Viggen Posted April 21, 2006 Report Share Posted April 21, 2006 Seldom can ignorance have played such a vital part in saving a great work of art. The magnificent, larger-than-life-size gilded bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius would almost unquestionably have been melted down during the wholesale destruction of pagan art in the centuries after the triumph of Christianity had it not been mistaken for an image of Constantine, the ruler who made the new faith the official religion of the empire and was subsequently sanctified. full article at IHT.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil25 Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 Are other posters aware of another astonishing survival of a similar kind. I saw it, by accident, in a special exhibition in the naples Museum 10 years or so ago, It is a monumental equestrian bronze of Domitian - similar scale to the "Capitoline" Marcus Aurelius - remodelled with the head of Nerva. I have some pics which i might scan and post if others are interested. The almost complete statue is superb and yet I have seen it discussed and illustrated almost nowhere. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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