LOT 0122

Roman Marble Head of a Young Woman

2ND CENTURY A.D.

15 in. (14 kg total, 38 cm high including stand).

A skilfully carved life-size marble head of a female (possibly Artemis, a Muse or an Amazon) with centrally parted hair composed of wavy strands and tied in a ponytail at the back; serene facial expression, almond-shaped eyes and small mouth with slightly parted lips; some restoration; mounted on a custom-made display stand.

Ex private collection, Monaco, 1960s-1970s.
Acquired from the Monaco Fine Arts on 4th November 1992.
Private collection of Mr & Mrs Daniel, Monaco.
Acquired by the present owner from David Aaron Gallery in 2019.

Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by searcher certificate number no.11569-197722.

Cf. Felletti Maj, B.M., Museo Nazionale Romano, I Ritratti, Roma, 1953; Bianchi Bandinelli, R., L'arte Romana nel centro del potere, dalle origini alla fine del II secolo d.C., Roma, 1969; Bieber, M., Ancient Copies. Contributions to the History of Greek and Roman Art, New York, 1977, p.88, pls.60-61; Fittschen K., Zanker P., Le sculture del Museo Civico Archeologico di Bologna, La collezione Marsili, Comune di Bologna, Bologna, 1986; Boardman, J., Griechische Plastik. Die spätklassische Zeit, Mainz, 1998, pp.100ff.; Fuchs, W., Die Skulptur der Griechen, München, 1993, pp.221ff.; Agnoli, N., Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Palestrina, Le sculture, Roma, 2002; Vout, C., ‘Hadrian, Hellenism, and the Social History of Art’, in Arion: A Journal of Humanities and the Classics, Third Series, Vol.18, No.1, Spring-Summer 2010, pp.55-78.

The youthful head seems to be based on the Greek Attic Artemis Colonna type of the 4th century B.C. The composition of the head is powerful with a serene countenance, its physiognomy replete with the idealised quality characteristic of Greek classical sculpture. This classic influence is best seen in the perfect almond- shaped eyes with their sharply carved lids as well as the smooth contour of the face. The rich handling of the coiffure and the smooth quality of the face can suggest a date sometime during the Hadrianic (117 to 138 A.D.) or early Antonine periods.