The Artwork of Tragedy: Roman Children's Funerary Altars and Their Functions Open Access
Williams, Elise (Spring 2022)
Abstract
In a society of alarmingly high infant and child mortality rates, the choice to commemorate children with large and expensive funerary monuments was by no means a common decision. Altars with portraits provide especially valuable insight into the motives behind this decision. With the portrait so foregrounded and the decorative program so customizable, altars with portraits show the aims of the commemorators, perhaps more than any other form of funerary commemoration. This thesis seeks to explore the background of childhood and mors immatura (“untimely death”) as well as the themes presented in both the portraits and the inscriptions on children’s altars. To do so, I compiled a catalogue of 45 children’s altars with portraits and included as part of this thesis. Finally, this thesis considers the multi-functionality of these monuments and delineates six broad functions of children’s altars.
Table of Contents
List of Abbreviations…………………………………………………………………………… 1
List of Figures…………………………………………………………………………………… 2
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………. 10
Chapter 1: Roman Childhood…………………………………………………………………15
Birth…………………………………………………………………………………………..15
Infancy………………………………………………………………………………………..17
Early Childhood and Education………………………………………………………………10
Rites of Passage………………………………………………………………………………21
Chapter 2: Roman Death and Mors Immatura……………………………………………….24
Mors Immatura……………………………………………………………………………….24
Exposure and Infanticide……………………………………………………………………..29
Burial…………………………………………………………………………………………33
Commemoration……………………………………………………………………………...35
Chapter 3: Motifs in Portraits on Roman Children’s Funerary Altars…………………….37
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………...37
Structure………………………………………………………………………………………39
Decorative Program…………………………………………………………………………..40
Prospective Imagery…………………………………………………………………………..42
Consecratio in Formam Deorum……………………………………………………………..43
The Cult of Isis………………………………………………………………………………..48
Group Portraiture……………………………………………………………………………..51
Name Play…………………………………………………………………………………….52
Liminality……………………………………………………………………………………..54
Chapter 4: Eulogizing the Youth: Themes in Epitaphs……………………………………...57
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………..57
Limitations of this Chapter…………………………………………………………………...57
Importance of Inscriptions……………………………………………………………………58
Formulaic Writing…………………………………………………………………………….60
Engagement with the Reader…………………………………………………………………63
Poetry…………………………………………………………………………………………65
Curses…………………………………………………………………………………………67
Chapter 5: Functions of Children’s Funerary Altars………………………………………...69
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………...69
Preserving the Child’s Memory………………………………………………………………69
Mourning Personal Loss……………………………………………………………………...70
Mourning the Child’s Potential…………………………………………………………….…71
Advertising Status…………………………………………………………………………….71
Transforming the Child……………………………………………………………………….74
Emphasizing Individuality……………………………………………………………………75
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………76
A Note on the Catalogue………………………………………………………………………..78
Catalogue………………………………………………………………………………………..80
Figures………………………………………………………………………………………….114
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………...159
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