Roman culture has two important sources: Etruscan civilization and Greek civilization.
Etruscan art
Around 700 BC, Etruscans settled in northern Italy and prospered rapidly through trade and agriculture. It flourished in the 7th-5th century BC, but it did not form a unified country. Because of trade, art is greatly influenced by foreign countries, especially Greek art.
The sarcophagus statue in Etruscan (6th century BC) shows a couple snuggling together, with an antique smile on their faces, showing a cheerful and optimistic personality without any sad atmosphere.
The bronze sculpture "Female Wolf" (500 BC) is a symbol of Rome, because it is said that romulus, the founder of Rome, was raised by a female wolf. The female wolf is fierce, strong in limbs, full of wild vitality and quite real.
The murals of tarquinia Fishing and Hunting Tomb (520 BC) reproduce the scene of people fishing and hunting birds, which is vivid and natural.
The Etruscan Gate (BC5 15-490) is a mature application of arched buildings.
The rise of the Romans and the influence of Greek culture
Rome in the 8th century BC was very small, and it was still in the clan and tribe period before the 5th century BC. After that, it went through the period of * * * (509-30 BC) and the period of empire (27-476 BC), and Etruscan was destroyed in 265 BC. Roman empire spanned Europe, Asia and Africa. Twenty-seven years ago, it was a Republic, and later it was an empire. There were many talented emperors in the first and second centuries, and the architecture also developed brilliantly. In the third and fourth centuries, the empire lacked the sense of hardship and attached importance to pleasure, so the political situation was unstable, and the emperor was often replaced by coup, and the culture gradually declined until the fourth century when it believed in Christianity.
Although the Romans conquered Greece, they were conquered by the Greeks in culture. The Romans worshipped and imitated Greek art. Because of its nationality and practicality, they quoted a large number of Greek art forms, but their original styles were few.
2. The characteristics of ancient Roman art
Romans are different from Greeks. They are more realistic, practical and like concrete and real things. Greeks value ideals, and art likes abstract and generalized ideas.