERIALS, ROADS, BRIDGES, SEWERS &
AQUADUCTS, TRIUMPHAL ARCHES
Contents
Vitruvian Architecture
Key Elements of Roman Architecture
Columns
Arches
Building Materials
Infrastructure
Roads
Bridges
Sewers
Aqueducts
Milvian Bridg, Rome Alacantra Bridge, Spain
Cloaca Maxima, Rome
Hadrian’s Aqueduct, Carthage
Segovia
Pont du Gard, Nimes, France
Buildings
Temples
Basilicas
Baths
Circuses
Theatres
VIRUVIAN ARCHITECTURE
Vitruvius was a Roman architect active in the late 1st century BC. He was heavily influenced by Greek
geometry and philosophy particularly Pythagorean aesthetics (the philosophy of Beauty) and was especially
interested in the ratio of proportionality known as the Golden Mean and signified today by the Greek letter
(phi). According to Vitruvius, buildings should mimic nature, which in turn mimics the ideal forms of
mathematics. Vitruvius studied Pythaorean philosophy and found that in all natural things from inanimate
rocks to the humming hives of bees geometry abounds. He wrote a series of treatise entitled De
Architectura in which he said that architecture should resemble life and to this end he described the ideal
proportions of a man. Leonardo Da Vinci famously sketched this Vitruvian Man and showed how he fitted
perfectly into a square, a circle and an equilateral triangle according to the dictates of the Golden Mean.
Vitrvius also outlined 3 principals upon which buildings to his way of thinking should be built.
1. firmitas – it must be built of strong and durable material
2. utilitas – it must be functional and usable
3. venustas – it must be beautiful. This last one is very complicated. Simply put it must look essentially
beautiful. This means that far beyond boasting exquisite decorations it must conform to the
mathematical laws of proportionality.
If all these principals are adhered to, then the resultant building will through its proportional
symmetry convey a sense of eurythmia – a harmonously beautiful quality.
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COLUMNS
The Romans adopted the Greek styles of columns early in their history probably due to
contact with Greek colonists in Italy.
There are three orders of Greek columns:
1. The Doric Order – often plain in appearance, slightly fat and lacking a base
2. The Ionic Order – elegant, narrow, tall and crowned by the distinctive
capital decorated simply with ram-horn volutes - carvings
3. The Corinthian Order – like Ionic columns but crowned by a seeming floral
display. The Romans sometimes incorporated ram-horns in their
Corinthian capitals but it is the acanthus leaves that appear to grow
organically that define Corinthian columns.
Column shafts can be either plane or fluted (ridged)
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THE ARCH
The arch was known to the Egyptians and the Greeks but never used to its potential until Roman times.
The Greeks favoured the post and pillar format of the temples for their public buildings but this scheme
limited the amount of free space inside a building. They made fine use of triangular roofs however but
again the structures suffered from great stresses and strains, which limited the Greeks to using very strong,
hard and expensive marble. The arch could be constructed with anything from cheap brick to polished
marble and allowed the Romans to play with space.
Roman arches were constructed from unmortared (no cement) voussoirs (wedge shaped blocks) which
were held in position by a central keystone.
Thrust is the term given to the downward and outward force exerted by the combined weight of these
blocks and the great weight that they often supported.
In many buildings, supporting walls had to be reinforced by means of strong thick walls known as
buttresses that stopped the arch from collapsing due to the thrust of its load.
When several concentric arches are combined and juxtaposed they formed a tunnel called a barrel vault.
When two barrel-vaults intersected at right angles they formed a cross vault
And when an arch was constructed in 3 dimensions, it formed a hollow dome
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Building materials
STONE:
Tufa is a volcanic rock like pumice, which ranges in its strength and hardness.
Travertine – sometimes called Travertine Marble or Travertine Limestone is a sedimentary rock that
comes from a large quarry in Tivoli near Rome. It is typically pock marked and porous
and can be polished to a fine finish. The Colosseum is constructed almost entirely from
Travertine. Its actual name in Latin was lapis tiburtinus - stone from Tibur (ancient Tivoli).
