Reuse and Renovation in Roman Material Culture

This book explores the spoliation of architectural and sculptural materials during the Roman empire. Examining a wide range of materials including imperial portraits statues associated with master craftsmen architectural moldings and fixtures tombs and sarcophagi arches and gateways it demonstrates that secondary intervention was common well before Late Antiquity in fact centuries earlier than has been previously acknowledged. The essays in this volume written by a team of international experts collectively argue that reuse was a natural feature of human manipulation of the physical environment rather than a sign of social pressure. Reuse often reflected appreciation for the function form and design of the material culture of earlier eras. Political social religious and economic factors also contributed to the practice. A comprehensive overview of spoliation and reuse this volume examines the phenomenon in Rome and throughout the Mediterranean world.