84 This funerary relief with the bust of a man brings to mind the similar monument from the Augustan period in the Republican tradition (no. 11). Here, too, there was originally a second bust, now missing. Here, too, the emphasis is on the verisimilitude and on the pitiless rendering of age. This monument however must be from the later 30s of the third century and serves as confirmation of an insight. Bernhard Schweitzer explained the trend of this period as a conscious revival of the art of the Roman Republic. One would even like to say of Republican values, for there is some ring of truth in this statement. The leaders of this trend were soldier emperors who emerged, via the army, often from the bottom of society. Their rough short beards and hair and their ferocious expressions may deliberately have attempted to evoke the rustic appearance of the venerable Republicans. It is this approach which seems to be the dominant feature here, but if the man is compared with the Augustan relief (no. 11) or with the cippus head of the rustic provincial (no. 9), we can see how this superficial return to older traditions lacked true roots. Both rugged post-Republicans are at ease in their unattractive skins. They are part of a framework, real or supposed, which is civism-, their credo is salus res publicae lex suprema esto. The man from the third century is a loner lost in the universe; even his face is contorted by a self-destructive anxiety.
84. Funerary relief of a man
The shape of the monument and the expressive face point to a revival of Roman Republican funerary effigies. The hair cut and the style indicate a date in the 30s or 40s of the third century A. D.
85 The most important things about this bronze statue are that it is complete, well preserved, and that bronze statues are rare. The element of portraiture hardly exists. It does, however, still retain from the tradition of classical sculpture the fact that it really stands both as a work and as an object. The metal casting technique is equally correct. The statue is fashioned from segments, and even in casting these pieces the metal has countless flaws. The level of art is poor. The raised right hand in the gesture of adlocutio has a venerable tradition and suggests that the represented person is an imperial prince. The expressionless face and the schematically described anatomy make the chronology difficult, but one should not be tempted to a late dating by the inherent provincialisms. The best place for the piece is in the second quarter of the third century; the young man may be one of the young sons of Philip or Trajan Decius.
85. Under life-size bronze statue, perhaps of an imperial prince
From Asia Minor. Identification is impossible given the scanty quality of the portrait and of the workmanship in geneEal. From the second quarter of the third century A. D.
86. Bronze head of Philip the Younger
Son of Philip the Arab (244-249). From Asia Minor. The boy prince is barely recognizeable.
86 This bronze head of a young prince was cast separately and perhaps placed on a body similar to that of the preceding, It too is not of extraordinary quality, but there are many more personal characteristics. The flaccid anatomy is casually modeled, but the face retains a strong character with the capacity of overwhelming the viewer. The possible identification of this portrait as heir apparent is confirmed by the rather strange halo-like edge on the hair, which could have supported a separately-made radiate crown. The features of Philip the Younger (244-249) found on coins of this prince and the not too well documented three-dimensional images of his father (see no, 94) are comparable with this youth’s appearance.
87 The head from Asia Minor produces an ambiguous impression, not about its authenticity or its quality but about its date. Does it come from before or after the middle of the third century A. D.? One is at first inclined to the later date, but the reworking of the eyes and mouth noted in the description makes it clear that this anxious man is earlier. The depth of the eye sockets and the rich modeling of the lips was flattened, perhaps in the fifth century, probably to keep the piece on public display after an accident. It is even possible that the head was broken off and replaced on its statue on the same occasion. The head is over life-size, which points to an imperial image. Taking the modifications into account, he may be identified as Trajan Decius (249-251), who attempted in his brief reign to revive some of the past glories of the Empire associated with the good emperors of the second century—hence his assumption of the name Trajan. Decius’s only generally acknowledged portrait is of Roman workmanship, and is thus perhaps more individual but also much more stone-like in its modeling than our version, which speaks of personal power as much as of the tensions of the age.
87. Bearded man, perhaps the emperor Trajan Decius (249-251)
From Asia Minor. The ancient recutting makes the identification difficult, but the over life-size scale indicates an emperor. Perhaps from about 250.
88. Head of an elderly woman from an imperial family
The realistic rendering of the age is reminiscent of Republican matrons. Second quarter of the third century A. D.
88 Female portraits of the second quarter of the third century also reflect some nostalgia for remote Republican times. This portrait of an elderly lady, probably imperial because she is over life-size, is without any sure iconographic identity. Because of her marked physiognomy, she has been nicknamed “the mother-inlaw.” The frank statement of her homeliness, however, lacks anything ordinary in it. Like many contemporary imperial portraits, she appears at the same time agitated and thirsty for power. Originally the piece must have been even more striking, but modern cleaning took its toll on the surface. The elaborate physiognomy denies the softness and organic structure of the flesh; and the whole face turns to stone, adding the element of exalted spirituality. At one time the lady was thought to be Herennia Etruscilla, wife of Trajan Decius, but this hypothesis is no longer tenable.
89 Two portraits show men from the same time, breathing the same air but utterly different both in style and personality. They share an emphatic spirituality, with their eyes enlarged and turned heavenwards. The anatomical structure is neglected and the flesh turns to stone, but one man seems to believe in his creed while the other looks as though he wears it under the orders of his emperor, conforming to the fashion of the time. The close cropped beard of this latter corresponds to the fashions of the first soldier emperors who succeeded Alexander Severus, as does the total personality of the man: compare, for example, our miniature Philippus Arabs (no. 94, disregarding as unimportant whether it is ancient or eighteenth century). The pragmatic, hard-driving core of the man is just the opposite of the contemplative spirituality he is apeing. One would like to see him as one of those ambitious officers whose meteoric career culminated in a murderous conspiracy against the ruler, to become, shortly after, a victim of the next pronunciamento. Still, some nostalgia for the great Roman past lingers, and distant echoes of Republican portraiture may be discerned here.
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