CIRCA MID 2ND CENTURY A.D.

Details

A ROMAN MARBLE PORTRAIT OF ANTONINUS PIUS
Circa Mid 2nd Century A.D.
The life-sized depiction of the emperor with his characteristic full beard and mustache, thin lips and short, curly hair with two locks falling in the center of his forehead, with a slightly creased forehead, pronounced naso-labial lines and articulated eyes
15¾ in. (40 cm) high

Provenance

Mitsukoshi Department Store, Japan, 1983

Lot Essay

The position of the two locks at the center of the forehead is characteristic of what some scholars see as the emperor's second portrait style, typified by an example from Ostia now in the Vatican, the Sala a Croce Greca 595 type. This new portrait is thought to have been created circa A.D. 147-149 at the time of the celebration of the emperor's decennalia, or, tenth year of rule. For the Ostia portrait see no. 232 in Kleiner, Roman Sculpture.

More from ANTIQUITIES

View All