Marlowe’s book casts a raking light on a central problem long-embedded in scholarship on the history and meaning of Roman art—the practice of using “ungrounded” works (those for which little or no excavation history is available) as historical evidence. Many such works currently populate textbook histories of Roman art almost solely based on their style. The traditional reliance on connoisseurship and circular reasoning to underpin chronological and aesthetic judgments concerning these works comes in for especially sharp criticism. Advocating for a more holistic, socio-historical approach, Marlowe demonstrates how “grounded” works from controlled excavations can change the traditional picture. By taking account of the wide array of physical and historical evidence that accompanies “grounded” works, one can construct a far more complex story of how Roman art developed and functioned, and what it meant in the society of its time. This bold and refreshing look at traditional practices and assumptions will surely raise the awareness of—and stimulate debate among—archaeologists and art historians who must grapple with incomplete evidence to construct meaningful histories of Roman art.
