The Colossus of Constantine

The Colossus of Constantine, c. 312-15 (Palazzo dei Conservatori, Musei Capitolini, Rome). A conversation between Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker in front of the Colossus of Constantine. Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.

[patavinity]

"He was the last pagan Roman emperor"

No, that was Julian the Apostate.

[Gwynarra]

Very informative. I have just returned from a trip to Rome and saw both the Capitoli museum and walked around the ancient centre of Rome. Even in ruins the size of that basilica is very imposing especially when one is standing under it's remaining arches and imagines what the original building must have been like. It is nice to add the colossus of Constantine to that imagined reconstruction.

[Smallpotato]

the statue was HUGE, which meant that the people who stood in front it were looking up, up, UP to the face. If you make the face too naturalistic, you'd hardly see his features. It HAS to be a bit abstracted and exaggerated. The same for those who saw the statue from the other side of the room; they could see it better as a whole, but it's features would be blurred. It had to be a bit abstracted and exaggerated to be, at that size, visible.

[TWOCOWS]

"Eyes open" is the message of that face of Constantine--the FIRST Roman Christian emperor

[tamatoatuisila]

Technically the last Roman pagan emperor was Julian the Apostate.

[cirion]

Though the video is very informative, it contains allot of information that is now disputed.
In the video, the portrait is not properly contextualized in the time in which it was made. It is not a hallmark of transition to the Christian period. That is a concept that was later placed onto the statue. It was made during the reign of emperor Maxentius. Signs or re-carving above the ears indicate that this presented Constantine's famous adversary Maxentius once. The big eyes, nose, chin are the result of the re-carving to Constantine. Those were the most vulnerable parts of the portrait, and, therefore, omitted from heavy re-carving (they could break easily). More on this, see the works of Eric Varner and Marina Prusac.
When we consider the time in which it was made, this portrait was strongly influenced by models of Augustus and Trajan. Maxentius' and Constantine's contemporaries (the Tetrarchs) presented themselves as almost indistinguishable short-cropped, strict military men with stippled beards. The comma-shaped locks on the forehead are a reference to earlier emperors. Also, we should not forget, that for almost 200 years adult emperors had not presented themselves without a beard. The last emperor who had done so was Trajan, another example Constantine was emulating.

[johannahidalgo]

I consider myself educated but I had never known nor taught in college that all these marble sculptures were painted quite vividly, it must have been beyond awesome to see and experience!!! Was this sculpture also painted?😉

[TWOCOWS]

"Eyes open" was the central message of the young Christianity to the "blind" Romans and other people. So, all the early Byzantine eyes are wide open (like those of Justinian that are so well known), and inhumanly so. That is the point. Just look at any early Christian Roman portraiture and note the bug eyes, even on the Arch of Constantine (just the parts his folks made, not the one they looted). The rest of the face and body are naturalistic and Roman. Those deformed bug eyes will disappear by the time after Justinian, when Christianity has settled down.

[L-mo]

I am no expert. I had (incorrectly?) assumed the abstract or more primitive looking art of the Christian Middle Ages were due to a decline in the economic output and artistic skills of Europe. Rather than an artistic development based on Christian theology and culture.

I just read your response to a similar question in which you compare the use of text/sms today with calligraphy in earlier centuries. Interesting point.

[eitnoorda]

The eyes were probably adjusted for looking better from a lower perspective.

[carausiuscaesar]

Actually Julian the Apostate ruled 360-363 AD was the last pagan Roman Emperor.

[michaeli]

I think the fact that he does not have the ideal style of the previous emperors is because of Christianity. Maybe he was meant to look humble and sad, to show humility in regard to Christ. His statue is not a heroic description of muscle and skin. After all, the church taught them that there was a better life that awaited them, and that this one was about suffering. This may explain his grim and sad face as well as the sudden change in style.

[Miloxiaocelao]

I have always thought that the Engineers in Prometheus might have drawn inspiration from the Colossus of Constantine. Not only there is the physical resemblance, but also that this statue of Constantine shows an "abstraction of human body", and the Engineers are a figment of Ridley Scott's imagination of a divine and superior being to humans, one which resembles humans, but better, perfect.

[Kurtlane]

There is a giant marble foot just lying on one of the narrow Roman streets. I wonder whether it's a remnant of the statue of Constantine or of some other statue. Anyone knows?

[CristianSAluas]

I was there the other day and the label beside it said he was a Dacian prisoner. Maybe the label was for another sculpture but it was the only label on that whole wall where the sculpture was.

[mgclark]

Thanks for this. A bit more attention to the Arch of Constantine would have been instructive. That arch is a composite of earlier Imperial architectural elements as well as elements that were contemporaneous with Constantine. So that arch in itself is very illustrative of the transition in art from early Roman to Christian art and iconography. IMO that transition evidences the beginning of medieval art. It seems clear that this downgrade in artistic capabilities was the result of the advent of the period of the barracks emperors and the crisis of the third century. Artists were always held in low esteem, were regarded as slaves and were useful only insofar as they could bolster the dignity of the imperial family. Once the emperors were elevated from the soldiery as opposed to the senatorial and aristocratic classes the talents of artists were not appreciated. When the great heritage of Greco-Roman art was lost, that void was back-filled with Eastern elements.

[johna.]

Where and how were these marbles parts discovered? Surely there must be more parts buried under a street or building.

[TyroneBeiron]

Drs Zucker and Harris strike a good balance. What I like is their respect for culture and context, without making any 'Woke' statements or use of 'revisionist' terms many popular history commentators tended to use. So listening these 'slides' with their commentary is a pleasant and smooth ride without unnecessary 'provocation'. But they do lead us to 🤔 💭 and reflect.

One point about the head of Constantine: we know from our own experience that we somewhat resemble our parents' features. In some ways we are also looking at the features of Constantius and Helena Augusta. Helena herself is worth exploring having left a significant legacy in her own right.

[johna.]

Why is there a square hole on the left side of Constantine's head?

[seesafar]

The head's tone, demeanor and expression indicate a thinking man who is depicted as a god, as he is considered born of the gods....