Alberi e culti. Un contributo all’analisi degli elementi paesistici nella scultura a rilievo di età romana

Abstract

In the relief sculpture of Roman age, trees can perform different tasks, regardless of the type of monument they are represented in. In most cases trees are secondary elements, concurring to define the environment in which the carved scene takes place. But sometimes they assume a more important value and thus significatively contribute to the understanding of the content represented. A very interesting example in this regard we can see in a relief sculpted scene on a marble altar dedicated to the Matronae, coming from the Roman town of Angera, where four female devotees appear, engaged in a ritual dance under an oak. The comparison with other relief figurative scenes where landscape elements are present will be useful in order to understand better the value of the tree in that monument.