It comes in a variety of colours ranging from light brown to mottled red.
Pentelic marble is a fine white marble imported from the Athenian quarry in Greece. A similar Italian
marble was quarried at Luna.
Porphyry a highly prized redish purple granite was imported from Egypt
Alabaster is a whitish chalky rock quarried in Tuscany, north of Rome. It was used for carving decorations
and when heated in boiling water it acquires a translucent quality resembling true marble.
COMPOUND MATERIALS:
Stucco is a durable cement-like plaster made simply from lime, sand, marble dust and water. It was used in
varying consistencies as a dressing for exteriors and interiors alike.
Concrete is a compound material made by mixing cement (lime, sand and water) with an aggregate:
usually gravel or shingle. It was originally discovered by the Egyptians but they failed to realise its
potential. In the 1st century BC however the Romans became masters in the uses of concrete.
Concrete suffers from thrust and often cracks along faults in walls. This is due to the fact that
concrete is porous and so it swells and shrinks depending upon its water content. The Romans
however discovered that when mixed with pozzolanic ash (a volcanic ash of varying colours
found around Mt. Vesuvius near Naples) at a ratio of 2:1 with lime before being added to the
mixture of sand, aggregate and water the resultant concrete was slow drying, water proof once dry
and very hard wearing. Roman water channels and sewers were coated in this type of concrete and
sections of the original aqueduct in Rome are still in use today. The Roman harbour at Cosa,
Tuscany was built with Roman concrete and also remains in use today. Concrete was often faced
with slabs of marble to make the walls look more appealing but the Romans were very fond of
building walls with concrete because it was so strong, moldable and cheap.
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ROADS
All roads lead to Rome
Famous Roads of Rome
Via Appia “the queen of the long roads” and main road to the south.
 Length: 211km south from Rome to Capua – the original road.
 Built by Appius Claudius Caecus (censor) 312BC.
 It was the first long road built specifically for troops to march to and from Rome.
 It crossed the Pontine Marshes to the south which had up until that point formed a geographic obstacle
(and a high risk of malaria) to the Romans in their skirmishes with the nearby Oscan tribes.
 71BC 6000 defeated slaves of Spartacus’ slave revolt were crucified along the Via Appia between
Rome and Capua.
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It was extended several times afterwards by a further 375km and finally by Trajan in the 1 st century
AD to Barium (modern Bari) and Brundisium (Brindisi); ports on the heel of Italy.
Via Flamina – most important road to the north.
 Built by Gaius Flaminus (censor) 220BC.
 Length: 311km
 It begins just inside the northern gate of Rome in the Aurellian walls at Porta Flaminia (now Piazza del
Popolo – the square of the poplars) and ends in the ancient city of Ariminum (Rimini) on the Adriatic.
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Under Vespasian in AD69 the tunnel through the mountain at Furlo was enlarged. It is still used today
along the modern highway known as the SS 3 Flaminia.
Via Sacra
 The oldest and consequently most sacred street of Rome.
 It begins on the Capitoline Hill, passed through the Forum Romanum and ended at the Colosseum.
 It passed some of the most sacred sites in Rome hence the name and formed part of the Via
Triumphalis – a route rather than a road used by victorious consuls during Republican times and later
by Emperors on their triumphal parades.
What remains of the fabled Golden Milestone that stood at the centre of the Forum Romanum. It was said
to be the very centre of Rome. All distances were calculated from and all the roads ultimately led to this
point.
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BRIDGES
Roman bridges are a testament to Roman stone masonry as much as they are to the use of the arch. Roman
bridges were constructed with unmortared masonry (no cement). Dry rectangular stone blocks were put
together in stretcher and header courses: one layer of blocks was laid lengthwise, whilst the next was laid
perpendicular. The blocks were then dovetailed together (held by pressure caused by small wedge shaped
blocks hammered between them) or else held together by means of metal pins. And in true Virtruvian style
bridges often featured graded arches, the largest being at the centre and grading down in size symmetrically
to the sides.
