Movement, the Senses and Representations of the Roman World: Experiencing the Sebasteion in Aphrodisias
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31273/eirj.v3i2.132Keywords:
senses, movement, imperialism, Sebasteion, AphrodisiasAbstract
This article examines the Sebasteion – a complex for emperor-worship built in the first century AD - in Aphrodisias, modern Turkey, and studies its political and ideological messages when the sensory experiences of the spectators are considered. The monument contained geographical representations of the peoples of the Roman world placed above a portico. Previous studies of this monument focus upon close and repeated visual study to gain an idea of a powerful empire, but this is not how the contemporary audience would have experienced it. During a religious procession the spectators were moving past static images situated high above them, with many other stimuli, which could distract from or add to the intended ideological messages of the monument. Therefore this article considers movement and architecture as part of the sensory experience and illustrates that these would have affected the audience’s encounters, which in turn could affect perceptions of the Roman world.
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