The days of Rome. The Age of Anxiety

The exhibition curated by Eugenio La Rocca, Claudio Parisi Presicce and Annalisa Lo Monaco is the fourth chapter of the Days of Rome series. It aims to illustrate the great changes that occurred during the reigns of Commodus (180-192 AD) and Diocletian (284-305 AD), and the widespread spiritual and religious crisis. This, paired with the social anxiety of the time, resulted in Romans abandoning traditional religion in growing numbers in favor of the cult of divinities coming from the East: Isis, Cybele, Mitra and Sabazios. In addition to these, naturally, there was Christ. The social anxiety of the time was due to concrete and material problems: civil wars, financial and economic crises, famines, epidemics (like the ones that occurred during the rules of Marcus Aurelius and Gallienus) and the constant Barbarian threat to Rome’s borders. The exhibition, thus, illustrates a world coming to an end through the reflection of its art.