Part 2 Galerie des portraits

Bust of an unknown man

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Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Bust of an unknown man
Date de création
First quarter of the 1st century
Material
Lychnites marble (island of Paros)
Dimensions
H. 43,5 x l. 25 x P. 22 (cm)
Inventory number
Ra 165

Formerly believed to be that of Julius Caesar, this portrait was designed according to the principles that were characteristic of the ancient Roman Republic, which favoured realism, austerity and gravity. This person was therefore still attached to traditional values. The likeness shares some similarities with another portrait from Ensérune in Gallia Narbonensis, also thought to be of Caesar at some point in the past.

The short hairstyle is a good example of this attachment to an earlier fashion with very specific moral values. Generally speaking, the rendering of the sickle or comma-shaped strands of hair of the fringe may reflect the wish to imitate the hairstyles of bronze portraits. Above the right eye, the sculptor has sought to lessen the harshness of the fringe by lifting it from the forehead, using a trepanning tool to create an underlying hollow. Another noteworthy feature of the hair in this portrait: behind the right ear and at the nape of the neck, there is a very unusual oblong-shaped area of spiky hair, which no doubt corresponded to the way in which the model’s hair actually grew. In addition to the rendering of the hair, there is also the rounded shape of the bust, which is characteristic of that particular time. These distinctive elements allow us to date this magnificent portrait to the second half of the reign of Augustus or the beginning of the reign of Tiberius; that is to say to the first twenty years of the first century.

According to J.-C. Balty 2005, Les portraits romains, 1 : Époque julio-claudienne, 1.1 (Sculptures antiques de Chiragan (Martres-Tolosane), Toulouse, p. 127-144.

Bibliography

  • Balty, Cazes 2005 J.-C. Balty, D. Cazes, Les portraits romains, 1 : Époque julio-claudienne, 1.1 (Sculptures antiques de Chiragan (Martres-Tolosane), Toulouse
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    p. 63-67, fig. 38-41, p. 129-142, fig. p. 128-132, 134, 138, 140, 143-144
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To cite this notice

Capus P., "Bust of an unknown man", in The sculptures of the roman villa of Chiragan, Toulouse, 2019, online <https://villachiragan.saintraymond.toulouse.fr/en/ark:/87276/a_ra_165>.