Portrait Bust of Demosthenes
50 B.C.–A.D. 100
- Medium
- Bronze
- Dimensions
- 7.9 × 3.3 cm
- Status
- In Museum Collection
- Collect24 Art ID
- C24-245009
An inscription across the front of this small bronze bust identifies the figure as Demosthenes (about 384–322 B.C.), one of the most famous Athenian orators. He is portrayed as a mature, bearded man, with a high furrowed forehead. This particular bust of Demosthenes, like many other Roman examples, is a small-scale copy of a large bronze statue by the Greek sculptor Polyeuktos that was set up in the Athenian agora in 280 B.C. Portraits of Demosthenes had a resurgence of popularity in the early Roman Empire, especially with the Roman elite, who decorated their houses and villas with portraits of famous Greek philosophers, orators, and political and military leaders. Demosthenes was admired by educated Romans for his frank integrity. During his lifetime, he gained fame for speaking out against the growing power of the kingdom of Macedonia.
Provenance
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Villa Collection, Malibu, California
Registry history
- 50 B.C.–A.D. 100 — Recorded in the collection of J. Paul Getty Museum — sculpture
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