The Language of Images in Roman Art [Paperback]

This book, first published in 2004, develops a theoretical concept for understanding the Roman art of images.This book develops a new theoretical concept for the understanding of the Roman art of images. It establishes a connection between artistic forms and content and expressions of ideology, such as the glorification of state and ruler, war and triumph. A large role is played in this by the reception of earlier images from Greek art. Roman art therefore appears to operate as a semantic system which, from an interdisciplinary perspective, can be compared both with the forms of Roman literature and with the language of images of other cultures.This book develops a new theoretical concept for the understanding of the Roman art of images. It establishes a connection between artistic forms and content and expressions of ideology, such as the glorification of state and ruler, war and triumph. A large role is played in this by the reception of earlier images from Greek art. Roman art therefore appears to operate as a semantic system which, from an interdisciplinary perspective, can be compared both with the forms of Roman literature and with the language of images of other cultures.Tonio Hölscher develops a new theoretical concept for understanding the Roman art of images by establishing a connection between artistic forms and content and expressions of ideology--such as the glorification of state and ruler, war and triumph. A large role is played here by the reception of earlier images from Greek art. Roman art therefore appears to operate as a semantic system which, from an interdisciplinary perspective, can be compared with the forms of Roman literature as well as the language of images of other cultures.Foreword; Preface; 1. Introduction; 2. The Greek paradigm: example for lifestyle, academic subject, or building block of imperial culture?; 3. The monuments: questions, categories, theses; 4. Battle-scenes: the tradition of Hellenistic pathos; 5. Battle-scel“Í