page_title: Roman Empire
section_title: Sculpture
hierarchical_section_title: Roman Empire / Arts / Sculpture
caption_attribution_description: English: So-called “Grande Ludovisi” sarcophagus, with battle scene between Roman soldiers and Germans. The main character is probably Hostilian, Emperor Decius' son (d. 251 CE). Proconnesus marble, Roman artwork, ca. 251/252 CE. Français&#160;: Sarcophage dit «&#160;Grande Ludovisi&#160;» représentant une bataille entre soldats romains et Germains. Le personnage principal est probablement Hostilien, fils de l'empereur Dèce († 251 ap. J.-C.). Marbre de la Proconnèse, œuvre romaine, vers 251/252 ap. J.-C. Italiano: Sarcofago detto “Grande Ludovisi”, con scena di battaglia tra soldati Romani e Germani. Il personaggio principale al centro è probabilmente Ostiliano, figlio del imperatore Decio (morto nel 251 d.C.). Marmo proconnesio, opera romana, 251/252 d.C. ca.
context_page_description: The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterranean Sea in Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia ruled by emperors. From the accession of Caesar Augustus to the military anarchy of the third century, it was a principate with Italy as metropole of the provinces and the city of Rome as sole capital. Although fragmented briefly during the military crisis, the empire was forcibly reassembled, then ruled by multiple emperors who shared rule over the Western Roman Empire and over the Eastern Roman Empire. Rome remained the nominal capital of both parts until 476 AD, when the imperial insignia were sent to Constantinople, following the capture of Ravenna by the barbarians of Odoacer and the subsequent deposition of Romulus Augustus. The fall of the Western Roman Empire to Germanic kings, along with the hellenization of the Eastern Roman Empire into the Byzantine Empire, conventionally marks the end of Ancient Rome and the beginning of the Middle Ages.
  The predecessor state of the Roman Empire, the Roman Republic became severely destabilized in a series of civil wars and political conflicts.
context_section_description: Examples of Roman sculpture survive abundantly, though often in damaged or fragmentary condition, including freestanding statues and statuettes in marble, bronze and terracotta, and reliefs from public buildings, temples, and monuments such as the Ara Pacis, Trajan's Column, and the Arch of Titus. Niches in amphitheatres such as the Colosseum were originally filled with statues, and no formal garden was complete without statuary.
  Temples housed the cult images of deities, often by famed sculptors. The religiosity of the Romans encouraged the production of decorated altars, small representations of deities for the household shrine or votive offerings, and other pieces for dedicating at temples. Divine and mythological figures were also given secular, humorous, and even obscene depictions.
caption: On the Ludovisi sarcophagus, an example of the battle scenes favoured during the Crisis of the Third Century, the "writhing and highly emotive" Romans and Goths fill the surface in a packed, anti-classical composition[492]
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