Western Humanities History (Volume 1 and 2)

Author: (USA) Yam
Translator: Zhang Yue / Wang Xiansheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-04-01
Features: Our exploration follows the chronological order of history, "returning to the past" to observe how the Egyptians, Greeks, and people of later civilizations solved their problems. What problems did they propose? What solutions did they employ? For early cultures, we explore from the perspective of our own world, not treating early achievements as exhibits in a museum, but rather as living testimonials to their continuous response to life's. This invaluable legacy is crucial for our efforts to give meaning to the world and our lives. Some may ask, why should we look back at the past to face the future? Where else can we turn our gaze?
Excerpt: Roman Art and Architecture: Urban Art
The Etruscans controlled northern Italy for about 400 years and even ruled Rome for nearly a century. Their influence on Roman civilization was profound, yet there was little mutual exchange. Rome was not deeply impressed by the Etruscans, but Greece captivated them, particularly its sculpture, painting, and pottery. Greek ceramics were found in numerous Etruscan tombs, revealing the deep impact of Greek art on the Etruscans. Despite this influence, the Etruscans still created a distinctive style of art. This art was highly localized, rustic, and occasionally produced masterpieces. Their works exuded an earthy vitality that left a deep impression on their Roman conquerors. In fact, overall, our understanding of Etruscan art is greater than our understanding of their culture. Beyond an undeciphered script, some massive stone walls of their hilltop cities, and very few artifacts, we know very little about Etruscan culture, and what little we do know is almost entirely based on objects unearthed from thousands of tombs scattered across central Italy (see Map 9.1). The Etruscans' skill in crafting terracotta items is vividly demonstrated by a tomb sculpture discovered in Necropolis (Greek for "city of the dead"), located northwest of Rome and surrounding the suburbs of Servigliano. The sculpture depicts a deceased couple resting their left arms on a sofa, as if attending a banquet in the afterlife. The smooth, polished bodies, braided hair, and Greek-style archaic smiles are typical of Etruscan art, showcasing the mutual affection between the couple and their individualized features. The exact meaning of such scenes, as depicted in sculptures like this one, remains unknown, but it likely symbolized the continuation of a happy afterlife.
The extraordinary masterpiece, "The Fire-Spitting Monster of Etruscan Style" (see Figure 9.2), portrays a fantastical creature created with ingenuity, brimming with vitality and embodying the essence of Etruscan art. In Greek mythology, the fire-spitting monster is a giant beast with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a snake's tail. The bronze statue's head and tail follow this pattern, but its body resembles a lion's rather than a goat's, and its spine resembles that of a dragon. Joining this four-legged hybrid is a goat's head that protrudes from its back, with its left horn bitten by a snake's venomous fangs. (A mistake was made during the statue's restoration, placing the snake's head too low; it should be raised so the snake's fangs can inspire awe in the observer.) There is no Greek influence visible in this statue. The Greeks smoothed the rough edges of their monsters, while the Etruscans created an entire series of monsters dedicated to tormenting the dead in the underworld. This may reflect the Etruscans' ancestors as Eastern Asians, a view Herodotus held with considerable certainty. The monster statue bears signs of earlier civilizations, reminiscent of Egypt's Sphinx (see Figure 2.2) and the Assyrian winged bull with a human face (see Figure 1.19).
The Etruscans were master craftsmen of precious metals, as evidenced by their gold and silver jewelry, the "Fire-Spitting Monster of Etruscan Style," and bronze statues like the two warriors (see Figure 9.3). Like the Greeks, the Etruscans adorned everyday household items; this candlestick finial vividly depicts two distinct yet interconnected figures—a compassionate comrade supporting an injured warrior. The artist skillfully blends one person's fear with another's care into a perfect composition. The Etruscans were unparalleled in their mastery of goldwork, as demonstrated by the gold disc in Figure 9.4. The granular projections on the disc are exquisitely crafted, and the filigree and gold wirework are of breathtaking precision. To appreciate its best effect, the piece should be examined closely with a magnifying glass.
Roman Art (c. 753 BCE–476 CE)
For the serious-minded Romans, art had a corrupting influence, subtly undermining the morals of their citizen-soldiers. As late as the third century BCE, according to Plutarch, Rome was a great city lacking refinement and beauty, a terrible place filled with refugees, spoils of war, savage weapons, and ostentatious triumphal arches everywhere. The infiltration of Greek culture, particularly Greek art, was a gradual process. During this time, Greek culture gathered momentum while the Romans achieved victories over Greek territories, such as the conquest of Magna Graecia (southern Italy) in 212 BCE. One general returned with Greek statues and paintings, while another displayed "unique" spoils like gold items and jewelry. In 146 BCE, mainland Greece was conquered, and afterward, vast quantities of looted artworks flooded Rome, overwhelming long-standing hostility and transforming the city into the foremost protector of Greek artistic traditions.
Although much of what we call Roman art originated from Greek styles and was often created by Greek artists, the Romans made profound contributions of their own, including lifelike portraiture, landscape painting, and especially architecture. The monumental architecture of the Roman Empire was truly groundbreaking and well-deserved, and the development of "art" in civilized life should also be credited to the Romans. In the early days of the Roman Republic, the Romans focused more on practical and effective military camp designs rather than urban planning for Rome and the rapidly expanding cities of the republic. As Rome transitioned from a rural society to a prosperous urban one, the Romans had to address urban planning challenges. Inspired by the Etruscan hilltop cities, they learned to design and build the infrastructure needed for urban life: urban buildings, apartments, bridges, aqueducts, sewers, entertainment centers, shopping malls, and citizen activity centers.
Pompeii
The early Roman Republic left little artistic legacy and even fewer buildings. Our exploration of Roman art begins with Pompeii. In 79 CE, the eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried Pompeii under volcanic lava and ash, preserving the city as a museum of Roman civilization. Pompeii may have been founded in the sixth century BCE and was inhabited by Italian Oscans, Semites, and some Greeks until around 80 BCE, when it was conquered by the Romans.
Urban Planning
Pompeii was built on a modified Greek grid plan outside Rome, around the famous early forum. The city housed the earliest surviving large theater and public baths (see Figure 9.5). The Doric colonnade with Ionic columns superimposed on top reflects Greek architectural influence, a design later expanded into the four-tiered Colosseum (see Figure 9.22). In fact, Pompeii's architectural decorations contain so many elements of Etruscan, Greek, and Roman art that it is impossible to distinguish their individual contributions.
Citizen Activity Center (or Forum)
The forum was 125 feet high and 466 feet long (38.2 meters × 14.2 meters), flanked by matching two-tiered colonnades on its east and sides, with arched buildings at the ends. It stood alongside major city temples such as the Temple of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. From the right background of the building in Figure 9.5, one can also see an arched structure and part of a temple foundation. (In the same right background, one can also glimpse the hazy silhouette of Mount Vesuvius.) The forum was the center of every Roman city, serving multiple functions—religious, commercial, and citizen assembly. This reflects the Romans' emphasis on centralized authority and control.