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Portrait bust of Vespasian, recarved from a bust of Nero
Roman
Imperial Period
A.D. 70–96
Medium/Technique
Chalcedony
Dimensions
Height: 11.5 cm (4 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Henry Lillie Pierce Fund
Accession Number98.768
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAncient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsSculpture
DescriptionThe portrait of the Roman emperor Vespasian depicts him realistically as a bald, wrinkled man, wearing a paludamentum (military cloak) fastened on his right shoulder. The hair atop his head and temples is thin and brushed forward, while that on the nape of his neck is thick, arranged horizontally, and is carved with more detail. It recalls the fashion of the late Julio-Claudian emperors, suggesting that the portrait was originally of the Roman emperor Nero and was later recut to represent Vespasian. The rear of the portrait has a notch, as if to attach it to another object, probably as an imago clipeata (a portrait that projects at an angle from a circular frame, like a shield). The tip of the nose and edges of the ears are broken, and there is a large piece chipped from the front of the bust.
ProvenanceBy 1897, Michal Tyszkiewicz (b. 1828 - d. 1897), Rome; June 8 - 10, 1898, posthumous Tyszkiewicz sale, Hotel Drouot, Paris, lot 239; 1898, Edward Perry Warren (b. 1860 - d. 1928), Rome and London; 1898, sold by Warren to the MFA for $69,618.13 [see note]. (Accession Date: September 20, 1898)
Note: This is the total price for MFA accession nos. 98.641-98.940.
Note: This is the total price for MFA accession nos. 98.641-98.940.