Triumphal Monuments By Maggie Popkin Summary

Maggie Popkin uses this article as a means to fully discuss, and emphasize the different materiality, or stylistic choices Romans used for their architecture. Specifically, in this case she compares Triumphal monuments, and how each triumphant general used their materials to emphasize different meanings with their monuments. She emphasizes that to understand Roman’s materiality there must be a “holistic” approach when looking at the architecture, not just simply trying to understand one material but combinations of materials, and what or who these monuments are dedicated to. She also makes it clear that in many cases there were other motivations other than money, time, or building function that could affect the materiality of architecture. Although the idea of Decorum is difficult to grasp due to the fact as she states it has no static definition, with Vitruvius quote being the most relevant as it relates decorum further to architecture
With these monuments, she clearly shows that the materials were motivated by the context of the monument, and this monuments reception could be affected by whether or not the materials were deemed decorous. For example, in the first monument discussed The Temple of Fortuna Equestris, Flaccus is forced to remove his marble tiles because they are not spoils of war rather they were stripped from a Temple in times of peace. So, the Senate forced him to remove these tiles and repaired the temple in Croton they were taken from, essentially because they were not deemed