page_title: Campana reliefs
section_title: Motifs
hierarchical_section_title: Campana reliefs / Motifs
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Reste eines Wasserspeiers eines Sima eines Campanareliefs im Museum August Kestner in Hannover (Inv.-Nr. 1443): Maske mit leichten Beschädigungen; hellgelblicher Ton English: Gargoyle of a Sima of a Campana plaque in the Museum August Kestner in Hannover (Inv.-Nr. 1443): Mask; Clay
context_page_description: Campana reliefs are Ancient Roman terracotta reliefs made from the middle of the first century BC until the first half of the second century AD. They are named after the Italian collector Giampietro Campana, who first published these reliefs.
  The reliefs were used as friezes at the top of a wall below the roof, and in other exterior locations, such as ridge tiles and antefixes, but also as decoration of interiors, typically with a number of sections forming a horizontal frieze. They were produced in unknown quantities of copies from moulds and served as decoration for temples as well as public and private buildings, as cheaper imitations of carved stone friezes. They originated in the terracotta tiled roofs of the Etruscan temples. A wide variety of motifs from mythology and religion featured on the reliefs as well as images of everyday Roman life, landscapes and ornamental themes. Originally they were painted in colour, of which only traces of this occasionally remain. They were mainly produced in the region of Latium around the city of Rome, and their use was also largely limited to this area. Five distinct types were produced.
context_section_description: The Campana reliefs show great diversity in their motifs. However, the images can be grouped into four large categories:
  Mythological themes: in turn divisible into three categories. Firstly, the Homeric epics with the Trojan War and the events which followed (such as the Odyssey. Secondly, the deeds of heroes, especially Heracles, but also Theseus and others. Thirdly, Dionysiac themes.
  Landscapes, especially scenes of the Nile
  Daily life: depictions of day-to-day Roman life as well as less frequent events like Triumphs. They include depictions of the theatre, the palaestra, the circus and even prisoners.
  Ornamental images including not just completely ornamental designs, such as vines, but also masks and gorgon heads.
  The Egyptian elements in many tiles are of particular interest, such as the cladding tiles held in the British Museum and in the Museum August Kestner in Hannover, which include crude imitations of Egyptian hieroglyphs - rarely encountered in Roman art. They are also of great interest for study of ancient buildings and art, such as the aforementioned Capitoline temple.
caption: Remains of a waterspout of a Sima in the Museum August Kestner in Hannover: mask with light damage
exif: {}