Portrait of a Child

A.D. 150–200

Medium

Marble

Dimensions

22 × 20.3 cm

Status

In Museum Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-253305

This child, probably a boy of early toddler age, is among the most sensitive portraits of very young children known in Roman art. Broken at the neck, the head would have sat on a full-length statue or a bust. Several features of this portrait are characteristic of Roman sculpture in the Antonine period (A.D. 138-192), such as the interest in observing personality, depicting movement, and contrasting textures such as the polished skin and the impressionistic rendering of the hair. The boy’s tight curls and some of his facial features have led some modern viewers to categorize him as a Black African, but given the lack of historical evidence (e.g., an inscription naming him) and non-physical markers of identity (such as clothing), the child’s ethnicity remains uncertain. The type and style of his portrait, however, are distinctly Roman. In fact, the hairstyle and the way the artist executed it, drilling hundreds of small holes into and between the curls, are common features of Antonine sculpture. Rather than being ethnic or racial indicators, the high spherical forehead, large eyes, and small, flattened nose are equally characteristic for the appearance of many infants and toddlers…