Leo Martínez
Roman mural painting, executed in the durable medium of fresco, adorned the interiors of private homes and public buildings in Roman cities and the countryside. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, which buried the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, preserved the rich colours of these paintings, providing a glimpse into the evolution of Roman painting. The paintings, executed on wet plaster, featured a range of styles, from realistic to impressionist, and drew inspiration from mythology, landscapes, and other interests. The four main styles of Roman wall painting, delineated by archaeologist August Mau, include structural (or incrustation), architectural, ornamental, and intricate, with each style building upon the previous one.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Technique | Fresco (on wet plaster) |
| Wall preparation | 1-3 coats of mortar (a lime and sand mix) |
| Wall finish | 1-3 coats of lime mixed with finely powdered marble |
| Pigments | Natural earth colours like reds, yellows, and browns; blue and black |
| Subjects | Portraits, scenes from mythology, landscapes, gardens, buildings, gladiator contests, still lifes, decorative motifs |
| Styles | Four styles, with the Third Style embracing monochromatic planes of colour punctuated by intricate details |
| Locations | Pompeii, Herculaneum, private homes, temples, tombs, military structures |
| Preservation | Preserved due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius |
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What You'll Learn
Fresco technique
Fresco, an ancient mural painting technique, involves applying pure pigments to wet lime plaster, allowing the colours to merge with the surface as the plaster sets, creating a durable and integral artwork. The word "fresco" is derived from the Italian adjective "fresco", meaning "fresh". This technique has been employed since antiquity and is closely associated with Italian Renaissance painting.
The Romans painted scenes of the outdoors, lively people, and trompe l'oeil doors, arches, and windows to help relieve claustrophobia in windowless and dimly lit interiors. These lively and dynamic paintings transformed the atmosphere of Roman interiors, infusing them with vitality, warmth, and visual interest, while also providing a glimpse into the artistic tastes, cultural values, and daily life of the ancient Romans.
The painting process begins with the application of a rough coat of mortar, often composed of three layers of slaked lime and coarse sand or volcanic pozzolana. This is followed by the addition of three other coats of a mixture of slaked lime and fine sand or crushed marble to create a smoother finish. The colours, created by grinding dry-powder pigments in pure water, are then applied to the wet plaster using brushstrokes. As the plaster dries, the pigment particles become bound or cemented along with the lime and sand particles, resulting in colours that are permanent and resistant to ageing.
The use of the fresco technique in Roman wall paintings is supported by various specialists, including Paolo Mora, Laura Mora, and Paul Philippot, who formulated the fresco theory in the mid-1960s. However, this theory is based on certain postulates, such as the feasibility of fresco on pontate and the presence of giornate, that require further assessment and experimental evidence for validation.
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Encaustic technique
Encaustic painting, also known as hot wax painting, is a form of painting that involves using heated wax to which coloured pigments have been added. The wax is melted and mixed with pigments, creating a molten substance that can be applied to a surface—usually wood, but also canvas and other materials. The encaustic technique has been used by artists for millennia, with the ancient Greeks and Egyptians employing it to adorn sculptures, murals, boats, and even architecture.
The word "encaustic" originates from the Ancient Greek "enkaustikos", meaning "burning in". The Greek root refers to the element of heat necessary for a painting to be considered encaustic. The technique was described by Pliny the Elder in his "Natural History" from the 1st Century, where he noted its use in Roman portraits and mythology paintings on panels. The oldest surviving encaustic panel paintings are the Romano-Egyptian Fayum mummy portraits from Egypt, dating from around 100–300 CE.
In the encaustic process, the simplest medium can be made by adding pigments to wax, though recipes often include beeswax and damar resin, with other potential ingredients. For pigmentation, dried powdered pigments can be used, though some artists opt for pigmented wax, inks, oil paints, or other forms. Metal tools and special brushes can shape the medium as it cools, and heated metal tools like spatulas, knives, and scrapers can manipulate the wax after it has cooled onto the surface. Encaustic artists also use heat lamps, torches, and heat guns to fuse and bind the medium.
The wax in encaustic painting fixes the colour of the pigment, protecting the artwork and making it more durable. This allowed Roman artists to use expensive colours, such as cinnabar red, which would not have been possible without the protective layer of wax. Encaustic painting fell out of favour during the Middle Ages due to the arduous heating process, with artists turning to tempera, fresco, and oil painting techniques. However, it experienced a revival in the 18th century when archaeologists discovered encaustic artefacts in Pompeii and Herculaneum, leading to a resurgence in Europe, particularly in France. By the mid-19th century, encaustic techniques were commonly used in murals throughout Europe.
In the 20th century, encaustic art saw another resurgence, with artists using electric irons, hotplates, and heated styli on various surfaces, including card, paper, and pottery. The technique has been used by notable artists such as Diego Rivera, Fernando Leal, Jean Charlot, and Jasper Johns. Encaustic painting continues to be a popular medium today, with annual conferences, trade shows, and organisations dedicated to its vitality.
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Four styles of Roman wall painting
The four main styles of Roman wall painting are structural (or incrustation), architectural, ornamental, and intricate. These styles were originally delineated and described by German archaeologist August Mau from the excavation of wall paintings at Pompeii, which is one of the largest groups of surviving Roman frescoes. Each style after the first contains aspects of the previous styles.
The first style, also referred to as incrustation or masonry style, is traditionally dated to 200 BC until 80 BC but existed much earlier outside of Pompeii, since the late 5th century BC. It is characterised by the imitation of marble blocks, using stucco to create relief. The final result is achieved by inserting a variety of colours into different partitions for the lower panel, the smooth paintings, and the rusticated paintings.
