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'False' Portraits of Antiquity
#5
(03-06-2017, 01:01 AM)FlavivsĀ Aetivs Wrote: I think it's a bust of Valentinian I.

You could well be right.

It is difficult identifying late imperial portraits, as so many of them are quite generic.

Another popular misidentification, though, might be the supposed portrait of Maximian from Piazza Armerina:

[Image: 3-242x300.jpg]

The figure in the centre does resemble one of tetrarchs (perhaps Diocletian?) - but I would say this is certainly not an imperial portrait. Tetrarchic emperors were portrayed as semi-divine beings, often larger than the men surrounding them. This guy, on the other hand, is clearly very mortal.

Besides which, the mosaic is on the floor - not the place to put the portrait of a godlike emperor. Slaves might step on it...!
Nathan Ross
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Messages In This Thread
'False' Portraits of Antiquity - by Nathan Ross - 03-03-2017, 04:16 PM
RE: 'False' Portraits of Antiquity - by Nathan Ross - 03-06-2017, 12:14 PM

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