The Revival of Interest in Representing Plays of Menander in the Late 2nd and Early 3rd Centuries AD: A Historical and Art-Historical Phenomenon

Abstract

An important revival in representing plays of Menander in private homes, in the form of both mosaics and frescoes, occurred primarily in the eastern part of the Roman empire in the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries AD, with a limited echo felt in the west. The present article tries to explain why and how this artistic phenomenon took place, and a review of the relevant works of art and their chronology is presented in this interpretation. The discussion also refers to the frequent depiction of theater masks in well-to-do households, and the related custom of presenting theatrical entertainment at the banquet or “dinner theater.” Also significant for our purpose are the continued vitality of theater festivals throughout the Greek-speaking provinces during the first half of the 3rd century, and the retrospective attitude of the Second Sophistic, with its high esteem for classical drama of the past. This outlook was focused on Athens, and it had great admiration for the plays of Menander and Euripides. One additional feature influencing the artistic renewal in question is the high value placed on Menander’s plays as models of literary expression in the curriculum of schools, especially for training students in rhetoric and declamation. Collectively, all of the factors mentioned above contributed to the Menander revival in the visual arts during the period specified.