The Milvian Bridge, Rome
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Built by Consul Marcus Aemillius Scaurus in 109BC to replace the original wooden bridge built by
Consul Gaius Claudius Nero (not the famous Emperor Nero) in 206BC.
 Built primarily of unmortared tufa but faced with travertine
 Bridge is slightly hump-backed but the hump is located between the 3rd and 4th arches to meet the
slightly higher bank on one side.
 Two flood passages flank the 4th arch to relieve the bridge when the Tiber is in flood.
 Similarly the imposts (feet of the piers) are wedge shaped on the up-river side. These act as
breakwaters that direct the force of water through the arches and off of the piers.
 The viaduct on top is 8m wide and enclosed by two parapet walls on either side.
 6 arches. The widest spanning almost 60ft/18.55m
 The bridge carried the Via Flaminia across the Tiber. It would have been used as a main thoroughfare
for the movement of people and goods.
Additional Information NOT IN WHEELER
 It was the scene of a famous battle (The Battle of the Milvian Bridge) between Emperors Constantine I
and a rival called Maxentius in AD312; a battle in which Constantine was victorious.
The bridge across the Tagus river valley at Alacantara, Spain.
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Located at the city of Alacantara near the border between Spain and Portugal.
Built of unmortared granite
There is a dedication to Trajan on the triumphal arch at the centre
IMPeratori. CAESARI DIVI NERVA Filio. NERVAE
TRAIANO AVGVSTO GERMANICO DACICO PONTIFici. MAXimo. This is the official title of
Trajan as Emperor. The inclusion of Dacico means that the inscription was carved after Trajan’s
triumph on return from Dacia (AD102).
Bridge built by AD106
The piers are buttressed to withstand the thrust of the arches and held together by means of
metal clamps to withstand the pull of the river. The up-river sides are rounded so as to act as
breakwaters, which direct the flow of water through the arches and stop the water from exerting full
pressure on the piers themselves.
The widest arches at the centre measure 94ft/28.8m
The length of the bridge is almost 200m (194m).
The viaduct is 8m wide
At the highest point, the bridge is more than 50m above the river.
6 arches in total hold up the viaduct linking the two sides of the Tagus ravine.
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
There is a little Roman temple on the city side, bearing a dedication to the bridge builder: Gaius
Julius Lacer.
The bridge has been broken in parts
several times over the centuries by the
Moors, the Spanish and the Portuguese.
Less than masterful repairs were made
using mortared masonry as the Spanish
masons responsible were clearly not as
highly skilled as their Roman forebears.
Left: The little temple on the Alcantara
side of the bridge with a dedication to the
architect.
WATERWORKS: SEWERS & AQUADUCTS
Past influences and precedents:
The Greeks
Polycrates of Samos (a Greek island) famously cut a water channel that stretched some 1,100ft long linking
a water source with the city. It was in essence an aqueduct as it was covered. It was however crudely
constructed, being simply hewn through the rock.
The Persians & Etruscans
The Persians had used qanats to irrigate the arid landscape of Iran long before Rome was even founded.
The Phoenicians acquired this technology and it quickly spread throughout the various Punic colonies
scattered throughout the Mediterranean, including Etruria. The Romans therefore perfected an earlier
Etruscan method of irrigation and drainage.
A qanat – which is a Persian word – was a purpose built underground water channel that sloped very
gradually downward from higher ground, from an aquifer - a subterranean water rich layer of permeable
rock. This was tapped. Vertical shafts were then dropped at regular intervals along the channel from which
water could be drawn. The channel would eventually come out into the open in the foothills where it would
become a canal that would irrigate the surrounding landscape.
This illustration is NOT IN WHEELER
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Cloaca Maxima (Great Sewer) of Rome
Built when Rome was ruled by Etruscan kings prior to the foundation of the Republic by Tarquinius
Priscius c.600BC.
It was originally fed by three streams from the hills around the forum and was for the most part an
open drain, though certainly some of the lower parts must have been tunneled below ground.
The technology is basically a reverse qanat. Instead of drawing water from the main channel, waste
was added through drains.
