Unknown
Roman

Trapezahoron, 1st c. CE
marble and alabaster
17 1/2 in.

Gift of Wright S. Ludington
1955.27

RESEARCH PAPER

The leg is composed of a youth totally enclosed in acanthus leaves which wrap around his figure. Only his left arm and head are exposed. The figure rests on a circular pedestal which itself rest on a square base. The colors of the marble vary effectively from the pure white of the head and arm of the youth to the yellow brown of the ancanthus leaves. The inner side of the table leg is straight, whereas the outer side swells outward in graceful ornamentation. The top of the leg is flat to hold a heavy top. The head and arm of the youth were carved separately and inserted into the toga-acathus form.

During the 2nd Century BCE, the Romans overran Greece and by 211 BCE massive looting of Greek art by Roman military and civil servants was common practice. The conquerers loved Greek statuary, especially of the late Hellenistic period. The demand outgrew the supply after Cicero in 70 BCE halted the pillaging. Greek and Roman sculptors were called on to make reproductions of the originals. They devised a new method called the Pointing Process to do this. In this process, a cast was made of the original on which a series of points or marks are made. These points were then transferred to the new piece of marble through the use two marking tools connected by a cord. The artist was able to measure exactly where and how much to chisel. This technique with variation is still used today. This method also gave the artists the freedom to make changes, allowing them to customize the piece. Nevertheless, the goal was versimilitude of the original: the more exact, the more valuable. Most Roman copies lacked the sensitivity characteristic of the original as can be seen in the sculpting of the garments. Many times the draping is not as soft, or of incorrect length, hanging on the figure in an unrealistic way. However, these Greco-Roman copies are often the only record we have of earlier works.

The youth depicted in SBMA’s table leg was probably copied from the Boy From Tralles by the renowned Greek sculptor, Polykleitos. The boy is a young athlete in a serene, relaxed pose. The boy on the [table] leg is portayed in a similar manner, with a softened expression, and a relaxed arm. Unlike an athlete, the boy wears a toga, the basic men’s garment of Rome. The acathus leaves which envelop him signify death.

The style of Greek furniture influenced the Roman as well, however, most Greek furniture was of wood and very functional. Priviledged Romans, on the other hand, preferred the ornate. Often furniture had no other function other than decoration. Records of these pieces can be found painted on walls and in reliefs on Roman sarcophagi, done in the Greek style or as copies of Greek originals. When Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE, the ash preserved many of these frescos and acutally saved some pieces of Roman furniture. Roman furniture was also depicted accurately on tombstones of the time. Furniture has been found scattered all over the Roman Empire (Britain, Gaul, Germany, the East and North Africa), and which dates from the same period as the table leg, illustrating how closely knit, though wide spread, the Roman Empire was at that time in history.

Prepared for the SBMA Docent Council website by Gay Collins, October, 2004
Bibliography
Havelock, Christine M. Hellenistic Art . W.W. Norton and Co. , 1981
Richter, G.M.A. A Handbook of Greek Art. London: Phaidon Press, 1959
Richter, G.M.A. The Furniture of the Greeks, Etruscans and Romans. London: Phaidon Press ,1966
Richter, Gisela. The Sculpture and Scuptors of the Greeks. Yale University Press, 1970.
Del Chiaro, M., UCSB “Roman Art in West Coast Collections” 1973 #11234
Getty Museum. “Pair of Portrait Busts” #89ab671-2

COMMENTS

This object was previously titled "Fragmentary Table Leg."