International Round Table on Polychromy in Ancient Sculpture and Architecture

The International Round Table on Polychromy in Ancient Sculpture and Architecture or the “Polychromy Round Table” is a series of meetings dedicated to the study of the polychromy of ancient sculpture and architecture.

The subject of colour in the ancient world has long fascinated scholars. Within the realm of Classical art, historians stretching back to the late eighteenth century have periodically addressed the topic that sculpture and architectural elements from the Greco-Roman world, and beyond, were originally highly coloured.

Recently, interest in this field has once more been reinvigorated by the advent of new scientific techniques and methodologies, as well as by a community of diverse and interdisciplinary scholars, dedicated to the study of the polychromy of ancient sculpture and architecture.

Since 2009, this growing network of scholars has met on a series of occasions(see Past Meetings), first held annually and, since 2016, biennially.

The meetings have a strong tradition of providing an excellent opportunity for experts from a wide range of fields (archaeologists, architectural historians, scientists, conservators, museum and digital humanities professionals) to discuss new research in a stimulating multidisciplinary setting. Papers from a variety of perspectives are encouraged and cover many aspects of polychromy in ancient sculpture and architecture.

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This website collects the experience of these productive and rich encounters at the Polychromy Round Table, in the form of past programmes, abstracts and published proceedings. It also aims to provide a focal point for this network and research community to share news on its investigations, publications and events.

In the inclusive spirit of the Polychromy Round Table and its network, this site also aims to reach out to other researchers who may be considering the subject of ancient polychromy from the Greco-Roman world or relevant comparative studies from their own interdisciplinary viewpoints, geographical areas and time periods. Contact us here or on polychromyroundtable@gmail.com.

Call For Papers: Cahiers De Mariemont - Vol. 47, "The Lost Colours of Ancient Sculptures: Identifying, studying, interpreting, and promoting ancient polychromy in Museums"

Since 2021, the Royal Museum of Mariemont has been actively participating in the interdisciplinary "PolyChroma" project, which aims to examine the social significance of the colours used in Roman sculpture, in collaboration with Elisabetta Neri (Università degli Studi di Firenze) and David Strivay (Centre européen d'archéométrie, Liège): https://www.polychroma.uliege.be/cms/c_6264927/en/polychroma

In anticipation of a project to showcase the results in Mariemont, the upcoming issue of the Cahiers de Mariemont journal will be dedicated to "The lost colours of ancient sculptures" and their research and exhibition in museums. We are excited to share the call for papers and seek your valuable input in exploring the methods for identifying colours, addressing the challenges of chromatic interpretation, and discussing the implications of making the lost colours of ancient statues accessible in museums.

Deadline 15th October 2024.

Added: 13/09/2024

"Polychroma: The Meaning of Colours in Roman Sculptures"

directed by Elisabetta Neri

Published by Silvana Editoriale

Long ignored, sometimes knowingly since the idea of its presence went against the ideals of a white and pure ancient sculpture spread after Winckelmann, the polychromy of classical and late sculptures and architecture has been the subject of important research programs for thirty years. Within this field of study, the book focuses on the specific characteristics of Roman imperial polychromy and its late developments (first century BC – sixth century AD) to question the technical features and the socio-cultural meaning of colours.
After an assessment of the studies on polychromy already carried out, this book presents the results of the EU-MSCA-IF PolyCHRoMA project, which documented traces of colours not immediately visible (lost colours) through the physico-chemical analysis on a corpus of sculptural and architectural elements from some major European and North African
museums (Musées royaux de Belgique, Palazzo Reale in Milan, Museo Nazionale in Ravenna, Musée de l’Arles antique, Musée Saint-Raymond de Toulouse, Bardo National Museum and various Tunisian collections). The systematic chronological and contextual study of these traces, before time ensures the loss of colours definitive, confirms that polychromy offers a new source for studying the cultural meaning of colour at the turn of the first millennium.

See a preview here.

More details here.

Published - 15/10/2024.

Archaeology of Colour Technical Art History Studies in Greek and Roman Painting and Polychromy (Meletemata 87)

Edited by Hariclia Brecoulaki

Published by National Hellenic Research Foundation.

Ancient polychromy speaks a language of “the visible” and “the invisible”, through signs of pigments, brushstrokes and forms. Another reminder of our classical past, colour is an inherent component of artistic creation, inspiration and imagination. New sophisticated technologies, as well as the development of interdisciplinary studies over these past decades, have stimulated the collection and evaluation of numerous scientific data from in-situ investigation of polychrome and painted documents, and have challenged our understanding of the complexity and function of ancient painting materials and techniques. The present volume is another contribution to the ongoing exploration of the rich history of colour in the classical world; an exploration which builds on previous knowledge and opens up new horizons for a more extended understanding of the aesthetics and meaning of Greek and Roman art. It includes fifteen papers that move from Archaic and Classical Greece to the Hellenistic and Roman periods, and deal with colour on monumental architecture, marble statues and reliefs, wooden and terracotta statuettes, stone sarcophagi, paintings on stone and plaster, and pigments as raw materials.

Read a preview here.

More details here.

Published - 06/2024.