Marble Portrait of the Emperor Augustus in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Sept. 2007

Marble portrait of the emperor Augustus
Roman, Julio-Claudian period, ca. 14-37 AD

Accession # 08.258.47

When Octavian took the title of Augustus in 27 BC, an official portrait was created that embodied the qualities that he wished to project and hundreds of versions of it were disseminated throughout the Empire. The features are individualized, but the overall effect is of calm, elevated dignity and brings to mind Classical Greek art of the fifth century BC. With this studied understatement, the portraits could evoke the values of the glorious past of Athens and at the same time present the emperor simply as primus inter pares, first among equals.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.