In this reappraisal of the art and architecture of ancient Rome, Eve D'Ambra focuses on the personal, social and cultural identity of its subjects. The acquisition of art, whether the purchase of copies of Greek statuary, the construction of a sumptuous villa or the commissioning of a portrait head, played a crucial role in Roman society in which displays of wealth and culture were necessary to gain and maintain power. The question of identity is key to understanding the nature of the Roman Empire, which seemed infinitely expandable at its peak, welcomed foreigners to become Romans, freed slaves to citizen status and allowed social mobility within a strictly hierarchical social order.

From the late fifteenth to the late seventeenth century, Rome was one of the most vibrant and productive centres for the visual arts in the West. Artists from all over Europe came to the city to see its classical remains and its celebrated contemporary art works, as well as for the opportunity to work for its many wealthy patrons. They contributed to the eclecticism of the Roman artistic scene, and to the diffusion of 'Roman' artistic styles in Europe and beyond. Art and Identity in Early Modern Rome is the first book-length study to consider identity creation and artistic development in Rome during this period. Drawing together an international cast of key scholars in the field of Renaissance studies, the book adroitly demonstrates how the exceptional quality of Roman court and urban culture - with its elected 'monarchy', its large foreign population, and unique sense of civic identity - interacted with developments in the visual arts. With its distinctive chronological span and uniquely interdisciplinary approach, Art and Identity in Early Modern Rome puts forward an alternative history of the visual arts in early modern Rome, one that questions traditional periodisation and stylistic categorisation.

This volume approaches three key concepts in Roman history -- gender, memory and identity -- and demonstrates the significance of their interaction in all social levels and during all periods of Imperial Rome. When societies, as well as individuals, form their identities, remembrance and references to the past play a significant role. The aim of Gender, Memory, and Identity in the Roman World is to cast light on the constructing and the maintaining of both public and private identities in the Roman Empire through memory, and to highlight, in particular, the role of gender in that process. While approaching this subject, the contributors to this volume scrutinise both the literature and material sources, pointing out how widespread the close relationship between gender, memory and identity was. A major aim of Gender, Memory, and Identity in the Roman World as a whole is to point out the significance of the interaction between these three concepts in both the upper and lower levels of Roman society, and how it remained an important question through the period from Augustus right into Late Antiquity.

"This volume arises from two inter-related sessions presented at the 7th Roman Archaeology Conference, held at UCL and Birkbeck College in March 2007"--Page vii.

Publisher Description

This book explains why Roman portrait statues, famed for their individuality, repeatedly employed the same body forms.

The first book to present an analysis of images of working people in Roman society and to interpret the meaning and significance of these images. What did work mean to the Romans?