Portrait bust of Severus Alexander
Marble.230—235 CE.
H. 74 cm. Inv. No. 2011.87.New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Portrait bust of Severus Alexander.
Marble.
230—235 CE.
H. 74 cm.
230—235 CE.
H. 74 cm.
Inv. No. 2011.87.
New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Origin:
Probably found in Rome before 1868.
From before 1868 and until 1879, with Wolfgang Helbig, Rome;
1879, acquired by Baron Philip Wambolt von Umstadt from W. Helbig;
1879—2010, collection of the Wambolt von Umstadt family, Schloss Birkenau, Germany;
acquired in 2011, purchased from Valerio Turchi, Rome.
From before 1868 and until 1879, with Wolfgang Helbig, Rome;
1879, acquired by Baron Philip Wambolt von Umstadt from W. Helbig;
1879—
acquired in 2011, purchased from Valerio Turchi, Rome.
Description:
The young emperor Severus Alexander (r. A.D. 222—235) is wearing a toga contabulata, with a large overfold (sinus) across the chest and a diagonal fold extending over the left shoulder and down the back. The type is distinctive of later Roman portraits in which the subject is shown in formal civic dress. The bust was probably produced in an imperial workshop at Rome and was set up in a prominent public place, perhaps with other imperial portraits representing his predecessors or with other members of the imperial family, such as his mother Julia Mamaea. The head, carved with great skill and sensitivity, combines a sense of growing maturity and power with a still visible youthful delicacy. The last emperor of the Severan dynasty, Severus Alexander died violently in Germany at the age of twenty-six.
Literature:
Helbig, Wolfgang. 1868. Bullettino dell’Instituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica, 2: pp. 35—36.
Bernoulli, John Jakob. 1894. Römische Ikonographie, II, 3. no. 8, p. 148, Stuttgart: W. Spemann.
Felletti Maj, Bianca Maria. 1958. Iconografia romana imperiale da Severo Alessandro a M. Aurelio Carino (222—285 d. C.) . no. 10, p. 89, Roma: L’Erma di Bretschneider.
Wiggers, Heinz Bernhard. 1971. Das Römische Herrscherbild. III. Abteilung, Band 1: Caracalla, Geta, Plautilla, Max Wegner, ed. p. 191, Berlin: Verlag Gebr. Mann.
Picón, Carlos A., Joan R. Mertens, Christopher S. Lightfoot, Dr. Seán Hemingway, and Kyriaki Karoglou. 2012». Recent Acquisitions: A Selection 2010—2012». Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 70 (2): p. 13.
Zanker, Paul. 2016. Roman Portraits: Sculptures in Stone and Bronze in the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. no. 29, pp. 57, 62, 91—93, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Bernoulli, John Jakob. 1894. Römische Ikonographie, II, 3. no. 8, p. 148, Stuttgart: W. Spemann.
Felletti Maj, Bianca Maria. 1958. Iconografia romana imperiale da Severo Alessandro a M. Aurelio Carino (222—
Wiggers, Heinz Bernhard. 1971. Das Römische Herrscherbild. III. Abteilung, Band 1: Caracalla, Geta, Plautilla, Max Wegner, ed. p. 191, Berlin: Verlag Gebr. Mann.
Picón, Carlos A., Joan R. Mertens, Christopher S. Lightfoot, Dr. Seán Hemingway, and Kyriaki Karoglou. 2012». Recent Acquisitions: A Selection 2010—
Zanker, Paul. 2016. Roman Portraits: Sculptures in Stone and Bronze in the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. no. 29, pp. 57, 62, 91—
Credits:
(cc) 2020. Photo, text: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (CC0 1.0).
Keywords: απεικόνιση portrait portraiture ritratto ritrattistica porträtmalerei porträt of a man male maschile uomo männliches mann masculin un homme porträtbüste roman romana römisches romain αυτοκρατορικό imperial imperiale kaiserliches impérial δυναστεία των σεβήρων domus severana severan dynasty dinastia dei severi severer sévères ρωμαίος αυτοκράτορας αλέξανδρος σεβήρος imperator severus alexander emperor imperatore romano alessandro severo römischer kaiser empereur sévère alexandre γλυπτική sculptura sculpture sculptural scultura skulptur ρωμαϊκό romani römisch römische römischen romaine romains romaines προτομή bust busto büste buste marble marmo marmor marbre μάρμαρο toga contabulata contabulatio schloss birkenau from the wambolt von umstadt collection collezione sammlung inv no 2011 87
