Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius - Rome, Italy - Exact Replicas on Waymarking.com

"The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius is an ancient Roman statue in the Campidoglio, Rome, Italy. It is made of bronze and stands 3.5 m tall. Although the emperor is mounted, it exhibits many similarities to standing statues of Augustus. The original is on display in the Capitoline Museums, with the one now standing in the open air of the Piazza del Campidoglio being a replica made in 1981 when the original was taken down for restoration.

The overall theme is one of power and divine grandeur — the emperor is over life-size and is holding out his hand in a gesture much like that in the Augustus' portraits. In this case the gesture may also signify clemency as some historians assert that a fallen enemy may have been sculpted begging for mercy under the horse's raised hoof (based on accounts from medieval times which suggest that a small figure of a bound barbarian chieftain once crouched underneath the horse's front right leg). Such an image was meant to portray the Emperor as victorious and all-conquering. However, shown without weapons or armor, Marcus Aurelius seems to be a bringer of peace rather than a military hero, for this is how he saw himself and his reign. He is riding without the use of stirrups, which had not yet been introduced to the West.

The statue was erected in 175 CE. Its original location is debated: the Roman Forum and Piazza Colonna (where the Column of Marcus Aurelius stands) have been proposed.

Although there were many equestrian imperial statues, they rarely survived because it was practice to melt down bronze statues for reuse as coin or new sculptures in the late empire. Statues were also destroyed because medieval Christians thought that they were pagan idols. The statue of Marcus Aurelius was not melted down because in the Middle Ages it was incorrectly thought to portray the first Christian Emperor Constantine. Indeed, it is the only fully surviving bronze statue of a pre-Christian Roman emperor.

In the medieval era it was one of the few Roman statues to remain on public view. In the 8th century it stood in the Lateran Palace in Rome, from where it was relocated in 1538 to the Piazza del Campidoglio (Capitoline Hill) during Michelangelo's redesign of the Hill. Though he disagreed with its central positioning, he designed a special pedestal for it. The original is on display in the Palazzo dei Conservatori of the Musei Capitolini, while a replica has replaced it in the square."
(From Wikipedia)

Where is original located?: Capitoline Museum - Rome, Italy Where is this replica located?: Piazza di Campidoglio (In front of the City Hall) in Rome, Italy Who created the original?: Unknown Internet Link about Original: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_Statue_of_Marcus_Aurelius Year Original was Created (approx. ok): 175 AD (CE)

Visit Instructions:
Post at least one photo of the replica.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   05/19/2023 GURUGU visited it 08/09/2016 frenchje visited it 04/17/2015 Rymyhomie visited it 09/12/2014 Becktracker visited it 05/03/2014 jennyanykind visited it 10/27/2013 Eibacher Kuckuck visited it 09/17/2013 Kulpakko visited it 08/15/2013 Yuriko* visited it 04/27/2013 bdek visited it 02/15/2013 pvpp visited it 09/15/2012 cache-amount visited it 04/06/2012 Linkosuo visited it 11/29/2006 Woisträßler visited it 08/08/2005 Titahi & M@2t visited it

View all visits/logs