/1753847950_6d355a9500_b.jpg)
The Arch of Septimius Severus is a three-gate
triumphal arch in the Roman Forum in Rome.
The arch was
erected in honor of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus and his sons
Caracalla and Geta in 203 to commemorate the victories against the
Parthians. Construction was decided after the first Parthian War,
but only commissioned after the victory over Clodius Albinus and the
second Parthian campaign (197-199).
The triumphal arch stands
at the north-west end of the Roman Forum. The Via Sacra leads
through the central arch in the direction of the Capitol. Since the
arch was included in fortress buildings in the Middle Ages, it is
still in good condition today. As can be seen in Canaletto's
painting, part of the arch had disappeared into the ground in
Goethe's time.
The three-gate arch, which is an outstanding
example of Severan architecture in Rome, is made of travertine in
the foundation area, the superstructure was made of brick and faced
with Pentelic marble. From the forum steps lead up to the arch. The
monument is 20.88 meters high, 23.27 meters wide and 11.20 meters
deep. The central arch is 12 meters high and 7 meters wide, the two
side arches are 7.8 meters high and 3 meters wide. The Arch of
Septimius Severus was the largest arch in the Roman Forum at the
time of its construction.
Historical Context and Construction
Septimius Severus (r. 193–211
AD), founder of the Severan dynasty, rose to power amid the chaotic
"Year of the Five Emperors" in 193 AD following the assassination of
Commodus. After securing the throne, he launched two major eastern
campaigns against the Parthian Empire (in modern-day Iran/Iraq):
First campaign (194–195 AD): Focused on regions in Arabia and Adiabene
(northern Mesopotamia).
Second campaign (197–199 AD): More extensive;
Roman forces captured key cities including Seleucia, Babylon, and the
Parthian capital of Ctesiphon in 197–198 AD. Severus expanded Roman
territory by creating the province of Mesopotamia.
These
victories restored Roman prestige in the East and expanded the empire,
providing the justification for the arch. The Senate and People of Rome
(Senatus Populusque Romanus) dedicated it to Severus and his sons
Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus) and Geta (Publius Septimius Geta).
Construction was completed in 203 AD, marking the 10th anniversary of
Severus's accession.
The arch was strategically placed at the
northwestern end of the Roman Forum, near the foot of the Capitoline
Hill, the Temple of Concordia, and the Rostra. It was the first major
architectural addition to the Forum in about 80 years and positioned
diagonally opposite the earlier Arch of Augustus.
Dimensions and
Materials: Approximately 20.88–23 meters high, 23.27 meters wide, and
11.20 meters deep. It features a travertine and brick core clad in white
Proconnesian marble (from the Sea of Marmara, popular in the Severan
period) or Pentelic marble.
Architecture and Decoration
The
arch has three passageways: a large central arch and two smaller side
arches, framed by four detached composite/Corinthian columns on high
pedestals. The columns support an entablature and a large attic story.
Key decorative elements include:
Relief panels: Four large
narrative panels on the facade depict episodes from the Parthian wars,
including sieges, battles, submissions of cities (possibly Nisibis,
Edessa, Seleucia, Ctesiphon, or Hatra), Roman troops, and the emperor
addressing soldiers. These are among the finest surviving examples of
Severan-era historical relief sculpture.
Winged Victories: In the
spandrels of the central arch, holding trophies.
River gods: In the
side arches.
Additional friezes: Battle scenes, processions, and
decorative motifs on the piers and columns.
Originally, a large
bronze sculptural group (a chariot with six horses, or quadriga
extended, carrying statues of Severus and his sons) crowned the attic.
This is known from ancient coins but has long since disappeared.
A
staircase inside one pier allowed access to the top.
The
Inscription and Damnatio Memoriae
The most famous feature is the
large dedicatory inscription on both sides of the attic (originally in
gilded bronze letters affixed to the marble). It reads (with modern
reconstruction):
"To the emperor Caesar Lucius Septimius Severus Pius
Pertinax Augustus Parthicus Arabicus Parthicus Adiabenicus, son of
Marcus, father of his country, Pontifex Maximus, in the eleventh year of
his tribunician power, imperator eleven times, consul three times,
proconsul, and to the emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus
Pius Felix, son of Lucius, in the sixth year of his tribunician power,
consul, proconsul, [and to Publius Septimius Geta...], the best and
bravest of princes, on account of the restored republic and the
extension of the empire of the Roman people through their outstanding
virtues at home and abroad, the Senate and People of Rome [dedicate
this]."
The original inscription included Geta as co-heir. After
Severus's death in 211 AD, Caracalla and Geta briefly ruled jointly. In
late 211 AD, Caracalla murdered Geta and imposed damnatio
memoriae—erasing his brother's name and images from public monuments. On
the arch, Geta's reference was chiseled out and replaced with additional
titles praising the surviving rulers ("optimis fortissimisque
principibus"). Traces of the erasure and anchor holes for the bronze
letters are still visible today.
