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The Tomb of Eurysaces the Baker was built by Marcus Vergilius Eurysaces the Baker for himself and his wife around 50 BC. Located outside Porta Maggiore, it is one of the few remaining tombs of Roman freedmen – which is demonstrated by its plebeian-style frieze. According to Lauren Peterson, an art historian specializing in Roman architecture and art, the tomb "celebrates his baking enterprise" and "the tomb's unconventional use of architectural form and decoration was a strategy for Eurysaces to make himself memorable." Like other royal and wealthy Romans, Eurysaces also sought to amplify and preserve his glory – the glory as a successful baker – and to be commemorated and honored by his descendants through building this tomb. Peterson’s study shows that there is a relief runs along the top of the tomb showing different stages of bread production. Flour sifting and grain grinding are depicted on the south side, while dough mixing, loaves forming, and weighing processes are shown on the west side. All this proves that Eurysaces wishes his enterprise, spirit, and honors could be inherited and commemorated properly by descendants.

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Name: Tomb of Eurysaces the Baker

Artist: Marcus Vergilius Eurysaces

Material: concrete faced with travertine on a tufa base

Relative/Absolute Date: c. 50 – 25 BC

Culture: Roman

Scale: 33 feet tall

Current Location: Porta Maggiore

URL: https://www.jeffbondono.com/TouristInRome/TombOfEurysacesTheBaker.html

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Ancient Rome Live, 11 Feb. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2FRXBTIfiU&amp;feature=youtu.be. Accessed 6 May 2023.

Claridge, Amanda. Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide. Oxford University Press, 2010.

“Funerary Function.” Omeka RSS, http://omeka.wellesley.edu/piranesi-rome/exhibits/show/column-for-trajan/funerary-function.

Petersen, Lauren Hackworth. “The Baker, His Tomb, His Wife, and Her Breadbasket: The Monument of Eurysaces in Rome.” The Art Bulletin, vol. 85, no. 2, 2003, pp. 230–57. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3177343. Accessed 1 May 2023.

“The Pyramid of Cestius and Porta San Paolo.” Izi.TRAVEL, https://izi.travel/it/4499-the-pyramid-of-cestius-and-porta-san-paolo/en.

Tomb of Bibulus, https://www.jeffbondono.com/TouristInRome/TombOfBibulus.html#:~:text=The%20Tomb%20of%20Bibulus%2C%201st%20century%20BC%2C%20from%20part%20way,been%20given%20at%20public%20expense'.

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The tomb of Cestius is also called the Pyramid of Cestius – a Roman Era pyramid. It was built for the Epulones religious corporation member Gaius Cestius, a magistrate highly respected by citizens and honored by families. The area of the base is about 29.6 square meters, and the overall height of the tomb is 37 meters. The two inscriptions on the southeastern faces all highlight the status during Cestius’s lifetime and how his will was honored by his family. The first reads: “Gaius Cestius, son of Lucius, of the Pobilia, member of the College of Epulones, praetor, tribune of the plebs, septemvir of the Epulones” (Amanda). And the second read: “The work was completed, in accordance with the will, in 330 days, by the decision of the heir Pontus Mela, son of Publius of the Claudia, and Pothus, freedman” (Amanda). It again shows how tombs are places where Romans reinforce the deceased one’s identity as an important Roman citizen and where family members show their piety and respect to their outstanding ancestors.

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Name: Pyramid of Cestius

Artist: Unknown

Material: Brick-faced concrete covered with slabs of white marble

Relative/Absolute Date: c. 12 BC

Culture: Roman

Scale: 100 Roman feet (29.6 m) square at the base and stands 125 Roman feet (37 m) high.

