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: The Arch of Titus: From Jerusalem to Rome—and Back

2022; Archaeological Institute of America; Volume: 127; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1086/722739

1939-828X

Haggai Olshanetsky,

Historical and Religious Studies of Rome

Previous articleNext article FreeBook ReviewThe Arch of Titus: From Jerusalem to Rome—and Back Edited by Steven Fine. Leiden: Brill 2021. Pp. xxvi + 196. $132. ISBN 978-90-04-44778-3 (cloth).Haggai OlshanetskyHaggai OlshanetskyBasel University, Switzerland Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmailPrint SectionsMoreIt is often perceived that the lifecycle of an archaeological find includes what happened to it until it was lost in the sands of time, as well as its rediscovery by archaeologists, as after that it will be set for eternity in the museum on display or, more probably, in a dark, dusty drawer. For many items and buildings, the story after their extraction from the ground is as interesting as their past life. Yet for some ancient buildings, their story since their foundation never ceased, as they were never buried, and so they always took part in the life of their surroundings. One prime example of such a building is the Arch of Titus, the main protagonist of the book at the center of this review. This book is a collection of essays presented at a conference organized in 2017 by the Yeshiva University Museum, New York, in the context of an exhibition titled The Arch of Titus: From Jerusalem to Rome—and Back. The exhibition and conference presented the discoveries of Yeshiva University's Arch of Titus Project which had been conducted from 2012 to 2017.The first chapter deals with the most interesting and important feat of the Arch of Titus Project: the creation of a polychrome model of the panel called the Spoils of Jerusalem. It is too often forgotten that the ancient world was not dominated by buildings and statues of white marble. The ancients loved bright colors and painted their buildings and statues accordingly. The Arch of Titus was no different in that matter, and Steven Fine and his team searched for the residue of the pigments on the panel to create the most authentic Roman restoration of the panel as it appeared 1,950 years ago. The team not only tried to find the original colors, but also tried to restore the broken parts of the panel. The result is one of the best digital restorations of a building or panel from antiquity. The polychrome reconstruction is an important addition to a significant aspect of ancient architecture and daily life in antiquity which, unfortunately, does not receive the attention it deserves.The second chapter compares the arch to other triumphal and funerary monuments from the time of Augustus to Trajan. Ida Östenberg shows that Titus' funeral procession was a re-enactment of the triumphal parade celebrating the victory in Judea. She further shows that Titus' lack of movement in his depiction on the arch, and the inscription on it, are indications that they were finalized after his death and commemorate both his triumph and funeral. The third chapter, authored by Samuele Rocca, compares Josephus' literary depiction of the triumphal parade to the one presented on the arch. Rocca shows that the two depictions were similar, but while the arch was created to echo the glory of Vespasian's dynasty, Josephus had more freedom and hence mentioned other figures, as he was at liberty to do so.The fourth chapter, titled "A Narrative Triumph: The Rabbis Write Back to the Empire" offers a glimpse into the mentality of the rabbis of late antiquity through a Talmudic legend about Titus' death. In the chapter, Galit Hasan-Rokem shows that this is a text from a minority that tries to express itself in secrecy, yet it is heavily influenced by the surrounding Roman culture. Therefore, the chapter does not focus on the arch itself but rather stretches the scope and coverage of this volume further.As mentioned, the arch's life did not end in antiquity, and so the fifth and sixth chapters accordingly deal with how the arch was perceived by ordinary people, members of the clergy, and even Jews from the fourth to the 18th century. The following chapters continue this chronological order, with the seventh chapter, authored by Steven Fine, dealing with Moses Mendelssohn's late 18th-century view on the depiction of the menorah in the reliefs on the arch.On a different note, the eighth chapter discusses a subject hotly debated in archaeology: the reconstruction and restoration of ancient buildings. It is easy to forget that the iconic structure so familiar to us is not entirely the original. Therefore, this chapter, authored by Marina Caffiero, is especially important as it focuses on the restoration of the Arch of Titus at the beginning of the 19th century. This monumental project, initiated by Napoleon and finished by Pope Pius VII, is considered an example of how such a restoration project should be conducted. The structure was meticulously studied, and each stone was marked and catalogued in order to return it to its original place. Missing parts (such as most of the monument) were reconstructed with a different material so that any viewer could differentiate between the old and the new. In addition, on the western side of the monument is an inscription in Latin commemorating the restoration, located in parallel with the ancient dedication to Titus on the eastern side. This restoration and its success are important, as they show how the field of the study of antiquity, as well as humanity as a whole, can benefit from a well-executed restoration.The ninth chapter continues the theme of the previous ones, this time dealing with how artists of the 19th century viewed the Arch of Titus, depicted it, or were inspired by its design. On the other hand, the following chapter, authored by Yitzchak Schwartz, is less broad. This chapter deals with an obscure subject: the donation of menorahs by Adolph Ochs, the Jewish publisher of the New York Times, to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York in the 1920s. The donation was not only monetary, as it included two menorahs based on the one sculpted on the arch. This donation was meant to symbolize Judaism's universality and "the progressive ecumenism of both classical Reform Judaism and most mainline American Protestant churches at the time" (132). Hence, this chapter offers a unique window to a subject that is not often discussed and is a welcome addition to the volume.The eleventh chapter, the longest in the book, deals with the Jewish perception of the Arch of Titus over the last 200 years, especially in the context of redemption, and as a symbol of triumph and survival. On a different note, the twelfth chapter, which was not previously planned and was an addition during the COVID-19 pandemic, depicts the place of the arch and its menorah in protests in Israel at the time of the pandemic that were mainly inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement begun in the United States. Lastly, the final chapter is not a chapter but rather the full written text of the 2017 Yeshiva exhibition, including the captions attached to all the items. This unique chapter is useful for students of museology or those in search of inspiration or ideas for an exhibition that they curate.All in all, this book is very diverse, with well-written and interesting chapters. Archaeologists and historians of antiquity, as well as researchers of a variety of other subjects, will find much useful material in it. Therefore, this book will be a worthy addition to the libraries of many people in academia and beyond.Notes[email protected] Previous articleNext article DetailsFiguresReferencesCited by American Journal of Archaeology Volume 127, Number 1January 2023 The journal of the Archaeological Institute of America Views: 561Total views on this site Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/722739 PermissionsRequest permissions Views: 561Total views on this site HistoryPublished online October 04, 2022 Copyright © 2023 by the Archaeological Institute of AmericaPDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.