In 33BC Marcus Agrippa an accomplished general and then an elected aedile responsible for public
works as well as a close personal friend of Caesar Augustus carried out extensive and badly needed
maintenance of the sewers. He perfected the Etruscan drains and turned them into a fully functional
city sewage network. The barrel vaulted tunnels were probably added at this time.
There were six other sewers in Rome that ran into the Cloaca Maxima just before it reached the out-fall
into the Tiber near the ancient bridge Ponte Rotto.
By the 1st century AD the 11 aqueducts that supplied Rome with fresh water ultimately ended in the
Cloaca Maxima so the water pressure in the sewer was kept constant. This flushed out blockages.
The sewer had its own goddess, Cloacina – an aspect of Venus. A shrine to Venus Cloacina was
erected in the Forum Romanum directly over a drain to the sewer. Janus was also somehow connected
to the sewer, as Constantine I erected an arch to Janus Quadrifrons (4 headed Janus) again over a drain
to the Cloaca in the Forum Boarium (the cattle market). The specific meanings of these cults have been
lost over time but the Romans must have felt that these deities were as important as their sewers; else
they would not have built shrines to them.
The Cloaca Maxima – illustrations NOT IN WHEELER
Above: The out-fall of the Cloaca Maxima is located near the ancient Roman bridge called Ponto Rotto (the broken bridge). When the
Tiber is not in flood as it is above the little sewer’s opening can be seen from a raised platform on the quay where the fisherman is
sitting. You can gain access to the sewer in various places along its route. No more than a trickle of water runs through it today but it
is still in use as an emergency overflow for Rome’s main drainage network.
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Aqueducts
Aqueducts were purpose built Roman water
channels in which the gentle flow of water
was carried by the force of gravity. The ducts
themselves (like this one) were lined with fine
concrete mixed with pozzolanic ash. This
formed a waterproof seal that prevented
leaking. The duct was then covered with stone
slabs to protect the water from animal and
fecal contamination. The duct was then buried
underground.
What we call aqueducts today, are usually
only a tiny portion of the original aqueducts
of which they are a part. Of all the aqueducts
in Rome, only 10% are visible above ground.
The aqueduct bridges, which we mistakenly
call aqueducts, were brought into use to carry
aqueducts across irregular terrain like valleys
and ravines.
The aqueduct bridges that survive are as much a testament to Roman surveying techniques as they are to
engineering and architecture. The line and levels of aqueducts had to be exact. Aqueducts do not tolerate
many twists and turns. The flow of water has to be gentle and very slight, so the straighter and more
gradual the gradient the less likely the water is to erode the channel from the inside. For example, the Pont
du Gard outside Nimes in France drops only 34cm per kilometre and drops only 17m vertically in its entire
length of 51km (30 miles).
Vitruvius was the first to describe how water finds its own level and therefore aqueducts work by the power
of gravity. He went on to describe in great mathematical detail the problems facing any aqueduct. The
fragility of the watercourse was the main one. The flow of water had to be gentle to prevent erosion of the
channel and blow outs. And despite the precision of Roman engineering, aqueducts had to be constantly
maintained so as to guard the purity of the water, which they carried.
Interesting fact
In AD95 Emperor Nerva appointed Frontinus, one of his generals, to the position of curator
aquarum charged with carrying out a full survey of all 11 aqueducts that served Rome. At the end
of the first century he published De Aquaeducto, which counts as the first published survey of
public works. Thanks in part to Vetruvius’ original calculations he was able to detect
discrepancies between the intake and out-fall volumes. He then investigated and discovered
illegal tapping of the aqueducts by individuals and local industries.
Single Tiered: Aqueduct of Hadrian, ancient Carthage, Africa - modern Tunis, Tunisia
 Built AD131
 Original length 90km/55 miles from Zaghoun mountains to Carthage, modern Tunis – see
Wheeler, p.150, Il.133
 Built primarily of local sandstone and reinforced with brick
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Double Tiered: Aqueduct of Segovia, Spain
 Wheeler says it was built c.AD10 but recent research suggests that it was probably later: between the
late 1st and early 2nd centuries AD during the reigns of Emperors Vespasian or Nerva.
