The Arch of the Silversmiths – a place of memory erased
The Arch of the Silversmiths – a place of memory erased
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari) next to the Church of San Giorgio in Velabro
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), entablature with an inscription commemorating a foundation from Forum Boarium by bankers and merchants
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), scene depicting Emperor Septimius Severus and Julia Domna while making a sacrifice
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), soldier and a prisoner – scene commemorating the conquests of Emperor Septimius Severus
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), relief depicting a scene of making animal sacrifices
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), imperial eagles, garlands and weapons along with the heads of emperors – Caracalla and Septimius Severus
Portico of the Church of San Giorgio in Velabro, fragment
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), scene depicting sacrificial offerings made by Caracalla and Geta (figure chiseled off)
Portico of the Church of San Giorgio in Velabro with the Arch of the Silversmiths next to it
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari)
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari) next to the Church of San Giorgio in Velabro
Arch of the Silversmiths (Arco degli Argentari), in the background Emperor Septimius Severus and Julia Domna making a sacrifice
If somebody significant in Rome, was condemned to the humiliating procedure of damnatio memoriae – literally - “removal from memory”, he was thus deemed as a public enemy. This so-called ostracism, was experienced by people who were inconvenient for subsequent decision-makers, who decided that their memory should for various reasons be erased. This was a humiliating punishment both for the condemned as well as for his entire family. It was implemented quite often, which we can see everywhere, where in a brutal manner their reliefs and names were removed. This is the case here as well – on the walls of the Arch of the Silversmiths.
If somebody significant in Rome, was condemned to the humiliating procedure of damnatio memoriae – literally - “removal from memory”, he was thus deemed as a public enemy. This so-called ostracism, was experienced by people who were inconvenient for subsequent decision-makers, who decided that their memory should for various reasons be erased. This was a humiliating punishment both for the condemned as well as for his entire family. It was implemented quite often, which we can see everywhere, where in a brutal manner their reliefs and names were removed. This is the case here as well – on the walls of the Arch of the Silversmiths.
This structure (in Latin Arcus Argentariorum) in its form is nothing like the triumphant arches we know – it does not have a semi-circular vault but a simple entablature set on two supports covered with marble slabs decorated with reliefs. Apart from that, during the early Middle Ages, it was built into the portico of the Church of San Giorgio in Velabro, which makes it seem like it is its integral part. For this reason it is a building, to which tourists generally do not pay any attention. It is barely visible due to the level of the ground which has been rising for centuries, however along with the Arch of Septimius Severus in constitutes an excellent example of the art of the Severus dynasty.
It was built in a very significant place in the history of Rome – at Forum Boarium, in the year 204 in order to honor Emperor Septimius Severus and his family. It was most likely to constitute one of the gates leading to the aforementioned forum. Its founders were the bankers and merchants active there. It was not therefore, an official monument commissioned by the Senate, but a private initiative of a group of entrepreneurs, desiring in this way to express their gratitude to the emperor. For what? We do not know for sure, but it can be assumed that due to laws and resolutions which benefited them.
The reliefs on the inner side of the arch, surrounded by ornamental reliefs are still well visible, depicting the imperial family at the moment of making sacrificial offerings. On the architrave there are free-standing figures of the members of the imperial family: Septimius Severus, his wife Julia Domna and their two sons – Caracalla and Geta as well as the wife of the first-born Caracalla, Publia Fulvia Plautilla. The inscriptions engraved on the arch confirm the names of the imperial family, although some of them were simply removed during the reign of Emperor Caracalla – this pertains to the names of his brother Geta, his wife Pluatilla and his father-in-law Plautianus, who were first brutally murdered by Caracalla, then condemned to eternal damnation. This procedure – damnatio memoriae – taken over from the ancients, functioned very well in subsequent centuries and is still alive today, which we can see in Rome on multiple occasions when looking at modern and contemporary buildings and monuments.
Triumphant Arch of Emperor Titus – a commemoration of triumph and defeat engraved in stone
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