....a good way to make me "headscratch".
They call it "Ercole" (=Hercules) down there, most probably for reason of it's sheer size.
This here gives an impressions of its size:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co...olosso.jpg
My first idea about it was; "Hey it's from Renaissance, isn't it ?!".
Comparing the side's view of his head I'd advocate Valentinian I indeed, but then this guy was depicted on coins having a labarum (field sign) in his right rather than a (small) cross. (The orbis in his left would be correct). So there would he be an east-roman Emperor like Justinian ?! IIRC this part of Italy was recovered by Justinian
after 525AD . (Better side-view picture of this guy, anyone ?! The coins I saw tonight had such a lousy quality of imprint it was a shame, the wester roman (earlier)coins were mostly better by far, e.g. here:
http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/ric/valentinian_I/t.html)
But this still leaves us multiple choices:
1. It's Valentinian I "corpore vivo".
2. It's Valentinian I. And what he had in his right hand (a labarum !) was substituted in later times ?! The placement of his arm and hand would fit in here.8)
3. It's Valentinian depicted "ex post" eventually much later than in his lifetime.:?:
4. It's Justinian
5. It's another Emperor :-?
What do you think ?
Greez & Goodnight
Simplex