The second style, also called the architectural style or illusionism, dominated the 1st century BC, where walls were decorated with architectural features to create a trompe-l'œil effect. This style retained the usage of marble blocks from the first style but added the use of perspective to create an illusion of depth, widening the room's interior space. Columns in the foreground seemed more real and detached from the walls, with beautiful landscapes or wide panoramas as backgrounds.
The third style, or ornamental style, lasted from 15 BC to 50 AD. Here, the three-dimensional world and illusionism of the second style disappear, and the focus is on the interior. The walls are flatter and closed off, with vertical zones separated by columns or candelabra. A central image often depicts a mythological landscape, with small plants, animals, and scenes painted around it.
The fourth style, also known as intricate style or phantasy style, began around 50 AD. Scenes become larger and vistas return, with the wall forming a mosaic of framed pictures, often with a central picture. Statue-like figures may be inserted. This style is generally less ornamented than the third style but is more complex, reviving large-scale narrative painting and panoramic vistas while retaining some architectural details from the previous styles.
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Roman paintings after 79 CE
Roman painting is a poorly understood aspect of Roman art, as there are few surviving examples. Most surviving paintings are wall paintings from Pompeii, Herculaneum, and other sites buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE preserved the rich colours of the paintings in the houses and monuments of Pompeii, capturing a time capsule of the evolution of Roman painting.
The paintings in Pompeii represent an uninterrupted sequence of two centuries of Roman painting, from the 2nd century BCE to 79 CE. This body of work has provided scholars with a basis for establishing a division of Roman painting into four periods or styles, as defined by August Mau in the 19th century. The First Style, or "Incrustation Style", is characterised by colourful, patchwork walls of brightly painted faux-marble. The Second Style, or "Architectural Style", emerged in the 1st century BCE and featured realistic perspective and architectural motifs. The Third Style, or Mau's "Ornate Style", was popular from the early 1st century CE to around 50 CE. It embraced the flat surface of the wall through the use of broad, monochromatic planes of colour, such as black or dark red, with intricate details. The Fourth Style, which developed in the late 1st century CE, is characterised by a return to the architectural motifs of the Second Style, but with more complex and fantastical compositions.
After 79 CE, the Romans continued to paint their homes and monumental architecture. However, there is no distinct Fifth or Sixth Style, and later Roman painting has been described as a pastiche of earlier styles, combining elements from the First to Fourth Styles. One notable example of late Roman painting is found in the Christian catacombs, which combine Roman techniques with Christian subject matter.
While there are few surviving examples of late-imperial mural painting, one striking feature of the Ostian collection is its departure from the rigorous use of plumb and set square in earlier periods. Instead, free line drawing, outside of orthogonal coordinates, became more common. The domed roof also gained popularity, leading to the development of painting schemes based on diagonals or more complex geometries.
New discoveries of Roman paintings have been made in areas far from the capital, including Germany, Hungary, France, Portugal, and Asia. These paintings provide valuable insights into the artistic life of Ancient Rome and contribute to our understanding of Roman painting after 79 CE.
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Roman painting in private homes
The interiors of Roman private homes were often decorated using bold colours and designs. Wall paintings were a common feature, with frescoes being the most durable and, therefore, most common type to survive. The walls of Roman homes were frequently covered in intricate, realistic details or highly impressionistic renderings, with popular subjects including portraits, scenes from mythology, trompe-l'œil architecture, flora and fauna, gardens, landscapes, and townscapes.
The history of Roman painting is largely a history of wall paintings on plaster, with the majority of surviving frescoes found in Campania, the region around the Bay of Naples. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD buried the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, preserving the rich colours in the paintings of the houses there. The wealth of surviving examples at these sites has allowed art historians to classify Roman wall painting into four distinct styles.
The First Style, or Incrustation Style, was popular from the early 2nd century BCE to the late 1st century BCE. It is characterised by colourful, patchwork walls of painted faux-marble, with each rectangle of "marble" connected by stucco mouldings that added a three-dimensional effect. Ordinary Romans could not afford to decorate their homes with costly imported marbles, so they opted for painted imitations.
The Second Style, or Illusionism, dominated the 1st century BCE, where walls were decorated with trompe-l'œil architectural features. This style retained the usage of marble blocks while also incorporating columns to divide the wall space into zones.
The Third Style, or Ornate Style, was popular in the early 1st century CE to around 50 CE. This style embraced the flat surface of the wall, using broad, monochromatic planes of colour, such as black or dark red, with minute, intricate details.
The Fourth Style is characterised by a return to architectural motifs, with an emphasis on complex, multi-viewpoint trompe-l'œil compositions. This style is most commonly found in Pompeii and other sites around the Bay of Naples, dating to the period after 62 CE, when there was a large earthquake in the region.
Techniques for creating wall paintings included the use of a rough coat of mortar, sometimes three layers thick, composed of lime and sand or volcanic pozzolana. This was followed by three additional coats of a mixture of lime and fine crushed marble to create a smooth finish. Glass, marble, and cloth were then used to polish the surface before painting. Colours were added to the surface while it was still wet (fresco) but could also be added to a dried surface (tempera).
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Frequently asked questions
A mural is a piece of artwork that is painted directly onto a wall. In the context of ancient Rome, murals were often used to decorate the interiors of private homes, public buildings, temples, tombs, and even military structures.
"Executed in" refers to the technique or medium used to create the mural. In the case of Roman murals, they were often executed in fresco, which means the pigments were applied to wet plaster.
Fresco is a painting technique where pigments are applied to wet plaster, typically made from a mixture of lime and sand, or lime and finely powdered marble. This creates a painting that is integrated into the wall itself.
Roman frescoes have survived due to their durability. The volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E. also preserved the rich colours of frescoes in Pompeii, providing a unique insight into the evolution of Roman painting.
