gardenscape from the villa of livia at prima porta c. 30-20 bce

Sculpted in the period of Imperial Rome the style of the sculpture is not unlike other statues of the time. There have been many copies of this particular statue and in some cases he holds a staff and sometimes is painted in very bright colors.

To the lower right side of Augustus is a knee high little angel that may be Cupid. Underneath the fantastically carved folds of the draped cloth falls the bottom portion of his garb which would be close to what we call skirts today, but looks very manly on Augustus. The folds are highly worked to create deep spaces between the folds. Even more contrast of light and dark is seen in the cloth he has wrapped around his waist and left arm. His outfit is very detailed and dramatic with high contrast from the deeply carved features and accessories like the ruffled sleeves that protrude from beneath his armor. Augustus has an intent and focused look on his face shown by his furrowed brow and hard almost emotionless lips. His pointing hand is not balled into a fist but rather slightly opened and relaxed as if he were making a friendly and calm gesture. He is pointing upward and to his right with his right hand as if he were pointing to the land he must now take over. He is standing with his right foot forward and his left foot slightly lifted of the behind him. From the frontal view, a very detailed scene plays out upon his breastplate.

Augustus of Primaporta, which now sits in the Vatican Museum, is a white marble sculpture of a strong and handsome young man in his armor. The purpose is to investigate the object and how the style reflects upon the time period while also to explore Augustus’ power and how it was shown through art.įirst off, I will start with a formal analysis of the object. Well, it was large enough that there were several monuments made for him like Augustus of Primaporta which is the particular work of focus for this discussion. So, needless to say, he had quite a large following. Starting when he was only nineteen years old, he built a powerful army through his own self motivation as well as his own money. A great leader can be be many things and do many things, but few if any could call themselves worthy enough to stand next to Augustus.

Gardenscape from the villa of livia at prima porta c. 30-20 bce