Musical Themes and Private Art in the Augustan Age

Some musical themes represented in terra sigillata refect the political propaganda of the Augustan regime, as in the presence of Apollo citharoedus, of Sirens and of Hercules with the Muses. This visual repertory shares many features with the Augustan poets (especially the elegists) and with other private art of the Augustan period. Arretine ware potters often included Dionysiac, symposiastic and erotic scenes in their repertory, moving well beyond Augustus’ official program. They recall formal and cultural models of the Hellenistic era.