Julia Kelly

The Column of Arcadius: Reflections of a Roman Narrative Tradition

When Theodosius the Great died in 395, his son Arcadius was proclaimed emperor of the Eastern Empire. Arcadius' thirteen-year rule was rather insubstantial, being neither particularly good nor particularly bad. There were the usual battles against the marauding barbarians and there were palace intrigues and personal feuds, but the fifth century is better known for the weak rule of Arcadius' brother, Honorius, in the West and the sack of Rome by Alaric the Visigoth in 410. However, in the East the early fifth century is a period that stands as the turning point between Antiquity and the Byzantine age, looking backward to a magnificent past and forward to a new era founded on Christianity. 1 This turning point is very clearly illustrated in Constantinople by two imperial commemorative monuments - the Column of Theodosius and the Column of Arcadius. We know very little about the Column of Theodosius. lt commemorated the Roman defeat of the Greutungi and was begun in 386, with reliefs spiralling up the column shaft narrating the events of the Emperor's military victory and crowned with a silver statue of the Emperor. 2 As was the case with so many ancient monuments in the city, the statue of the Emperor feil down during an earthquake in 448. The column survived into the Ottoman period, but was destroyed in a hurricane in about 1517. Eighteen fragments of the column are preserved, having been built into the walls of the Beyazit Hamam and twelve of these have figural scenes, mostly of soldiers, weapons and horses. They are the only record we have of the Column ofTheodosius. Fortunately, for the Column of Arcadius we have a much better record. 3 The construction of the column began about 401 and was not finished until 421, when it was dedicated by Arcadius' son, Theodosius ll. At this time a statue of Arcadius was placed on the top, but it feil down in an earthquake in 740. The column itself lasted much longer. Despite being badly damaged by a fire in 1633 and another in 1660, it remained upright until 1715. However, by then it was in

1. This sentiment forms the basis for the research by Bente Kiilerich in her book examining the sculptural art of this period: B. Kiilerich. late Fourth Century Classicism in the Plastic Arts: Studies in the So-called Theodosian Renaissance (Odense 1993) 9. The politica) environment of the fourth and fifth centuries is also explored by Williams and Friell: S. Williams & G. Friell, The Rome Thai Did Not Fall: The Survival of the East in the Fifth Century (London 1999). 2. G. Becatti. la Colonna Coc/ide lstoriata: Problemi Storici, /conografici, Stilistici (Rome 1960) 83-150, 263-88, Tav. 49a. 50b, 51-5; Kiilerich. Classicism chap.4. esp. 50-4. fig. 25-31. 3. Becatti. Colonna 151-288. Tav. 56-76; W. Müller-Wiener. Bildlexikon zur Topographie /stanbuls (Tübingen 1977) 250-3; J.H.W.G. Licbeschuetz. Barbarians and Bishops: Army. Church and State in the Age of Arcadius and Chrysostom (Oxford 1990) app. 2. 273-8; Kiilerich, Classicism chap.4, esp. 50-4. fig. 32-6.

Byzantine Narrative. Papers in Honour of Roger Scott. Edited by J. Burke et al. (Melbourne 2006). The Column of Arcadius 259

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4. Becatti, Colonna 250-1, Tav. 59a; Kiilerich, Classicism 56. 5. P. Gilles, The Antiquities o/Constantinople tr. J. Ball (2nd ed. New York 1988) book IV, chap. VII, 196-9. 6. Gilles, Antiquities book IV, chap. VII, 198. 7. Becatti, Colonna 158-9, Tav. 62b, 63d; Kiilerich, Classicism 57. 8. Becatti, Colonna 157--64, Tav. 71-6; Kiilerich, Classicism 57-8. 9. Becatti, Colonna 159, Tav. 74a; Kiilerich, Classicism 58. 10. Becatti, Colonna 161, Tav. 72-3; Kiilerich, Classicism 58.