CLASS 7711 - Traveling Seminar: Roman Sculpture in Context

(crosslisted)
(also ARTH 6711)

Fall. 4 credits. Letter grades only.

Permission of instructor required. Please submit a letter of application to Profs. Platt and Alexandridis. Preference will be given to graduate students and seniors with a special interest in Graeco-Roman art history and archaeology.

V. Platt, A. Alexandridis.

In this course, students will explore sculpture that was commissioned for and/or displayed in the ancient city of Rome and its environs, whether public monuments like the great honorary arches and columns of the Forum Romanum and Imperial fora; spaces for leisure and entertainment such as the Gardens of Sallust and Baths of Caracalla; or more private villas beyond the city, such as the emperor Hadrian’s spectacular complex at Tivoli. We will also examine Roman portraiture and tomb sculpture such as sarcophagi, with a focus on the relationship between these objects and the religious, honorific, domestic and funerary contexts in which they were displayed. The course will be followed by a trip to Rome during the vacation, during which we will visit many of the sites covered during the semester, as well as major collections of sculpture in Roman museums. Students will give presentations on site in preparation for an extended research paper.