 Built of unmortared granite blocks
 36 arches on each tier
 The upper arches are smaller but wider: 5.1m/16.1ft.
 The lower arches are taller but narrower: 4.5m/14.8ft
 Combined height including the water channel is 34m at the centre
 The total length of the aqueduct bridge is approximately 900m
 Simple moulded imposts break the monotony of the piers: 2 on each pier of the upper level and 4
on most piers of the lower level except towards the sides where it is the lower piers that grade away
gradually.
 At the top the water channel is lined with concrete and which forms a U shaped duct 0.55 by 0.46
meters (1.8 by 1.5 feet) and was once covered with granite slabs.
It was partially destroyed by the Moors in 1072 but carefully restored to its original glory by King
Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in the 15 th century.
Three tiered: Pont Du Gard, ancient Nemausus, Gaul – modern Nimes, France
 Built c.AD14
 Total length of aqueduct was 50km/31miles from Fontaines d’Eure near the modern town of Uzes to
the Roman city of Nemausus (Nimes).
 Total length of aqueduct bridge at highest level: 275m across the small Gardon river
 Combined height of all the tiers was 49m/180ft above the river
 Lower tier: 6 arches, 142 m long, 6 m thick, 22 m high
 Middle tier: 11 arches, 242 m long, 4 m thick, 20 m high
 Upper tier: 35 arches, 275 m long, 3 m thick, 7 m high
 Water channel: 1.8m/(6ft) high, 1.2m/(4ft) wide and has a gradient of 0.4%
 The whole aqueduct delivered 6 million gallons of water daily to Nemausus
 Breakwaters and wide span of 6 lowest tiers eliminate water erosion from river
 Moulded imposts break the monotony: 2 on uppermost tier of piers & 3 on the middle.
 The aqueduct bridge doubles as a viaduct on the first level, though the modern road is actually a newer
bridge built in the 18th century to safeguard the Roman aqueduct.
 Some of the granite blocks weigh as much as 6 tons bear the original Roman mason marks indicating
their exact place and number right or left.
For illustrations of these aqueducts see Wheeler, pp. 150-51, Ills.132. 133 & 134
TRIUMPHAL ARCHES
Triple Arch at Timgad
Arch of Septimius Severus at Lepcis Magna
Arch of Titus, Rome
Triple Arch of Constantine, Rome
The Triumphal Arch
By way of introduction to Triumphal Arches Wheeler says, From the exploitation of the arch in a
functional capacity it was but a step for a society so demonstrative and wealthy as
the Romans to elaborate it in monumental isolation. (Wheeler, p.152). Triumphal arches are
curious for this reason. From their earliest appearance in Roman civilisation they stood in monumental
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isolation showing no apparent regard to functionality or utilitarian concepts. This fact sets triumphal arches
up against one of the founding 3 principals of the Virtruvian philosophy that seems to underpin Roman
architecture. These arches perform no function other than to act as a facet of the personality-cult
which lies at the heart of the Imperial idea. (Wheeler, p.153).
The very first arches however appeared during the time of the Republic in the 2 nd century BC. One of these
early arches was placed on the spina in the Circus Maximus by a consul (general) L. Stertinus on his
triumphant return from Spain. Elsewhere in the colonies of the Empire they often replaced the gates of
cities, which at least lent them some use but in several places they traversed the road leading into a city
leaving the modern historian guessing as to their function other than perhaps to mark the limit of the
pomerium – clear space around a city. Writing in the 1 st century AD the historian Pliny the Elder called the
triumphal arch a “new-fangled invention” which suggests that the craze was poorly understood even by the
most learned of men. It seems Wheeler may be right when he says that, their ostentatious inutility
has commended these costly ornaments, these towering advertisements, to the
Herrenvolk (common folk) mind. (Wheeler, p.153). Wheeler perhaps is right because these arches were
indeed extremely popular. In Rome alone there were more than 50 built throughout the city. It seems they
were placed as focal points in busy areas as a decorative adjunct to some particularly
frequented spot: celeberrimo loco (Wheeler, p.156) as an inscription from the Arch of Augustus in
Pisa put it. In some cases access to them was hindered by steps, blocked and even prohibited by law. They
were not bridges as they stood in isolation. They were not tombs. They supported nothing but an upper
storey that carried nothing except artwork and dedications. They were in essence bill-boards glorifying
whosoever built them.
