26 THE FINE ARTS. 
the gods of paganism there disappeared the entire mode of viewing things 
in which ancient art originated, and art itself was subjected to the service 
of a tasteless semi-oriental ostentation. 
If now we cast a somewhat closer glance at the state of art in the epochs 
above indicated, we find that under Octavian and his predecessors in 
Rome a number of sculptors and brass-casters distinguished themselves, 
among whom were Pasiteles and Arcesilaus. The models of the latter were 
more highly prized than the finished statues of other masters. There was 
also no want of artists who made very beautiful silver vases; and among 
the coins of that time there are many that can vie with the Greek. Under 
the empire the arts appear already degraded to the service of luxury and 
caprice; yet there were still admirable sculptors, who adorned the palaces 
of the Ceesars with marble groups of beautiful invention. The bronze 
caster Zenodorus cast a colossal statue of the emperor Nero 110 feet high, 
which was set up before Nero’s golden house; but when the temple of 
Venus and Roma was erected on the spot, the colossus was removed with 
the aid of twenty-four elephants. The best sources for the study of the art 
of that period are: 1. The sculptures on public monuments. Among 
these are the reliefs on the Arch of Titus, representing the apotheosis of the 
emperor and the triumph over Judea, well designed and arranged, but 
negligently executed; and likewise the reliefs on the Forum of Nerva, 
which are beautifully designed, but badly draped. 2. The statues of the 
Emperors. Of these some are very well executed, both as clad in the toga 
and in the accoutrements of war. Another mode of representation, that of 
exhibiting the emperors in a heroic or deified character, was at this time 
very much in vogue. These were either naked Achillean statues armed 
with a spear, or they were modelled in a sitting posture with a peculiar 
drapery designed to suggest the idea of Jupiter. Of the former kind we 
have still several specimens, e.g. the Pompey in the Palazza Spada, the 
Augustus in the Casa Rondanini, &c.; and likewise of the latter, e.g. the 
sitting statues of Augustus and Claudius, from Herculaneum, and a stand- 
ing Augustus of bronze holding the thunderbolts, also from Herculaneum, 
&c. The gems of this period furnish equally important materials for the 
history of art. The greatest master of the time in this branch was Diosco- 
rides, who among other things engraved a head of Augustus which the 
emperor himself used as his seal. But still more important than the 
intaglios are the cameos, which represent the members of the Julian and 
Claudian families at different epochs, and which, besides the splendor of 
the material and the skilful way in which it is employed, are also remarka- 
ble for their execution. Of the gems of this period which have come down 
to us we will particularize here only the three largest: a. The Paris cameo, 
13 inches by 11, a sardonyx of five layers, representing the apotheosis of 
Augustus; 6. The Netherland cameo, 10 inches high, a sardonyx of three 
layers, admirably designed, but poorly executed, representing Claudius as a 
Jupiter triumphant with Messalina, Octavius, and Britannicus on a chariot 
drawn by Centaurs; c, The Vienna cameo, 9 inches by 8, the Gemma 
Augustea, of the most exquisite finish, representing an apotheosis of 
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