L21 - Constantines Rome

• Recognize the building:

  Title: Arch of Constantine

  Date: 315 CE

  Material: brick-face concrete, marble

  Arts: constantinian reliefs, darian,

  
• Recognize the ground plan...

  Title: Forum of Trajan

  Date: Early 2nd century CE

  Architect: Apollodorus of Damascus

  Style: Ionian colonnades, Central square/plaza, Ionian peristyle, Luna marble floor

  
• Recognize the building:

  Title: The Column of Trajan

  Date: 113 CE

  Material: carra Marble and granite

  Place: Rome

  
• Identify the parts of the Arch of Constantine:

  blue - Marcus Aurelius

  yellow - Hadrian

  orange - Constantine

  
• What were the core imperial virtues after Augustus?

  • Aequitas—justice or fairness (be equitable, linked to doing what’s just)
  • Pietas—following established traditions (giving what is due, gods, humans), loyal fulfillment of responsibilities
  • Virtus—courage manliness (in battle, hunting)
  • Liberalitas—generosity, the act of giving
  • Providentia – imperial foresight (political stability)
• Who inspired Constantine? Which God did he claim as his protector?

  Constantine claimed to have received a vision from the Christian God before the Battle of Milvian Bridge, in which he saw a cross of light in the sky accompanied by the words "By this conquer!"

  Constantine revered the Christian God as his protector and attributed his military success to divine intervention. His conversion to Christianity had a profound impact on the later history of the Roman Empire, as he became the first Roman emperor to embrace Christianity (legalization + establishment).
• What was decided at the Council of Nicaea?

  Nicene Creed: a statement of faith affirming the divinity of Jesus Christ and his equality with God the Father

  Condemnation of Arianism

  Establishment of Easter Date

  Bishops commissioned to start building churches
• If Constantine was a Christian, why his Arch represented pagan deities?

  Significant but not immediate abandonment of traditional pagan practices or symbols

  Maintaining a sense of continuity with Rome’s pagan past

  Connecting Constantine’s reign with the prestigious history of Rome and imperial tradition

  Political purpose: appealing to both Christian and pagan constituents within the empire
• Recognize the artwork:

  Title: Constantine and Sol Apollo Invictus

  Date: 310-313 CE

  Medium: bronze coin

  
• Recognize the artwork:

  Title: Colossal Statue of Constantine

  Date: 312 CE

  Medium: acrolithic (wood, marble, bronze)

  Place: Basilica Nova

  
• Recognize the building:

  Title: Basilica Nova (of Constantine/Maxentius)

  Date: 306-310

  Medium: brick-faced concrete

  Place: Roman Forum