There were several different kinds.
Single Arches appear in greater concentration in the western half of the empire, i.e: Europe.
The Arch of Titus in Rome
 Built c.AD81
 Located on the Via Sacra, south-east of the Forum Romanum
 Built by Emperor Domitian and dedicated in memory of his older brother Emperor Titus and the sack
of Jerusalem in AD70.
 Pentalic Marble imported from Greece
 The corners are articulated with engaged fluted Corinthian columns, though the capitals also sport
ionic volutes. They count as the earliest example of the composite order.
 The entablature juts out over the column capitals
 The soffit (archway ceiling) is coffered and bears the image of the apotheosis (deified image) of Titus
at the centre
 The barrel vault is decorated by panel reliefs. One depicting the Romans seizing the Temple spoils in
Jerusalem including a sacred Jewish menorah. The other shows Titus attended by a procession of
lictors (traditional attendants/bodyguards) indicating his importance.
 The attic storey was originally surmounted by a bronze quadriga (a chariot drawn by four horses)
probably driven by a statue of Titus.
 A dedication to Titus is inscribed on a plaque over the arch on the attic section. It reads:
SENATVS
POPVLVSQVE·ROMANVS
DIVO·TITO·DIVI·VESPASIANI·F. (Filio)
VESPASIANO·AVGVSTO
Which means The Senate and People of Rome (dedicate this) to the divine Titus Vespasianus
Augustus, son of the divine Vespasian.
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It is not known whether the opposite side ever held an inscription but Pope Pius XVII placed one
there in his own honour after he refurbished the arch in 1821. The new inscription was
intentionally made on travertine marble to differentiate it from the original pentallic marble.
This single triumphal arch provided Napoleon’s architects with the inspiration for his Arc du Triomphe
in Paris
Later on and elsewhere in the empire the triple arch became more popular, probably because it guaranteed
more space for decoration. An impoverished example is
the Triple Arch of Trajan at Timgad, Algeria. It was built in the 2nd century AD and replaced the west
gate of the colony, so it was slightly more functional than other arches. Unfortunately its state of
preservation is poor. It seems to have been a modestly decorated arch.
 Built of local sandstone
 The axial archway is flanked by two piers, each with a smaller arch within.
 The piers are flanked by twin freestanding fluted Corinthian columns which appear to support broken
round headed pediments in the attic storey.
 Rectangular niches appear over the smaller arches and below the broken pediments. Only one is still
flanked by smaller ornamental Corinthian columns.
 The niches and small arches on the piers are separated by moulded imposts which carry across the
breadth of each pier directly below the axial arch breaking the monotony.
 The netablature of the attic storey is simple.
The Triple Arch of Constantine, Rome
The earliest form of the Triumphal arch to appear was the single form (of Titus), though early in the
Principate the triple form emerged. The larger edifice granted a longer attic storey and therefore more space
for decoration and dedications.
The Triple Triumphal Arch of Constantine I
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Built AD315
Commemorates Constantine’s victory against Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, AD312.
Located between the Colloseum and the Palatine Hill. It intentionally spans the Via Triumphalis – the
traditional route for all triumphal parades.
It is worth mentioning that the architect included spolia – robbed and re-worked material from earlier
monuments in its decorations.
The main arch is built of travertine marble and the attic storey is built primarily of brick revetted with
travertine marble, to reduce the weight the barrel vault supported.
The re-use of earlier art work or spolia may be explained in 2 ways: propaganda or speed of
construction, and probably a mix of both.
