Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History



  • Garland with mask, basket, and bucrania (ceremonial bulls' heads): From Room L of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale, ca. 40–30 b.c.; Late Republican
    Roman
    Wall painting

    Fresco: 77 x 107 in. (195.58 x 271.78 cm)
    Rogers Fund, 1903 (03.14.4)

    In this superb fresco from Room L, the exedra, of the villa at Boscoreale, decorated bulls' heads (bucrania) support a sumptuous garland of laurel leaves, pomegranates, sheaths of wheat, and pinecones. Satyr masks, bells, and so-called cistae mysticae (sacred baskets) with writhing snakes emerging from them hang from delicate red ribbons. The masks, musical instruments, and especially the cistae mysticae are all references to Dionysus/Bacchus, the god of wine, fertility, and exuberant joie de vivre.

    Related

    Index Terms

    Art Movement/Style

    Geography/Place

    Material and Technique

    Object

    Subject Matter/Theme

    Technical Glossary


    On view: Gallery 164
    MoveSeparatorPrint
    Close
    Garland with mask, basket, and bucrania (ceremonial bulls' heads): From Room L of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale, ca. 40–30 b.c.; Late Republican
    Roman
    Wall painting

    Fresco: 77 x 107 in. (195.58 x 271.78 cm)
    Rogers Fund, 1903 (03.14.4)


    Move
    Close
    fullMultimediaText