Bust of Septimius Severus

In the long series of imperial portraits that concluded the exhibition of the Torlonia Museum, this remarkable portrait integral with the bust, identified as Macrinus, stood out. Probably the absence of the latter Emperor in the long series of imperial portraits made it necessary to include this portrait of Septimius Severus in the guise of Macrinus. The state of conservation is excellent, the Emperor is depicted with the toga contabulata, much used in the late Empire. His gaze is turned to the right, his wavy hair is arranged on the forehead and along the temples. The full moustache slightly hides the upper lip, while the long beard descends on the chest separated into four long corkscrew curls. The soft treatment of the work is of high quality, denoting a skillful use of the drill producing a plastic and coloristic effect to the beard and hair.

Inventory: MT 572

Material: White marble

Technique: Work sculpted through the use of: chisels (also square-tipped and toothed) rasps

Dating: Imperial age

Origin: From the Villa of Livia at Veio