Propaganda: the earlier artwork was taken from pre-existing monuments built by the good emperors of
Rome: Trajan, Hadrain and Marcus Aurelius with whom Constantine wished to stand in the minds of
his people.
Speed of construction: the arch was commissioned and built hastily to commemorate Constantine’s
victory over Emperor Maxentius during a civil war that broke the imperial tetrarchy – when Rome was
ruled by four leaders. He had to celebrate a triumph quickly. The arch took 3 years to build after the
Battle of the Milvian Bridge. The spolia may therefore have been used for the purpose of expediency
as new ark works would take too long.
On the attic storey, flanking the inscriptions are pairs of relief sculpture taken from some earlier
monument built by Marcus Aurelius commemorating his victories over the barbarians. The reliefs tell a
sequential storey by episodes. They show the Emperor leaving the city, distributing money to the
people, at war, interrogating a prisoner, accepting surrender by the defeated chieftain, a triumphal
parade with hosts of prisoners, the emperor addressing his troops and piously offering sacrifice to the
6th CLASSICS: Roman Art & Architecture notes
VITRUVIAN ARCHITECTURE, ELEMENTS OF ARCHITECTURE,
BUILDING MATERIALS, ROADS, BRIDGES, SEWERS &
AQUADUCTS, TRIUMPHAL ARCHES
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gods. The emperor depicted is clearly Aurelius and has not been reworked to present Constantine. But
Aurelius’ son Commodus has been eradicated following his damnatio memoriae – he was a wicked
tyrant who was eventually assassinated and his memory was struck off the official historical record.
This was an ancient practice that was first used by the Egyptians for Pharaohs they wished to forget
like Akhenaten or Queen Hatsheput.
The smaller sides of the attic as well as the inner passages of the barrel vault feature friezes taken from
Trajan’s Forum celebrating his victories in Dacia.
The main façades on either side is divided into three by 4 fluted disengaged Corinthian columns made
of yellow marble imported from Numidia (ancient Algeria).
The spandrels of the main arches feature Victory goddesses presenting laurel wreaths. The spandrels of
the minor arches feature river gods. These are original works.
Pairs of round reliefs appear above each of the minor archways depicting scenes of hunting and
sacrificing. They were originally Hadrianic but the faces of the emporer have been reworked to
resemble Constantine.
Two medallions appear on the smaller sides of the sun in his chariot rising on the eastern side and the
moon in her chariot descending on the western side. This is a common pattern, the greatest example of
which appears on Phidias’ eastern pediment of the Parthenon in Athens.
The main pieces of original artwork commisioned by Constantine is a frieze that runs around the
monument between the minor arches and the medallions. These depict sequential episodes of the civil
war: The departure from Milan, the siege of Verona, the Battle of the Milvian Bridge and the Emperor
entering Rome. There is no depiction of the triumph however, perhaps because Constantine did not
want to appear triumphant over Rome itself. A minor inscription proclaims him also as Rome’s
liberator.
The main inscription reads:
IMP · CAES · FL · CONSTANTINO · MAXIMO · P · F · AVGUSTO · S · P · Q · R · QVOD ·
INSTINCTV · DIVINITATIS · MENTIS · MAGNITVDINE · CVM · EXERCITV · SVO ·
TAM · DE · TYRANNO · QVAM · DE · OMNI · EIVS · FACTIONE · VNO · TEMPORE ·
IVSTIS · REM-PVBLICAM · VLTVS · EST · ARMIS · ARCVM · TRIVMPHIS · INSIGNEM
· DICAVIT
To the Emperor Caesar Flavius Constantinus, the greatest, pious, and blessed Augustus: because he,
inspired by the divine, and by the greatness of his mind, has delivered the state from the tyrant and all
of his followers at the same time, with his army and just force of arms, the Senate and People of Rome
have dedicated this arch, decorated with triumphs.
Instinctu divinitatis may allude to Constantine’s shifting religious beliefs. Constantine was the first
Christian emperor. He didn’t make the traditional sacrifices to the Roman gods after his triumph in
315. After the celebrations he simply returned to his palace.
This triple triumphal arch was the inspiration for the design of Napoleon’s “little” Arc du Triomphe at
Place du Carrousel in Paris. The famous Arc du Triomphe at the other end of the Champs d’Elysee was
inspired by the arch of Titus.
