The Arch of Constantine . It is located next to the Roman Coliseum . It was built in honor of Constantine in 315 AD, 22 years before the emperor’s death to commemorate his victory against Emperor Maxentius in the battle of the Milvian Bridge .
Summary
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- 1 Story
- 2 Description
- 1 The Arc
- 1.1 Registration
- 3 See also
- 4 Source
- 1 The Arc
History
Located next to the Roman Colosseum, the Arch of Constantine was built in honor of Constantine in 315 AD, 22 years before the emperor’s death to commemorate his victory against Emperor Maxentius in the battle of the Milvian Bridge. The Constantine emperor is usually considered the first Christian emperor. Constantine converted to Christianity on his deathbed, receiving the sacrament of baptism.
Description
The 26 meter wide and 21 meter high structure stands right next to the Colosseum .
The arc
The relief of Constantine speaking to the crowd is the only one that belongs to that time, since in Rome , in the 4th century AD, sculptural art had not developed much, the rest of what is observed there would have been stolen from other monuments.
On the north side, facing the Roman Colosseum, 4 statues can be seen at the top, reminiscent of Trajan’s wars against Dacia, current territory of Romania . The four bas-reliefs belonging to the time of Marco Aurelio, in the figure representing the emperor, his head is missing, which was common at that time. It also has 4 medallions from the times of Hadrian . On the south side the reliefs refer to Trajan’s victories and on the lower part some pagan figures can be seen, which is strange given the conversion of the emperor to Christianity. In 312 AD, Constantitno defeated Maxentius at the Battle of Saxa Rubra and as a consequence, in 315 AD the Arc de Triomphe was built.. During the Middle Ages the Arch is incorporated into a fortress built by the Frangipiani family and it is in 1804 when the medieval buildings are destroyed and the Arc de Triomphe was restored.
Inscription
The inscription that can be seen at the top of the Arch of Constantine reads as follows: IMP · CAES · FL · CONSTANTINE · MAXIMO · P · F · AVGUSTO · S · P · Q · R · QVOD · INSTINCTV · DIVINITATIS · MENTIS · MAGNITVDINE · CVM · EXERCITV · SVO · TAM · DE · TYRANNO · QVAM · DE · OMNI · EIVS · FACTIONE · VNO · TEMPORE · IVSTIS · REM-PVBLICAM · VLTVS · EST · ARMIS · ARCVM · TRIVMPHIS · INSIGNEM · DICAVIT
To Emperor Caesar Flavius Constantine , the greatest, pious and blessed Augustus : because he, inspired by divinity, and by the greatness of his mind, has liberated the state of the tyrant and all his followers at the same time, with his army and Only by force of arms, the Senate and the People of Rome have dedicated this arch to him, decorated with triumphs.
