352 Johnson
Though these types of objects continued to be produced, two important fac-
tors led to a major shift in the focus of Ostrogothic art. First was the Ostogoths’
settlement in Italy, where numerous ancient and early Christian monuments,
churches, and works of art could be seen and emulated. Second, their leader
Theoderic, who lived as a guest/hostage in the Great Palace of Constantinople
while growing up, had a lively interest in artistic patronage that led him not to
maintain artistic traditions of the migratory period of his own people, but to
adopt prototypes from Roman—including early Christian—art and architec-
ture and make them his own.
Portraiture
The change is evident in many ways and may initially be illustrated by begin-
ning with the idea of portraiture. This is a type of art that had not existed in
the barbarian world prior to their arrival in the West. It is first manifested in
the Roman-inspired portrait on the signet ring of Childeric, found in his tomb,
from the 5th century.3 Among the migrant tribes that settled in the West, how-
ever, the Ostrogoths were the only group to adopt the idea of life-sized por-
traits in stone and bronze.
Sources speak of several portraits of Theoderic in Italy. Most notable was
the bronze equestrian statue of Theoderic that stood in front of his palace
in Ravenna.4 According to Jordanes, the emperor Zeno had ordered such a
statue of Theoderic to be placed in the Augustaion square in Constantinople,
and it may be that this statue was transferred to Ravenna afterwards, before
later being taken by Charlemagne to stand in front of his palace in Aachen.5
Procopius noted that there were several statues of Theoderic in Rome and
Isidore of Seville notes that the king was honoured with a gilt bronze statue
there for his work in restoring the city’s walls.6 A base for such a statue was
found in the Colosseum.7 Images of Theoderic in mosaic decorated his palaces
at Pavia and Ravenna and Procopius discusses another in the forum of Naples.8
3 MacGregor, “Childeric’s Ring”.
4 Agnellus, Liber Pontificalis, 94, ed. Deliyannis, pp. 258–9; Johnson, “Theoderic’s Building
Program”, p. 87 and note 143.
5 Jordanes, Getica, 289.
6 Procopius, De bello gothico, 3.20.29; Isidore, Historia gothorum wandalorum sveborum, 1.39.
7 CIL 6.32094.
8 For those at the palaces, see below. For the one at Naples see Procopius, De bello gothico,
1.24.22–27.