page_title: Barberini ivory
section_title: Bottom panel
hierarchical_section_title: Barberini ivory / Iconography / Bottom panel
context_page_description: The Barberini ivory is a Byzantine ivory leaf from an imperial diptych dating from Late Antiquity, now in the Louvre in Paris. It represents the emperor as triumphant victor. It is generally dated from the first half of the 6th century and is attributed to an imperial workshop in Constantinople, while the emperor is usually identified as Justinian, or possibly Anastasius I or Zeno. It is a notable historical document because it is linked to queen Brunhilda of Austrasia. On the back there is a list of names of Frankish kings, all relatives of Brunhilda, indicating the important position of queens within Frankish royal families. Brunhilda ordered the list to be inscribed and offered it to the church as a votive image.
  Although it is not a consular diptych, it shares many features of their decorative schemes. The emperor is accompanied in the main panel by a conquered barbarian in trousers at left, a crouching allegorical figure, probably representing territory conquered or reconquered, who holds his foot in thanks or submission, and an angel or victory, crowning the emperor with the traditional palm of victory.
context_section_description: The bottom panel forms a sort of frieze decorated by a double procession of barbarians and animals converging on a central figure of Victory.  She is turned to look upwards towards the figure of the emperor on the central panel and holds in her right hand a military trophy, represented in the traditional form of a branch with military arms, armour and booty fixed to it.  The defeated barbarians carry to the emperor various gifts as tribute and are differentiated by their clothes and by the wild animals who accompany them.  To the left, two bearded figures are of the same type as the barbarian in the central panel, wearing short tunics, Phrygian caps and closed boots.  One of them wears a crown, the other a cylindrical container with unknown contents, perhaps gold, and ahead of them walks a lion.  They may be Persians or Scythians
  To the right, the two barbarians are dressed very differently - nude from the waist up, they wear a fabric headdress heightened by feathers, a simple piece of fabric tied at the waist and sandals.  They are accompanied by a tiger and a small elephant.  The first bears an elephant's tusk on his shoulder and the second a baton of unknown function.  These represent Indians.
  This motif of barbarians rendering homage to the emperor is common in Roman and Byzantine bas-reliefs – here, it is the aurum coronarium, the presenting of tribute.  They show the emperor's clementia and underline the symbolism of imperial victory.  One of two ivory fragments attributed to an imperial diptych now in Milan also represent this motif, in a slightly earlier work.  It can also be found in Constantinople, for example on the base of the column of Arcadius (in a composition comparable to that on the Barberini ivory) or on the obelisk of Theodosius in the hippodrome (shown left).  On the obelisk of Theodosius ten barbarians, again divided into two groups, converge on the central figure of the emperor, in this example enthroned in majesty in an imperial box surrounded by other augusti.  On the left are Persians, and on the right are indeterminate western barbarians, perhaps Germans or Goths.  Victory is absent on this relief, but she is well represented on the lost base of the column of Arcadius and on the lost base traditionally attributed to the column of Constantine – in both cases Victory is in a central position, as a sort of intermediary between the defeated barbarians and the figure of the emperor, situated below.
caption: Northwest face of the base of the obelisk of Theodosius, showing barbarians rendering tribute to the emperor.
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