This makes the arch a powerful
historical document of both imperial propaganda and Roman political
violence.
Later History and Preservation
The arch survived the
fall of the Western Roman Empire relatively intact, partly because it
was incorporated into medieval fortifications and buildings (e.g., as
part of a fortress or church-related structures).
In the Renaissance
and later periods, it attracted antiquarians and artists.
Systematic
excavations and restorations began in the early 19th century under
figures like Giuseppe Valadier, freeing it from surrounding structures.
Further work occurred in the late 19th/early 20th centuries, the
1970s–1980s, and as recently as 2020–2021.
Today it stands as one of
only two surviving triumphal arches in the Roman Forum (the other being
the Arch of Titus).
/arc-sep003.jpg)
/arc-sep004.jpg)
On both sides of the passage there is an
inscription that occupies the entire attic and indicates that the
arch was erected by the Senate on the occasion of Septimius Severus'
successful campaigns in the East. However, after his murder and the
damnatio memoriae imposed on him in AD 211, the name of Getas was
chiseled out of the dedication inscription and replaced by further
honorary titles for Septimius Severus and Caracalla. The inscription
reads:
“IMP · CAES · LVCIO · SEPTIMIO · M · FIL · SEVERO ·
PIO · PERTINACI · AVG · PATRI PATRIAE · PARTHICO · ARABICO · ET ·
PARTHICO · ADIABENICO · PONTIFIC · MAXIMO · TRIBUNIC · POTEST · XI ·
IMP · XI · COS · III · PROCOS · ET · IMP · CAES · M · AVRELIO · L ·
FIL · ANTONINO · AVG · PIO · FELICI · TRIBUNIC · POTEST · VI · COS ·
PROCOS · (P · P · OPTIMIS · FORTISSIMISQVE · PRINCIPIBUS) · OB · REM
· PVBLICAM · RESTITVTAM · IMPERIVMQVE · POPVLI · ROMANI · PROPAGATVM
· INSIGNIBVS · VIRTVTIBVS · EORVM · DOMI · FORISQVE · S · P · Q · R”
"To the Emperor Caesar Lucius Septimius Severus, the son of
Marcus, to Pius, Pertinax, Augustus, father of the fatherland, the
conqueror of the Parthians, the Arabs and the Parthian Adiabene, to
the Pontifex Maximus, who wielded the power of a tribune for the
eleventh time, appointed Emperor for the eleventh time, Consul and
Proconsul for the third time; and the Emperor Caesar Marcus
Aurelianus Antoninus, son of Lucius, the Augustus, Pius, Felix, who
has the power of a tribune for the sixth time, the consul,
proconsul, father of the fatherland; the best and strongest
principes, for the salvation of the state and the expansion of the
dominion of the Roman people and for their extraordinary
achievements at home and abroad. The Senate and the people of Rome.”
– CIL 06, 1033 = ILS 425
The attic was crowned by a quadriga with statues of the
emperor and his sons. However, nothing has survived from this statue
crowning. According to the coin images, the triumphal chariot with
Septimius Severus, Caracalla and Geta was pulled by six horses.
The arch zone is divided by four pilasters with columns in front. The
columns stand on high bases and carry composite capitals. The plinths of
the columns show three-dimensional prisoner trains on three sides. The
gussets above the side arches are decorated with river gods. In the
spandrels above the central arch are Victories carrying trophies.
Personifications of the seasons are attached below the victoria. The
keystones above the side arches are decorated with deities, Mars is
depicted on the keystone above the central arch. A narrow frieze runs
above the side arches, on which prisoners and vanquished are presented
to the goddess Roma, as well as soldiers, carts with spoils of war and
allegories of the provinces.
Above the narrow frieze bands there
are two large relief panels on both sides, which glorify the victorious
campaigns of Septimius Severus against the Parthians and Arabs and give
an insight into what happened in the war. The reliefs on the side facing
the forum show the attacks on the cities of Nisibis (left) and Edessa
(right) during the first campaign against the Parthians in 195 AD. On
the Capitol side are the attacks on the twin cities of Seleucia and
Ctesiphon depicted on the Tigris during the second Parthian campaign
(Seleukia on the left, Ktesiphon on the right). The painterly style of
the reliefs is in the tradition of triumphal painting, which was already
an important part of art in the Roman Republic and was close to folk
art. This art style is also called "map style" because the depiction was
carried out in an oblique bird's-eye view and by means of a highly
simplified map depiction that was filled with buildings or figures in
order to convey what was happening to the people.
