Roma! Palazzo Massimo and 'damnatio memoriae'

 In Rome for a few days so I am spending my time revisiting places and artworks that have become friends, in a way.  One place I visited 10 years ago when I was here on my FIDA gift from the heavens (see 2016 blog of Glory) was the National Museum of Rome, situated in the old Palazzo Massimo in all of its robust presence:

As the palazzo for the famiglia Massimo, this was quite the comfortable home.  Indeed, it has an internal courtyard filled with fruit trees and gravel paths. Procured by the nation at some point, now it houses all sorts of glorious objects.  On the first floor you will find countless marble busts and statuary.  Halls and rooms of Roman citizens captured for all eternity for us to gawk at.  Their faces... their noses... their fabulous hairdos.  I just love all the faces.  And the bodies are quite fabulous, rendered in marble.  Some nude, some wearing filmy gowns.  

I like to imagine them all alive and shopping at the Conad.

The second floor has mosaics and frescos.  Zillions.  These frescos were rescued from the Villa Transtibertina when it was discovered while digging for something else.  Surprise!

I thought this bust of the Emperor Nero was quite interesting.  If you recall, Nero (37-68 A.D.) was an Emperor known for his extravagance, and love of art and beauty so you have to give him points for that.  But he spent heavily on these.  Sometimes the building projects were highly suspect and a strange way to spend tax dollars.  (Hmmmmm.....)  He ransacked a lovely part of Rome to build a ballroom, decked out with fake Rococo even though Rococo hadn't been invented yet.  He put up a ridiculous and vulgar Ultimate Fighting arena in the colosseum and got his jollies persecuting Christians.

It is said he played his fiddle somewhat badly while Rome burned.  Don't know about that but it was rumored during his time that he actually set fire to part of Rome because he wanted to build something stupid there... like a tower with his name on it.

He was such a jerk but at least he had the decency to kill himself at age 30.

Upon his death, they set about trying to erase him from history.  The old damnatio memoriae routine (damnation from memory).  They removed his statues and busted up his busts:

The parallels are uncanny and give us something to look forward to.