William
Walcot R.E., Hon.R.I.B.A.
(Odessa
1874 – 1943 Ditchling, Sussex)
Temple of Romulus
Temple
of Romulus
E
H-L 144. 445 x 513 mm. Etching & aquatint,
1927.
Signed in pencil. Published by the Fine Art Society. Also initialled in pencil
and annotated Ed.50, and numbered 12.
On stout wove paper.
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Additional
Information about the Print
The
so-called Temple of Romulus used to be described
as dedicated to Romulus, the son of the Emperor
Maxentius, who died AD309. Now opinions vary. By
some it is considered more likely to have been
a temple to Jupiter, by others built to honour
Constantine’s defeat of Maxentius,
or in honour of the city of Rome itself, even
as the audience hall of a city prefect. The room
behind the temple was converted into the church
of Santi Cosma e Damiano in the 6th century and
the temple served as the vestibule. The doorway
retains the original ancient Roman bronze doors.
Walcot
has recreated the Temple as it might have appeared
in the 4th century, though he surprisingly includes
a French inscription in the decorative panel
he adds to the upper wall, equating to ‘those who the gods love die young’.
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