wall label: "Tivoli is my home town, Flavius Agricola my name . . . Friends who read this, do my bidding. Mix the wine, drink deep, wreathed in flowers, and do not refuse to pleasure pretty girls. When death comes, earth and fire devour all."
-epitaph of Flavius Agricola
Sarcophagi became popular in Roman burialsÿin the mid-2nd century A.D., occasionallyÿdepictingÿthe deceased reclining on the lid, as if being served on a couch at a dinner party with friends.
Documents reveal that it was discovered inÿ1623 beneathÿtheÿVaticanÿfloorÿwhen Bernini wasÿerecting hisÿfamousÿbaldachin, or altar, andÿthat it entered the collection of Cardinal Barberini.ÿA now lost inscription_mentioned in these documents-- identified the subject of this monument asÿFlavius Agricola and urged those reading it to live life to the fullest.
measurements: 26 1/2 x 70 x 27 in.
dynasty: Antonine
culture: Roman
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