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The Flavian Dynasty (69–96)

• 
  Lid of a funerary altar, late 1st century b.c.
  Roman
  Marble

  Overall 6 5/8 x 19 1/2 x 16 1/4 in. (16.8 x 49.5 x 41.3 cm)
  Inscribed: "To the spirit of the departed Sextus Flavius Pancarpus, who lived 67 years"
  Purchase, Michael Finkelstein and Sue-ann Friedman Gift, 1997 (1997.271)

• 
  Intaglio of a venator fighting a lion, 1st century a.d.; Late Augustan to Flavian
  Roman
  Carnelian

  H. 5/8 in. (1.5 cm)
  Bequest of W. Gedney Beatty, 1941 (41.160.710)

• 
  Head of a helmeted Roman soldier, ca. 50–75; Flavian
  Roman
  Marble

  7 1/16 x 7 1/8 in. (18 x 18.1 cm)
  Fletcher Fund, 1925 (25.78.62)

• 
  Funerary altar of Cominia Tyche, Flavian or Trajanic, ca. 90–100 a.d.
  Roman
  Marble

  H. 40 in. (101.6 cm)
  Gift of Philip Hofer, 1938 (38.27)

• 
  Cinerary chest with lid, Imperial, Flavian or Trajanic, ca. 90–110 a.d.
  Roman
  Marble

  H. with cover 21 3/8 in. (54.3 cm)
  Fletcher Fund, 1927 (27.122.2a,b)

• 
  Coins of Titus, Trajan, and Hadrian, 80–81, 105–7, 134–38 a.d.; Flavian, Trajanic, Hadrianic
  Roman
  Bronze and gold

  Diam. 1.3 in. (3.3 cm), 1.3 in. (3.3 cm), 0.75 in. (1.9 cm)
  Purchased from J. Grafton Milne; Rogers Fund, 1908 (08.170.118,120)
  Gift of Joseph H. Durkee, 1899 (99.35.177)

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Rome prospered during the succeeding reign of Claudius (Caligula's uncle), who achieved administrative efficiency by centralizing the government, taking control of the treasury, and expanding the civil service.

Related

Timelines (3)

• Asia Minor (Anatolia and the Caucasus), 1–500 A.D.
• Italian Peninsula, 1–500 A.D.
• The Eastern Mediterranean, 1–500 A.D.

Primary Thematic Essays (4)

• The Antonine Dynasty (138–193)
• The Julio–Claudian Dynasty (27 b.c.–68 a.d.)
• List of Rulers of the Roman Empire
• The Roman Empire (27 b.c.–393 a.d.)

Other Thematic Essays (12)

• Art of the Hellenistic Age and the Hellenistic Tradition
• Art of the Roman Provinces, 1–500 a.d.
• Augustan Rule (27 b.c.–14 a.d.)
• Barbarians and Romans
• Classical Antiquity in the Middle Ages
• Jewish Art in Late Antiquity and Early Byzantium
• The Rediscovery of Classical Antiquity
• Roman Copies of Greek Statues
• Roman Luxury Glass
• Roman Portrait Sculpture: Republican through Constantinian
• Roman Portrait Sculpture: The Stylistic Cycle
• Theater and Amphitheater in the Roman World

Maps (4)

• Europe, 1000 b.c.–1 a.d.
• Europe, 1–500 a.d.
• World, 1000 b.c.–1 a.d.
• World, 1–500 a.d.

Index Terms (27)

Art Movement/Style

• Early Imperial Art in Ancient Rome
• Flavian Art in Ancient Rome
• Julio–Claudian Art in Ancient Rome

Geography/Place

• Rome (Ancient)

Material and Technique

• Bronze from Europe
• Carnelian
• Marble Sculptural Relief
• Marble Sculpture in the Round
• Relief Sculpture from Europe
• Sculpture in the Round from the Italian Peninsula

Object

• Altar
• Helmet
• Numismatics

Subject Matter/Theme

• Archaeology from Europe
• Feline
• Funerary Art from Europe
• Games
• Lists of Rulers
• Numismatic Portrait
• Portrait Sculpture from the Italian Peninsula
• Ruler from Ancient Rome
• Ruler from Europe
• Secular Figure
• Sports
• Trade (1–500 A.D.)
• Warfare
• Warrior

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The reigns of the emperors Vespasian (r. 69–79 A.D.), Titus (r. 79–81 A.D.), and Domitian (r. 81–96 A.D.) comprised the Flavian dynasty. The Flavians, unlike the Julio-Claudians before them, were Italian gentry, not Roman aristocracy. They restored stability to Rome following the reign of Nero (r. 54–68 A.D.) and the civil wars that had wreaked havoc on the empire, and particularly on Italy itself. Vespasian showed great moderation and common sense in his dealings as emperor, but he was also known for his greed. One reason was that he needed to increase taxation in order to restore public finances and refill the imperial treasury. He reformed the Senate, whose authority and numbers had diminished under Nero and during the civil wars. Vespasian also recruited equestrian officers, who brought personal wealth, and Italian and provincial members, who brought local knowledge, to the imperial administration and civil service. Furthermore, he guaranteed a stable succession with his sons Titus and Domitian, both able administrators.

Titus is remembered principally for his destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D., but during his reign as emperor, Rome also witnessed a great natural disaster—the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. He was responsible for completing the Amphitheatrum Flavium in 80 A.D., which became known as the Colosseum because it was situated near the site of a colossal statue of Nero.

Artistic talent and technical skill inherited from Nero's regime were used to aggrandize the Flavians' military accomplishments. Titus' brother and successor, Domitian, was responsible for erecting the Arch of Titus in Rome (82 A.D.) in commemoration of the capture of Jerusalem. In the provinces, where there were fewer commemorative monuments, portraiture and coinage persisted as the chief reminders of imperial power. Domitian was also responsible for signing a peace treaty with Decebalus, the Dacian king, in 89 A.D. Although popular with his troops, Domitian incurred the Senate's displeasure with his absolutist tendencies and by elevating equestrian officers to positions of power formerly reserved for the Senate. He eventually succumbed to paranoia and engaged in a vicious round of executions that led to his own assassination in 96 A.D.

Department of Greek and Roman Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Citation

Department of Greek and Roman Art. "The Flavian Dynasty (69–96)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/flav/hd_flav.htm (October 2000)

Further Reading

Boyle, A. J., and W. J. Dominik, eds. Flavian Rome: Culture, Image, Text. Boston: Brill, 2003.

Luciani, Roberto. The Colosseum: Architecture, History and Entertainment in the Flavian Amphitheatre, Ancient Rome's Most Famous Building. Novara: Istituto Geografico De Agostini, 1990.

McDermott, William C., and Anne E. Orentzel. Roman Portraits: The Flavian-Trajanic Period. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1979.