Marble portrait head of Antinoos

Unknown

ca. 130–138 CE · Marble · Greek and Roman Art

This head is almost certainly from a monumental statue of Antinoos. Characteristically, the head is turned slightly to the left and gazes downward, the tousled hair hanging long in the back. Worship of the deified Antinoos, the favorite of the Roman emperor Hadrian, flourished in the East, especially in his homeland, Bithynia. The cult spread through the initiatives of private associations and the benefactions of the upper classes, which sought to gain favor with the emperor. It may also have achieved widespread popularity because Antinoos was a man of the people who did not have official or imperial status yet became a god.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 130–138 CE

Medium

Marble

Culture

Roman

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Credit line

Gift of Jonathan Kagan, 2010