Antefix

An antefix (from Latin antefigere, to fasten before) is a vertical block which terminates and conceals the covering tiles of a tiled roof (see imbrex and tegula, monk and nun). It also serves to protect the join from the elements. In grand buildings, the face of each stone antefix was richly carved, often with the anthemion ornament.[1] In less grand buildings moulded ceramic antefixes, usually terracotta, might be decorated with figures heads, either of humans, mythological creatures, or astrological iconography, especially in the Roman period. On temple roofs, maenads and satyrs were often alternated. The frightening features of the Gorgon, with its petrifying eyes and sharp teeth was also a popular motif to ward off evil. A Roman example from the Augustan period features the butting heads of two billy goats. It may have had special significance in imperial Rome since the constellation Capricorn was adopted by the emperor Augustus as his own lucky star sign and appeared on coins and legionary standards.[2] By this time they were found on many large buildings, including private houses. The earliest examples in museum collections date back to the 7th century BCE in both Greece and Etruria.[2]

Reproduction antefixes with anthemia, Athens

In the garden of the Villa Giulia in Rome, that houses the National Etruscan Museum, is a reconstruction of an Etruscan temple built between 1889 and 1890 on the basis of the ruins found in Alatri. Its tiled roof is lined with antefixes.

Etymology

From Latin antefixa, pl. of antefixum, something fastened in front, from antefixus, fastened in front: ante-, ante- and fixus, fastened, past participle of figere, to fasten.[3]

  • Etruscan antefix from Cerveteri of a maenad wearing an elaborate diadem and grape-cluster earrings, The MET
    Etruscan antefix from Cerveteri of a maenad wearing an elaborate diadem and grape-cluster earrings, The MET
  • Roman antefix decorated with the butting heads of two billy goats, The MET
    Roman antefix decorated with the butting heads of two billy goats, The MET
  • Roman antefix depicting Venus (Aphrodite, the goddess of love) and her lover Mars (Ares, the god of war), The MET
    Roman antefix depicting Venus (Aphrodite, the goddess of love) and her lover Mars (Ares, the god of war), The MET
  • Etruscan antefix from Cerveteri, 6th century BCE, British Museum
    Etruscan antefix from Cerveteri, 6th century BCE, British Museum
  • Etruscan antefix from Vulci, 1st century BCE, Vatican
    Etruscan antefix from Vulci, 1st century BCE, Vatican
  • This Etruscan antefix depicts the mythological character Silenus. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore
    This Etruscan antefix depicts the mythological character Silenus. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore
  • Roof ornament (antefix) in the shape of a dancing Maenad and a Satyr Etruscan 500–475 BCE Getty Villa
    Roof ornament (antefix) in the shape of a dancing Maenad and a Satyr Etruscan 500–475 BCE Getty Villa
  • Antefixes in position
    Antefixes in position

References
  1. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Ante-fixae" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 89.
  2. "The Met 150 Digital Collections". Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  3. "antefix" – via The Free Dictionary.
  • Media related to Antefixes at Wikimedia Commons


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