Portrait of Antoninus Pius on Modern Bust

From the Giustiniani Collection comes this portrait of Emperor Antoninus Pius, larger than life-size, inserted on a modern bust with armor and paludamentum. The face features are that of a mature man, as can be seen by the sunken eyes and various wrinkles on the face. The wavy hair frames the forehead with two locks in the center, the portrait therefore can be attributed to the type called Vatican- Croce Greca 595, conceived on the occasion of the emperor’s celebration of his decennalia in 148 AD. The fine Torlonia specimen, finds correspondences with the copies of Palazzo Colonna and the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.

Inventory: MT 247

Material: White marble

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

Dating: Imperial age

Origin: Giustiniani Collection