Golden bronzes by Cartoceto di Pergola

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The golden bronzes of Cartoceto di Pergola

The golden bronzes of Cartoceto di Pergola are the only Roman gilded bronze equestrian group that has survived to this day. Originally it consisted of two horses with two knights, of whom only one is left, and two standing women.

Discovery and restoration

In June 1946, hundreds of small gilded bronze pieces were found in Santa Lucia di Calamello near Pergola in the province of Pesaro and Urbino , Italy . Some of these finds weighed several hundred kilograms. The discovery is attributed to Canon Giovanni Vernarecci, who at the time was the archaeological inspector of the diocese of Fossombrone . The fortunate circumstances of the discovery are recorded in his typewritten testimony. The restoration of the finds to their present condition was carried out by Giovanni Vernarecci and Nereo Alfieri , the then regional inspector of the superintendent for antiques in Marken . The restoration was carried out in several phases from 1949 to 1988. A total of 318 pieces were put together to form four figures.

Original location

The finds were found not far from the intersection of Via Flaminia and Via Salaria Gallica . This location, far from any urban center, has led to the assumption that the statues were removed from their actual location and were transferred to this place in late antiquity or during Byzantine rule - some hypotheses assume that this was due to a damnatio memoriae is due.

The original location of the statues is still uncertain. The most widespread hypothesis assumes that the group of figures originally stood on a pedestal in a public square, probably on the forum of a city near the current location. The most likely places are the Forum Sempronii in Fossombrone , the closest town, the Forum in Sentinum , now Sassoferrato , where the existence of a foundry for large statues has been documented, or the Forum in Suasa ; Large fragments of a similar gilt bronze horse were also found there (these are now kept in the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore ).

identification

The group of figures consists of two riders on horseback and two standing women. The people depicted were probably all members of one of the Roman Senate families . The identification of these individuals is still pending, although various hypotheses have been proposed. The group was originally identified as the imperial family of the Julian-Claudian dynasty , so the statues would be dated to AD 20 to 30: The riders are identified as Nero Caesar and Drusus III , the sons of Germanicus , and the women as Livia Drusilla (Germanicus mother) and Agrippina the Elder (Germanicus woman).

Nowadays a hypothesis is preferred that a date between 50 BC. BC and 30 BC And identifies the people as members of a respected legate family from the area around the site, the Ager Gallicus . Some possible families have been proposed, including the family of Domitius Ahenobarbus , as well as those of Marcus Satrius ( Senator and Patron of Sentinum , now Sassoferrato ) and those of Lucius Minucius Basilus (founder of Cupra Maritima , now Cupra Marittima ) .

Another hypothesis sees the origin of the group in the Heraion of Samos on the island of Samos and the people as the family of Cicero , who is identified as one of the riders.

The riders
The best preserved rider is a mature man (around 40 years old) whose clothing (the paludamentum and the tunic ) identify him as a high-ranking officer in peacetime. This assumption is also supported by his arm position, the arm is raised as a sign of peace. Only fragments of the other rider have survived.
The women
The standing figure preserved represents an old woman whose Hellenistic hairstyle (characteristic of the second half of the 1st century BC) enables the group to be dated. The woman is dressed in a stole and a palla . Only the lower body parts of the other female figure have survived.
The horses
The horses are shown with a raised front hoof. The pectorals are decorated with tritons and nereids , seahorses and dolphins. Numerous deities are depicted on the metal-decorated armor: Jupiter , Venus , Mars , Juno , Minerva , and Mercurius .

Technology and material

The statues were made using the lost wax technique on the basis of a copper alloy that contains traces of lead . After production, the statues were covered with gold leaf .

controversy

Because of its exceptional archaeological importance, a long controversy arose over the question of ownership and whereabouts between the Marche Archaeological Supervisor ( Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici delle Marche) and the city of Pergola.
The dispute over whether the statues should be exhibited in the National Archaeological Museum of Marken in Ancona or in the Municipal Museum in Pergola was resolved with a compromise. Today the original statues or a perfect copy of them are exhibited alternately in both museums.

Another copy, showing the statues in their presumed original condition, is on the roof of the Palazzo Ferretti (the building of the National Archaeological Museum of Marche) in Ancona, symbolizing the archeology in Marche.

literature

  • Pier Roberto Del Francia (ed.): Bronzi dorati da Cartoceto di Pergola: un restauro ; Pergola, 15 maggio - 10 giugno 1988 / Ministero per i Beni Culturali e Ambientali, Soprintendenza ai Beni Archeologici della Toscana ... [2nd, extended edition]. Florence, Cantini 1987. ISBN 88-7737-015-7 .
  • Rodolfo Gattai; Rosario Poma: I bronzi di Cartoceto. Florence, Ed. Medicea 1987.
  • John Pollini: The Cartoceto bronzes. Portraits of a Roman aristocratic family of the late first century BC in: American Journal of Archeology 97 (1993) pp. 423-446.
  • VH Böhm: Origin clarified? The bronzes of Cartoceto and the exedra of the Cicerones on Samos. In: Antike Welt 31 (2000) pp. 9–22.
  • I bronzi dorati di pergola. Un enigma ?. [2. Edition], Quaderni di archeologia nelle Marche 5, Urbino, Quattro Venti 2000.
  • Mario Luni: Archeologia nelle Marche. 2003, ISBN 88-392-0744-9 .

Web links

Commons : Bronzi dorati da Cartoceto di Pergola  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

This article is based on the articles Gilt Bronzes from Cartoceto di Pergola from the English Wikipedia in the version 14:01, August 9, 2007 and Bronzi dorati da Cartoceto di Pergola from the Italian Wikipedia in the version 19:04, August 9, 2007.