The Tusculum-Aglié Caesar - I - a photo on Flickriver

            According to Velleius Patercolus, “sprung from the noble family of the Julii, and tracing his descent from Venus and Anchises, he [Caius Caesar] surpassed all his fellow-citizens in beauty of person.” (Historiae Romanae 2, 41.1).  
Looking this portrait, identified as the Tusculum-Aglié type, Patercolus' words turn out be at least flattering. This portrait shows the face of a man who has passed the fifty, characterized by a large balding forehead, small and protruding eyes, long nose with a bit curved septum, prominent cheekbones on sunken cheeks, thin lips and strong square-jawed. The head shows some cranial congenital irregularities: the excessive growth of the left parietal bone and the elongated shape of the skullcap. The thin neck shows a pronounced Adam's apple.  The Tusculum Caesar strikes the observer for his sly smile and his gaze of superiority pointed toward him. The calligraphic rendering of the hair suggests that this statue is the copy of an original bronze portrait dating from Caesar’s time.
Similarities with the portrait reproduced on the "denarii" coined by M. Mettius in 44-43 BC, date this portrait in the last months of the dictator’s life or in those immediately following his death. 
The lively presence suggested by the Tusculum-Agliè type is lost in a more recent portraiture type known as Chiaramonti-Pisa type, commissioned by Augustus after the deification of Caesar (42 BC). According to this new style the irregularities and the signs of aging are softened, and the forehead is framed by a fringe made by locks modeled as "pincer" and "scissors", so as to accentuate the similarities between the emperor and his adoptive father.

Source: “Rivoluzione Augusto”: Exhibition Catalogue, Electa.

Luni marble bust
Height 33 cm.
Ca. 44 BC
From Tusculum, near Rome
Torino, Museo di Antichità

Exhibition “Augustus Revolution”
Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Massimo - Roma

   

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Taken on: January 11, 2015

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Dinastia

Giulio-Claudia

Museo Nazionale Romano

Palazzo Massimo

Roma

Tusculum

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Agliè

Torino

Cesare

Caesar

“Julio

Claudian”

“Giulio

Claudia”

Dinasty

marble

marmo

sculpture

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“Palazzo

Massimo”

“Museo

Nazionale

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“Roman

Museum”

“Rivoluzione

Augusto” « less

Sets appears in: • Roman Portraits • Julio-Claudians

Groups appears in: • Roman Empire • The Ancient World more » • Marble & Marble Sculptures • Julio Claudian Art, Roman Portraiture and Coins • Archeologia • Hard Men • World Archaeology & Arts/ΑΡΧΑΙΟΛΟΓΙΑ&ΤΕΧΝΕΣ-Rea • Ancient Greek and Roman Art • Heritage Key • Photos at the Museum • Old Faces Up Close (Art and Sculpture) « less

Camera: Sony ILCE-7R, f/9.0, 1/125 sec, 33mm, ISO 4000 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Sony ILCE-7R
Lens:	FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS
Aperture:	f/9.0
Exposure Time:	0.008 sec (1/125)
Focal Length:	33mm
ISO:	4000
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Center-weighted average
White Balance:	Auto
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Macintosh)
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