Late Roman/Early Christian

Commodus as Hercules c. 191-192

   The bust of Commodus as Hercules is beautifully sculpted—with a great likeness in the elongated face and large eyelids to his father, Marcus Aurelius, and immense detail in his curly hair and beard. However, dressed in Herculean garb and proclaiming himself as the incarnation of the god Jupiter was perhaps going out of style in his time. The Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius shows greater class and a more humbled form of propaganda. Commodus’ somewhat ridiculous bust reveals his vanity and distance from reality. While the classical era welcomed emperors and kings claiming divinity, the second century CE required a literally “down to earth” leader—someone in touch with the reality of the hardships people faced.

The Good Shepherd: Lunette over the entrance, Oratory of Galla Placidia c. 425-426

   The Oratory of Galla Placidia is “one of the earliest surviving Christian structures in Ravenna” (Stokstad 232). The interior of the oratory, or small chapel, is covered in glass mosaics depicting biblical figures. “The Good Shepherd” shows Jesus as a grown man with a cross instead of a shepherd staff as well as a halo over his head—signifying his “imperial majesty” (233). The mosaic was meant to glorify Jesus, as Christianity had recently been declared the state religion. In many of the earlier depictions of Christ, he was beardless with a shepherd staff. Here he is still among his sheep, but is portrayed in his post-resurrection attire.   

Leading up to the Christian era, Pharaohs, Kings, and Emperors have intermittently claimed to be semi-divine or divine and have been portrayed as such. A rather embarrassing example of this convention is the bust of Commodus as Hercules, as I have discussed above. This bust is an example of this old mentality. After the reign of Constantine and the accepting of Christianity, humans portrayed as divine incarnations were considered blasphemy. From the late Roman Empire and into the early Christian era, there is a great increase in church construction. In terms of the architecture of these churches, there isn’t much change from the basilicas of the Roman Empire with their columns and clerestory windows. The main difference seems to be in ideology—from polytheism to the monotheism of Christianity.