Unchecked Roman

Undetermined Roman The bronze bust head is a copy of the marble head of the Undetermined Roman in the collection of the Musei Vaticani – Museo Chiaramonti in Rome, a Roman sculpture from the time of the reign of emperor Augustus (27 BC – 14 AD). Sometimes referred to as Caius Marius (157–86 BC, Roman leader and statesman). It is the head of an elderly man, rendered in a realistic manner, with a low and strongly spreading skull flattened from the forehead, balding. The face is round with well-defined cheekbones, prominent chin, short nose, and protruding, thick lower lip. The eyeballs are strongly convex, the eyelids are framed by kinked eyebrows. The forehead is covered with wrinkles, deep folds of skin run from the nose to the chin. This head is an example of ancient Roman physiognomic portraiture close to naturalism, which was shaped under the influence of Hellenistic and Etruscan models and prevailed during the Republic. It was characterised by analytical facial features with very plastic and soft modelling. The author of the Łańcut copy is unknown, it was made in the 4th quarter of the 18th century. Barbara Trojnar