The
three-dimensional scenes of the base reliefs with prisoners of war
clearly stand out in style from the four relief panels. The already
mentioned bird's-eye view of the events and the linear elaboration of
the reliefs give greater importance to the historical war report and
serve less for representation. The purpose was to explain to the people
how the war was going.
The two main sides of the arch were decorated with
reliefs. On the sides of the central fornix there are the usual
Victories with trophies, which fly over little geniuses that symbolize
the four seasons (two on each face). On the minor arches there are
similar motifs, but the personifications represent rivers. Various
divinities are carved in the arch keys: Mars, Hercules, Libero, Virtus
(perhaps) and Fortuna. On the minor arches runs a small frieze with the
triumphal procession sculpted in very high relief. On the plinths of the
columns representations of Roman soldiers with prisoners parts (four on
the front and two on the shorter sides).
The most interesting
part of the decoration, however, are the four large panels that occupy
the space on the minor archways, where the narration of the campaigns of
Septimius Severus in Mesopotamia is carved, organized in horizontal
bands to be read from the bottom up, as usual in painting. triumphal and
in the narratives derived from it (Trajan's column, Marcus Aurelius's
column, etc.)
The scenes are:
First panel (South-East),
Events of the First War of 195:
Departure of the Roman troops from
the camp (lower register)
Clash between Romans and Parthians (central
register)
Liberation of Nisibis and escape of the Parthian king
Vologase V (upper register on the right)
Adlocutio to the army of
Severus on the suggesto, with his children and senior officers (upper
register on the left)
Second panel (North-East), Events of the Second
War of 197-198:
Departure of the troops with the siege machines
(large testudinato ram) towards Edessa, which opens the doors as a sign
of welcome and sends dignitaries and banners to submit (lower register)
Subjugation of the king of Osroene Abgar VIII, whose army mixes with the
Roman one and is then harangued by the emperor (central register)
Concilium imperiale in a castrum near a ram (upper register on the
right)
Profectio for penetration into enemy soil (upper register on
the left)
Third panel (North-West):
Approach of the Romans to
Seleucia, from where the Parthians flee on horseback (lower register)
The Parties pleadingly surrender to Severus (central register)
Severus enters the conquered city (upper register)
Fourth panel
(South-West):
Siege with war machines on the Parthian capital,
Ctesiphon (central register), from which King Vologases escapes on foot
(far right below)
Unidentified scene, with horsemen on foot in the
representation of Ctesiphon (perhaps the elevation of Caracalla to the
title of Augustus, which took place on that occasion, upper register on
the right)
Adlocutio di Severo (upper register in the center)
A
standing knight alluding to returning from expedition (top left corner)
The accessory decoration follows the classic
style of official art and is aimed at enhancing the eternity and
universality of the Empire (the seasons, the rivers of the Earth), as
well as the glory of the emperors (Victories, prisoners) with symbols
and allegories. Strong is the chiaroscuro connotation.
The
sculpted scenes were probably created using as a model the paintings
narrating the events of the war sent from Mesopotamia to the Senate in
preparation for the triumph, which was then sent back by the emperor
and never celebrated. The most direct models for the reliefs were
certainly the two coclid columns, namely the Trajan and Aurelian
columns, in particular the second for the very essential narrative
technique, here even more summarizing and schematic.
The setting
of the scenes is unique, with a generic rocky landscape (obtained by
piercing the surface of the marble), with hints of rivers (such as the
Tigris in the North-West panel) and schematic representations of cities.
The narration is continuous in some places, in others it shows isolated,
instantaneous scenes. The understanding of the facts is often entrusted
to eloquent gestures and easily intelligible situations.
From a
stylistic point of view, some historians have identified two masters,
even if at least all the panels and the frieze above the lateral arches
are a unitary work, with close affinities with the column of Marcus
Aurelius, of a few years earlier. Here, however, there is a tendency to
isolate the figures more from the background through clear undercuts
than to prefer a flat, pictorial representation.
One of the most
significant panels is that of the Siege and taking of Ctesiphon, where
the use of the drill is particularly evident, which creates deep areas
with strong shading alternating with those in light on the surface,
giving a coloristic effect already visible in some works since from the
age of Antonino Pio.
But an even more striking novelty is the
representation of the human figure, now flattened in mass scenes far
removed from the "Greek" vision of the representation of the isolated
and plastic individual. It is an evident testimony of the birth of new
styles linked to the "provincial and plebeian" art that dominated late
antique art and then resulted in medieval art. In fact, officials,
artists and emperors themselves, coming from the provinces, brought to
Rome, with an ever increasing influence, the characteristics of art
typical of their territories of origin (therefore it is not correct to
speak of a "decadence" of art).
