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Grave relief of P. Numitorius Hilarus with a theatrical scene; 1st BCE, Rome [d/b]

“Slab for the base of an Aedicule depicting a tragic scene, found in Rome in the burial chamber of P. Numitorius Hilarus on the Via Salaria, late 1st century BC, polychrome terracotta, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Rome

The scene depicted on the relief is take from a tragedy, as indicated by the mask and the high status of the characters. It unfolds in front of the fixed scenery typical of the large Roman theatres built in stone in the late republican and imperial periods. A splendid architectural facade decorated with columns, pediments and statues has the three traditional doors: the central door (porta regia) and the two side doors (hospitalia).”

Photo by Carole Raddato [source]


Dionysos: A Late Antique Tapestry
Susan MacMillan Arensberg 1977 https://www.jstor.org/stable/4171613