Portraits of Children on Roman Funerary Monuments

Drawing on hundreds of tombstones from Rome, Italy and the Western provinces, this study assesses how parents visualised childhood. By considering the most popular funerary themes and iconographic models, it emphasises both the emotional and social investment placed in children, bringing to the fore many little-known examples. From Britannia to Dacia, Aquitania to Pannonia, it highlights the rich artistic diversity of the provinces and shows that not all trends were borrowed from the capital. With a wide range of social groups in evidence, including freedmen, soldiers and peregrini, it also considers the varying reasons which underlay child commemoration and demonstrates the importance of studying the material in context. Amply supported by a catalogue of examples and over a hundred images, it will be essential reading for anyone working on Roman childhood or family studies.

1. Introduction; 2. Locating the Roman child; 3. The iconography of childhood; 4. Nuclear notions; 5. Fluid families; 6. Portraits in context; 7. Conclusion; Catalogue.

Jason Mander is a Junior Research Fellow at Worcester College, Oxford. This is his first book.