For an excellent description of the 4 way arch at Lepcis Magna see
http://www.livius.org/le-lh/lepcis_magna/arch_severus.html
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Of uncertain date but Wheeler is correct to estimate a middle date of c.AD200 because relief carvings
depict Parthians as the defeated enemy who Septimius Severus fought early in his reign and Caracalla,
his son and heir features a tall adolescent boy in the reliefs. By AD200 Caracalla would have been a
teenager.
The Arch was built and financed by the citizens celebrating the city’s most famous son: The Emperor
who brought the stability to Rome in the year of the 5 Emperors: AD193. Septimius Severus was born
in Lepcis Magna.
6th CLASSICS: Roman Art & Architecture notes
VITRUVIAN ARCHITECTURE, ELEMENTS OF ARCHITECTURE,
BUILDING MATERIALS, ROADS, BRIDGES, SEWERS &
AQUADUCTS, TRIUMPHAL ARCHES
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It was located just outside the city at the north-east end of the cardo on an island mounted by steps.
Traffic was circumvented around it.
It is built of unmortared local limestone.
The present day arch that stands is largely a reconstruction. Only the foundations and partial ruins of
the piers were uncovered by excavation in the 1920’s.
There is a remarkable disparity between the craftsmanship of the friezes. Some are clearly the work of
master sculptors whilst others are common carvings. The limestone blocks of the central pier were also
measured in Punic cubits, whereas those of the outside arches were in Roman feet, which again
suggests there was a pause during construction. It is reasonable to assume that the city commissioned
the work as soon as Septimius Severus took power in AD193 but that the progress was slow and then
finally the arch was finished quickly, perhaps in time for the Emperor’s visit AD202-03.
Architecturally the quadrifrons form of the arch is a cross vault, i.e. 2 intersecting barrel vaults.
This type of arch is rare but not unique but they do seem to be limited to Africa. There is another 4 way
arch nearby at Oea (modern Tripoli) dedicated to Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.
Each of the four ornately decorated arches jut out from a more simple main cross vaulted block of piers
that must have been built earlier.
The arches are crowned by broken pediments supported by un-engaged fluted Corinthian columns,
whilst the arches themselves appear to be supported by beautifully ornate Corinthian pilasters.
The style of decoration is a fusion of orthodox imperial Roman monumentalism, with a Greek
bohemian edge and there is also unsurprisingly a Punic quality – Lepcis Magna was a Punic colony.
The two protective deities of the city who were originally Punic appear in the reliefs. Milkashtart – the
male consort of Astarte who was likened to Hercules by the Romans and Shadrapa – a Phoenician
healing god linked to Dionysus. Therefore the arch is a testament to the extraordinary flexibility of
Roman religion with regard to its respect and tolerance for the foreign cultures.
Nikes (Greek Victory daemons) also appear on the spandrels (the panels to either side of each arch).
A tendril and rosette frieze runs around the monument. Organic motifs also pervade throughout the
monument’s decorations. Vines and grapes particularly lend the arch a Dionysian flavour as does the
eastern quality to the entire work.
Each side of the attic storey is decorated by relief carvings of the Emperor’s victories against the
Parthians.
Arch of SepTimius Severus at Lepcis Magna viewed from the north-east as one approaches the city. The road on the opposite side
is the colony’s cardo and the ruined Arch of Trajan that replaced the north-eastern gate can be seen in the background. You can just
see the island upon which Septimius’ Arch was placed. Traffic was circumvented around it. The arch therefore stands on an ancient
roundabout just in front of the main gate to the city.
6th CLASSICS: Roman Art & Architecture notes
VITRUVIAN ARCHITECTURE, ELEMENTS OF ARCHITECTURE,
BUILDING MATERIALS, ROADS, BRIDGES, SEWERS &
AQUADUCTS, TRIUMPHAL ARCHES