Study Questions 3: ART281 Art History

Chapters 6: Etruscan and Roman Art

Name: Melinda Meza
Due: Monday 20th June 2016

Grade: _______/25 total points

Answer at Home, Open Book, Type your answer. Submit by email.

1. Describe a typical Etruscan temple. Now consider how it differed from a Greek
temple. Are there any similarities? (6 points)
Ans: A typical Etruscan temple was built with mud-brick walls. The columns and
entablatures were made of wood or quarried volcanic rock called tufa, which hardens
upon exposure to air. When looking at an Etruscan temple you can clearly see numerous
similarities to that of a Greek temple. Similarities include: when the Etruscan builders
were building the temple they also used the post-and-lintel structure and gable roofs.
Another example would be that the bases, column shafts, and capitals recall those of the
earlier Doric or Ionic order, and the entablature resembles a Doric frieze. The Greek
architect Vitruvius used the term Tuscan order to describe the characteristic Etruscan
variation of the Doric order, with an unfluted shaft and simplified base, capital, and
entablature. Another example would be like the Greeks, the Etruscans built their temples
on a high platform positioned in a courtyard or a city square. However, they built a single
flight of stairs leading to a columned porch on one short side of the rectangular temple
rather than surrounding the temple uniformly on all sides with a stepped stereobate and
peristyle colonnade, as was the practice in Greece. The only main difference between the
two temples would be in regards to the approach to siting and orientation. The approach
to siting and orientation constitutes an important difference from Greek temples, which
were built toward the center of an enclosed, open precinct rather than on the edge of a
courtyard or public square.
2. Compare the scenes celebrating the vitality of human life on the walls of Etruscan
tombs with the scenes portrayed on the walls of the Egyptian tombs explored in Chapter
3. How did the Etruscan religious beliefs influence their funerary practices? (7 points)
Ans: The Etruscans established patterns of building that would be adopted later by the
Romans. Cities were laid out on grid plans, like cities in Egypt and Greece, but with a
difference: Two main streets, one usually running north south and the other east west,
divided the city into quarters, with the town s business district centered at their
intersection. We know something about Etruscan domestic architecture within these
quarters, because they created house-shaped funerary urns and also decorated the
interiors of tombs to resemble houses. We know little about their religious beliefs. Our

knowledge of the appearance of Etruscan temples comes from the few remaining
examples of foundations, from ceramic votive models, and from the later writings of the
Roman architect Vitruvius.

3. The Pantheon is considered to be one of the most remarkable architectural

achievements in Western Civilization. Identify two key structural advances made by
Roman builders and discuss their use in this large civic building. Tell us, in your own
words, why this may be the case. (7 points)
Ans: I believe that the Pantheon is considered to be one of the most remarkable
architectural achievements in Western Civilization because The Pantheon is one of the
great spiritual buildings of the world. It was built as a Roman temple and later
consecrated as a Catholic Church. Its monumental porch originally faced a rectangular
colonnaded temple courtyard and now enfronts the smaller Piazza della Rotonda.
Through great bronze doors, one enters one great circular room. The interior volume is a
cylinder above which rises the hemispherical dome. Opposite the door is a recessed
semicircular apse, and on each side are three additional recesses, alternately rectangular
and semicircular, separated from the space under the dome by paired monolithic columns.
The only natural light enters through an unglazed oculus at the center of the dome and
through the bronze doors to the portico. As the sun moves, striking patterns of light
illuminate the walls and floors of porphyry, granite and yellow marbles. All in all the
Romains spared no expense in the construction of the Pantheon. It held a very important
significance to the Roman religion as well as the Catholic religion.

4. Setting aside for a moment the significance of his sincerity how did Constantine the
Great use religion to strengthen his hold on the Roman world? (5 points)
Ans: Constantine the Great used religion to strengthen his hold on the Roman World by
defeating Maxentius at the battle of Milivian Bridge at the entrance of Rome. Constantine
claimed he won the battle because he had a dream of a burning cross and the next
morning he ordered his army to inscribe the monogram XP on their shields. The
victorious Constantine then showed his gratitude by ending the persecution of Christians
and recognizing Christianity as a lawful religion. Constantine then defeated Licinius, his
last rival making Constantine the only Emperor of Rome. He then made the whole of
Rome a Christian empire making him very popular with the people especially Christians
thus strengthening his rule.