The Origin of Verism in Roman Portraits

Abstract

Was the verism of Roman Republican portraits due to Italic, Etruscan, Roman, Egyptian, or Greek influence? This question has been much discussed, especially of late. Of particular interest is the recent theory that late Egyptian portraits played a decisive part. In this article I want first to discuss the evidence for the various influences that have been considered potent in the creation of Roman verism, and then try from this evidence to deduce which factor, or which factors, were the most potent. I shall examine in particular the Egyptian and the Greek theories, for in these fields I may perhaps have something new to say, whereas the Italian side has been thoroughly explored.The question at issue is an important one; for, as Schweitzer has said, the birth of Republican Roman portraiture was as momentous a happening in the history of art as was the birth of individualistic representation in Greek art. The many different views that have been held regarding the origin testify to the complexity of the question. If a convincing solution could be obtained, it would clarify, I think, our whole understanding of that great phenomenon—the origin of Roman art.First I must define the word ‘verism’, which has only comparatively recently entered our archaeological vocabulary. Verism I take to mean a somewhat dry realism, a realism which shows the person portrayed as he really is, without idealizing tendencies, with wrinkles and warts and other physical defects, and also, what is more important, with an expression not of a philosopher or poet or visionary, but of what might be called a man of affairs.

Neurological and Neuropsychiatric Diseases through the Lens of Roman Sculpture

“…Possibly, the ancient Roman custom of making wax portraits of their ancestors--moulded from actual faces and then exposed in their houses--formed the basis of this tradition (Fejfer 2008: 246). Another theory is that the realism of Roman portraiture of the late Republic originated in the inclination towards a practical realism, inherited from a combination of the Italic tradition and the technical skills of naturalistic representation learnt from the Greek craftsmen who worked in Rome (or for the Romans) beginning in the third century BC (Richter 1955). It is quite possible that both theories are correct, and that Republican sculpture stems from a combination of both factors.…”

Obesity, Corpulence and Emaciation in Roman Art

“…28-50 for ancient literary references to Etruscan tryphē; and 230 on obese iconography and Hellenistic associations. 101) for a votive relief from Thebes in the Louvre (Ma39) showing a corpulent reclining figure. established history in scholarly discussion, and it long has been recognized that such portraits are not just a product of a concern with verism or direct imitation (Richter, 1955;Jackson, 1987). Shapiro (2000), especially pp.…”

“…Emaciated philosophers, corpulent Hellenistic rulers and obese Etruscans, therefore, represent three dominant influences in the art of Roman Italy on the public and private portraiture of Rome, each contributing in different ways to the significance and iconography of Roman flesh. Portraits of real-life Romans, of course, represent one area of Roman art in which unusual, idiosyncratic or non-ideal features have occupied a traditional and distinctive place: the ‘warts and all’ traditions of late Republican portraiture, most notably, have a well-established history in scholarly discussion, and it long has been recognized that such portraits are not just a product of a concern with verism or direct imitation (Richter, 1955; Jackson, 1987). In fact, it is evident that rotund, jowly faces with double chins, thick necks and eye bags, as well as portraits with sunken cheeks and scrawny necks, continued to decorate houses, shrines and public spaces through the early Principate and well into late antiquity: these physiognomies inevitably reproduced some corpulence in real life, but they were also part of an interactive social and political discourse in which fat and muscle deposits corresponded symbolically to the individual's wealth, status and behaviour.…”

“…Ridgway (2002: pl. 101 established history in scholarly discussion, and it long has been recognized that such portraits are not just a product of a concern with verism or direct imitation (Richter, 1955;Jackson, 1987). In fact, it is evident that rotund, jowly faces with double chins, thick necks and eye bags, as well as portraits with sunken cheeks and scrawny necks, continued to decorate houses, shrines and public spaces through the early Principate and well into late antiquity: these physiognomies inevitably reproduced some corpulence in real life, but they were also part of an interactive social and political discourse in which fat and muscle deposits corresponded symbolically to the individual's wealth, status and behaviour.…”

The diagnosis of art: facial nerve palsy in ancient Rome

“…Ugly or unusual features of face or head were not only recorded but highlighted. These sculptures were of imported Greek marble, 1 and the sculptors are thought to have been of Greek origin, 2 but the exaggerated realism, or verism, was a distinctly Roman innovation and is considered by many art historians to have been one of the Romans' more significant artistic contributions. It has been suggested that the deliberate ugliness of some of these faces may have resulted from the contempt held by Greek sculptors for their Roman sitters 3 .…”