Barbarian Captives

This detail from the Portonaccio Sarcophagus (c. 180) shows two defeated barbarian captives—a young woman and an older, bearded man—placed below the triumphant Roman general. Their contrasting ages and subdued postures symbolize the total submission of enemy peoples during the Marcomannic Wars. Such portrayals were standard in Roman victory imagery, emphasizing Rome’s dominance and the conquered status of northern tribes.