Current Location: Regio XIII Aventinus, Rome

URL: https://www.worldhistory.org/image/9218/pyramid-of-cestius/

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Trajan was the Roman Emperor between 98 and 117. Trajan's Column is a triumphal column in Rome that commemorates Trajan's victory in the Dacian Wars, locating at north of the Roman Forum. Its base was considered to serve as the funerary monument for Trajan. It is about 6 meters high with eight marble blocks in four courses. Spoils of war are depicted on the relief, complementing the triumphal frieze that spirals on the upper part of the column. The structure and style of the base are purposely designed to make it serve as a monument. On the corner acroteria, there is an eagle that symbolizes apotheosis, suggesting Trajan’s divine status. The low placement of the base makes it very noticeable to surrounding people, aiming to emphasize Trajan’s status as emperor in his afterlife. Besides, the original statue of Trajan on the top of the column was also associated with funerary implications. At that time, it stood higher than all the surrounding structures, suggesting his deification of the afterlife. This column demonstrates the importance of the Roman tomb as an effective way to show honor for the deceased one to the public and encourage them to pursue this road of honor, to continue Roman traditions.

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Name: Trajan's Column

Artist: Unknown

Material: Carrara marble

Relative/Absolute Date: AD 107~113

Culture: Roman

Scale: 30 meters in height

Current Location: Trajan's Forum, Rome

URL: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Trajans-Column

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Gaius Publicius Bibulus was a plebeian aedile since 209 B.C. It was excavated in 1907, about 4.572 meters high above ground with another 10 meters underground. According to ancient Roman law, tombs were not allowed to build inside the city walls. However, his tomb was built at a location 91 meters away from the probable site of the Porta Fontinalis in the Servian Wall, which indicates his highly respected status. The present tomb we could see at this location was built around 100 B.C., more than one hundred years after Bibulus’s death. It was rebuilt to show Bibulus’s descendants’ respect for their ancestors, to enhance Bibulus and his family’s honor, and also to lead the young generations of the family to pursue and extend their honors. As the script on it says, “By decree of the Senate and enactment of the People, this place was granted at the public expense, to Gaius Publicius Bibulus, son of Lucius, Plebeian Aedile by reason of his merit and valor, for a monument, wherein he himself and his descendants might be laid to rest” (Jeff Bondono). It exemplifies the importance of tombs in ancient Roman culture as a bridge connecting the past to the future.

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Tomb serves a significant role in ancient Rome and is an important key for us to learn Roman culture. The structures of tombs are very diverse: some of them are for the bodies of an individual, some are for the ashes of the deceased, and some are for entire families or communities. They are vital locations for annual and daily events – mainly for men – that aims to worship ancestors.
In Rome, when a famous man died, he would be carried into Forum with honor, in a position that would attract everybody’s attention – they would stand and watch the funeral to honor the deceased and walk him to the tomb. Then, an adult son or a relative would give an address to the public about the man’s glorious achievement before his death. In this way, all citizens participated in the celebrity’s funeral to recall his life and regret this loss of the public before his tomb. After these events, the deceased one would be sent to the tomb and his image would be placed in the most noticeable place in his house and be enclosed in a wooden shrine. The image always includes a mask made to imitate the main features of the deceased. It would be displayed and carefully decorated when there are public sacrifices. When another outstanding member of the family dies, the mask would be worn by a member who resembles the original most at the funeral and tomb, to recall and honor this ancestor’s life and achievement. This also aims to impress young men on how glory and virtue would be remembered by later generations even after one’s death and impulses them also to pursue the road of their ancestors.

A tomb is therefore not a location for showing wealth; it is the location where Romans reinforce their identity as Romans by showing their piety and respect to their outstanding deceased ancestors. It is also in this location young men inherit the Roman identity and traditions and are attracted by the spectacle to pursue the road and achievement of their ancestors. By witnessing how valor was honored, young men obtained the courage to continue on this road and also the determination to make themselves good examples as great Romans for their families and children. In a sense, it is a bond between the past and the future that recalls the past of Rome while inspiring the Romans to continue their blood and traditions. It is also exactly this bond that shaped the strength of the Romans, which continues until today, influencing other cultures around Europe and even around the world.

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The City of the Dead: Tombs in Rome - Ancient Rome Live

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Name: Tomb of Bibulus

Artist: Unknown

Material: travertine and tuff stone

Relative/Absolute Date: 1st century BC

Culture: Roman

Scale: Above ground is about 15 feet high, out of the total 48-foot height Current Location: Capitoline hill, Rome

URL: https://ancientromelive.org/tomb-of-bibulus/