/internal/media/dispatcher/1541589/resize%25253Aformat%25253DthumbnailFragment of a relief with head of soldier (signifer or standard bearer)2nd half of the 1st century or early 2nd century ADOverall: 35 × 34.2 × 8.6 cm (13 3/4 × 13 7/16 × 3 3/8 in.)Marble, Italian or possibly PentelicCharles Amos Cummings Bequest Fund59.3360Fragmentary relief with helmeted profile of Roman soldier (signifer or standard-bearer). A lion skin “cap” covers most of the helmet, but it can be seen to be of an ornate Attic form, with elaborately decorated brow plate and cheek piece. Details such as rosettes on brow plate and decorative border of cheek piece, and eye of lion scalp are highlighted with drill holes. Behind the head a rectangular shape might be a pole. The relief is excerpted from a much larger composition, probably a triumphal scene or adlocutio.
On the back and oriented perpendicularly to the relief is an inscription with letters of Trajanic style filled with red. The name and formula indicates that it was probably intended for a Renaissance or later tomb: BRAN[D] / [O].CLARIS / [P]IENT .
The relief is broken irregularly around the head, with a piece jutting out at the back. It comprises three parts: a large fragment encompassing the entire figural portion and two small background fragments reattached at left. The fur of the animal skin cap has been partly chiseled away, possibly when the relief for reused for the inscription. The surfaces are good with a slightly crusty light gray to yellow to white coloring, but show signs of weathering.
Sculpture35.00000000008.600000000015123501