Another evident sign of these new
trends is the figure of the emperor who, surrounded by his generals,
harangues the crowd during the adlocutio: we are not yet at the
hierarchical enlargements typical of the imperial representations of the
fourth century, but the emperor is already on a mezzanine, emerging on
the mass of soldiers as a divine apparition.
These trends were
even more evident in the Arch of Constantine of the following century.
Quick Facts
Dimensions: About 20.88–23 meters high, 23.27 meters
wide, and 11+ meters deep.
Material: Travertine and brick core, clad
in white Proconnesian/Pentelic marble.
Structure: Three arches (large
central one, two smaller sides) with four Corinthian columns. Richly
decorated with reliefs, winged Victories, river gods, and a large attic
inscription.
Location: Northwestern end of the Roman Forum, at the
foot of the Capitoline Hill, where the Via Sacra begins its ascent. It’s
near the Curia Julia (Senate House), Temple of Saturn, and the Rostra.
History & Significance
The Senate and People of Rome (SPQR)
dedicated it to Severus (r. 193–211 AD), an African-born emperor from
Leptis Magna, and his sons. The relief panels (read counter-clockwise,
bottom to top) depict military scenes: sieges, battles, submissions of
Parthian cities, and the emperor addressing troops.
Damnatio memoriae
twist: After Severus’s death, Caracalla murdered his brother Geta and
erased his name and images from the inscription and elsewhere. You can
still see the patched-over section on the attic inscription where Geta’s
name was chiseled out.
Originally, a bronze quadriga (four-horse
chariot) with statues of Severus and his sons topped the arch. There was
also an internal staircase (still visible, with a high door on the south
side) leading to an upper walkway for maintenance.
Visiting Tips
Tickets & Access
The arch is inside the Roman Forum, so you need a
combined Colosseum + Roman Forum + Palatine Hill ticket (valid for 24
hours, or sometimes 48 hours depending on the option). Buy skip-the-line
tickets online in advance — especially in high season — to avoid long
queues at the ticket offices.
You can view the arch for free from
outside the Forum (e.g., from Via dei Fori Imperiali), but getting close
and walking through the central passageway requires entry.
Opening Hours (Roman Forum)
Generally opens at 8:30 AM.
Closing
varies seasonally: ~7:15 PM (late March–late Aug), earlier in winter.
Last entry is usually 1 hour before closing. Check the official Parco
Colosseo site for exact dates, as they can change.
Best Time to
Visit
Early morning (right at opening): Fewer crowds, better light
for photos, cooler temperatures.
Late afternoon (after 4 PM): Golden
hour lighting, softer crowds, especially nice for dramatic shadows on
the carvings.
Avoid midday in summer (hot, crowded, harsh light).
Spring (April–June) and fall (Sept–Oct) are ideal for weather and
manageable crowds.
How to Approach & Route
Many recommend
entering the Forum from the western side near the Arch of Septimius
Severus (less crowded than the Colosseum-side entrance). This lets you
start at the arch and work eastward along the Via Sacra.
Walk
under the central arch for the best sense of scale.
Circle the
monument to view all four main relief panels (Forum side left → right,
then Capitoline side).
Look up at the detailed carvings,
inscriptions, and the high doorway on the south pier.
What to
Look For
Reliefs: Battle scenes, emperor on horseback, captives,
architecture of captured cities.
Inscription: The long attic text
(with the Geta erasure).
Architectural details: Coffered ceilings in
the arches, Corinthian capitals, winged Victories.
Views toward the
Capitoline Hill and across the Forum.
Crowds & Photography
It’s in a busy corner near the base of the hill, so expect groups.
Early/late visits help. The best angles are from slightly below or
across the open Forum space. Bring a wide-angle lens or zoom for
details.
Practical Tips
Wear comfortable shoes: Cobblestones
and uneven ancient paving.
Sun protection & water: Little shade in
the Forum.
Time needed: Spend 15–30 minutes at the arch itself, but
allocate 2–4 hours for the full Forum + Palatine.
Guided tours:
Highly recommended for context on the reliefs and history. Audio guides
or apps also work well.
Nearby attractions: Temple of Saturn, Curia
Julia, Basilica Aemilia, Column of Phocas, then head toward the Arch of
Titus at the other end.
Accessibility
Partially accessible.
The Forum has some ramps and lifts, but paths are uneven with steps in
places. The area around the arch is relatively flat once inside, but
check current conditions or book an accessible tour. Wheelchair users
can reach key viewpoints, but full exploration may require assistance.
Pro Tips
Combine with a visit to the Capitoline Museums (up the
hill) for related artifacts and great Forum overlooks.
If you have
time, walk around to the back/south side for different perspectives and
the internal staircase view.
Evening illumination can make it
striking if you’re in the area after closing.