of the roman lions. moving by sea, assembling to hear their orders building fortifications, raiding an enemy town, and crossing the danube in small boats the army is shown to be an awesome fighting machine. but there is no glorification of war itself, which is necessarily brutal and remorseless. the victory column and the triumphal arch through which the retuturning army marched dragging slaves and spoils of war, were forceful forms of propaganda for the righteousness of imperial power, guided by the emperor, the senate and the people of rome. it was the arch that was the basis of a revolutionary new architecture. the post and lintel system of the ancient world was limited in the space it could span and the weight it could bear. the romans soon recognized the arch s strength and versatility and elaborated it into an art form of grandeur and utility. roman stone arches like the one supporting this bridge built across the tiber in 62 b.c. were constructed of wedge-shaped blocks
the universal harmony of the natural world is represented by the full-breasted, reassuring figure of mother earth herself. the 100-foot-high column commemorating trajan s victory over the dacians shows the force required to keep the peace. its unique spiral frieze tells of the discipline and resourcefulness of the roman lions. moving by sea, assembling to hear their orders, building fortifications, raiding an enemy town, and crossing the danube in small boats, the army is shown to be an awesome fighting machine. but there is no glorification of war itself, which is necessarily brutal and remorseless. the victory column and the triumphal arch through which the retuturning army marched, dragging slaves and spoils of war, were forceful forms of propaganda for the righteousness of imperial power, guided by the emperor, the senate, and the people of rome. it was the arch that was the basis of a revolutionary new architecture. the post and lintel system of the ancient world was lim
and members of the imperial family. this is to roman art what the parthenon frieze is to greek art. a sense of order and serenity pervades the scene. at the head of the procession, between his two consuls, is the damaged but recognizable image of augustus himself dignified, though not yet deified. all the other figures are portraits, too such as augustus daughter julia later banished for immoral conduct and her first husband, augustus minister marcus agrippa. other reliefs celebrate the joy and fertility of nature in this time of peace. the universal harmony of the natural world is represented by the full-breasted reassuring figure of mother earth herself. the 100-foot-high column commemorating trajan s victory over the dacians shows the force required to keep the peace. its unique spiral frieze tells of the discipline and resourcefulness of the roman lions. moving by sea, assembling to hear their orders building fortifications, raiding an enemy town, and crossing the da
which is necessarily brutal and remorseless. the victory column and the triumphal arch through which the retuturning army marched dragging slaves and spoils of war, were forceful forms of propaganda for the righteousness of imperial power, guided by the emperor, the senate and the people of rome. it was the arch that was the basis of a revolutionary new architecture. the post and lintel system of the ancient world was limited in the space it could span and the weight it could bear. the romans soon recognized the arch s strength and versatility and elaborated it into an art form of grandeur and utility. roman stone arches like the one supporting this bridge built across the tiber in 62 b.c. were constructed of wedge-shaped blocks. the blocks, wider at the top than at the bottom are locked into place by a central keystone. the weight of the structure compresses the blocks and is transmitted evenly from one to another, on either side down into the ground. from therch came a new