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Roman Emperors and Empresses

Augustus, Hadrian, and Constantine were Roman emperors whose names are still familiar today. But what did they look like? How did they wish to be portrayed? For the imperial family, portraits not only represented a record of their physical appearance; they were also a propagandistic tool to highlight family lineage and mythological connections. Explore a selection of portraits of famous emperors and empresses carved in marble and precious stone and struck on gold and silver coins from the 1st to the 4th century CE.