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Larger Image |
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Title |
Barbarian warrior, front view. |
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Date |
2nd century |
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Cultural Context |
Ancient Roman
Italian
European
Western European |
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Style/Period |
Roman (ancient Italian style)
Imperial (Roman) |
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Subject |
Statues
Men
Warriors
Military personnel
Capes (Clothing)
Trousers
Footwear
Headgear
Beards
Daggers & swords
Arms & armament |
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Description |
"Images of barbarians, an essential element of triumphal ceremony in imperial Rome, were most often represented in a military context. […] [S]uch representations are omnipresent in Trajan's Forum, on the façade of the Ulpia Basilica, and along the bordering porticos. […] Transformed into stone and wedged into a Roman edifice, a barbarian becomes a metaphor with an explicit message. The barbarians are shown over and over again in submissive postures: heads bowed, hands tied, disarmed of their weapons. This statue is an Asian, Dacian, or possibly a Parthian. The short belted tunic, the cloak pinned with a fibula on the right shoulder, and the trousers (anaxyrides) are typical; yet this statue is quite different from the Dacians in Trajan's Forum. […] The restoration performed by the Louvre showed that the head was indeed ancient but did not correspond to the statue. Although it may well be that this is an archaizing head inspired by a Greek model […] it is not inconsistent with statuary of barbarians. The Dacians on the metopes of the trophy of Trajan at Adamklissi (now in Romania) have unusual long, stiff beards; the ones on the Aurelian and Trajan columns also usually have beards. They are not wearing helmets, but on sarcophagi decorated with battle scenes, […] the same barbarians are shown with helmets, which are down on the ground. […] In the statue shown here, the right arm and shoulder, left arm, part of the cloak, and the feet are modern restorations from when the statue was part of the Borghese collection. This makes it impossible to know how the arms were originally positioned, but the sword on the left side indicates that this [is] not a statue of a prisoner with bound hands. […] This statue is thus a representation of a free barbarian. Communicating a political message was not its purpose. While one cannot exclude the possibility that this statue was once part of a private decorative scheme […], it is more likely that this statue and other analogous representations presented barbarians au naturel. […] Under Hadrian's reign, the Roman Empire appeared to be consolidated, no further conquests were sought, and the image of a barbarian was no longer considered a threat in the midst of an era of peace and prosperity. This statue illustrates, rather, an imperial regime capable of allowing people from across the horizons to live in peace and harmony." (Excerpt from catalogue entry by Daniel Roger, p. 186). Provenance unknown. Purchased in 1807, formerly in the Borghese collection (MA 1019-INV. MR 357; N 673). Restorer: B. Perdu, 2005. |
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Material |
Marble (rock)
Rock
Stone (rock) |
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Measurements |
H: 83 1/8 in (211 cm) |
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Technique |
Sculpting
Carving (processes) |
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Work Type |
Sculpture
Statues
Stonework |
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Repository |
Musee du Louvre (Paris, France) |
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Source |
Giroire, Cecile, and Daniel Roger. Roman Art from the Louvre. New York: American Federation of Arts in assoc. with Hudson Hills Press, 2007. (p.[187], cat.123). |
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Rights |
Photographs of the works in the exhibition reproduced in Giroire courtesy: Copyright © 2007 Musee du Louvre and the American Federation of Arts/Anne Chauvet, Daniel Lebee, and Carine De Ambrosis. |
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Digital Publisher |
University of Louisville Department of Fine Arts/Allen R. Hite Art Institute Visual Resources Center |
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Format |
image/jpeg |
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Digital File Name |
VRC 762-25.jpg |
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Rating |
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