Abstract
The Constantinian period is characterized by a theological shift between eschatology and soteriology. Alongside the birth of christian eulogies based on pagan tradition, a period of great artistic manufacture begins, which has its akmè in the marble workmanship of the funerary sphere. Christian sarcophagi are filled with stories of Jesus and Mary, and workshops must consequently find new models to adapt to these demands. Through an iconographic analysis of the main sarcophagi of the Constantinian age, such as the sarcophagus of Adelfia, Junius Bassus, and the Dommatico, is it possible to draw a correspondence between contemporary theological discourse and pagan visual legacies? Furthermore, by comparing funerary art with the coeval epigraphic tradition of urban production, is it possible to trace a shift moment between the rejection of pagan models and their reconquest, as well as a shift between a conception of the immanent end of the world to a more materialistic care for memory preservation? And how much did the papal see of Rome from Damasus to Leo I contribute to Roman theological-legal primacy and Roman monumental and visual production?
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
SARCOPHAGI PRODUCTION, DAMASUS, PAGAN VISUAL MODELS, EPIGRAPHIES OF URBAN PRODUCTION