The sculpture in Unknown #4 depicts the upper body of a middle-aged man. That the figure shows the imperfections which come with age suggests that the sculpture is of Roman origin rather than Greek. Carved from marble, the sculpture extends to the lower chest of the man, just above the solar plexus. The chest and shoulders are soft and lightly defined: the pectoral muscles are visible only as gentle contours, and the shoulders slope downwards in fleshy smoothness. The head of the figure is carved with intricate detail, especially in the hair, beard, eyes, nose, and facial wrinkles. This combination of soft body with aged head suggests a life lacking physical labor: the man is probably of the upper class, perhaps a philosopher or member of government.
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The appearance of irises and pupils in Roman sculpture arose somewhere between the late 1st century CE and 176 CE; both Flavian women (c. 90 CE) (Stockstad 190-191) are portrayed with pupil- and iris-less eyes, whereas the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius (176 CE) (Stockstad 201) looks out from albeit simple pupils. The eyes most similar to the unknown figure’s are those of the bust of Commodus as Hercules (late 2nd century CE) (Stockstad 203); in the early 4th century, Roman artists began sculpting extremely large and stylized eyes. The unknown figure was probably created between mid- and late 2nd century Rome, based on the style of his …show more content…
The hair is thick and young-looking, at odds with the age of the rest of the face. Thick eyebrows rest above heavily-lidded eyes, whose bottom lids sag slightly with age. Laugh lines extend outwards from the corners of the eyes, and lines above the eyebrows accentuate the figure’s pensive expression. The figure’s nose is crooked and asymmetrical, leaning slightly to the figure’s right. It overhangs the thick mustache and thin mouth, and a thick beard makes the figure’s jawline appear even more square. The lines around the figure’s mouth also emphasize the man’s age, as do his large ears. Below the neck, the figure is smooth with little detail on its chest, making the torso seem disproportionately young and flawless compared to the head. The nipples are barely visible, and the artist merely hints at the presence of the clavicle. The chest is hairless and supple, and the shoulders, rather than rippling with muscle, slope gently from the neck down. The artist has omitted the lower body of the
The appearance of irises and pupils in Roman sculpture arose somewhere between the late 1st century CE and 176 CE; both Flavian women (c. 90 CE) (Stockstad 190-191) are portrayed with pupil- and iris-less eyes, whereas the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius (176 CE) (Stockstad 201) looks out from albeit simple pupils. The eyes most similar to the unknown figure’s are those of the bust of Commodus as Hercules (late 2nd century CE) (Stockstad 203); in the early 4th century, Roman artists began sculpting extremely large and stylized eyes. The unknown figure was probably created between mid- and late 2nd century Rome, based on the style of his …show more content…
The hair is thick and young-looking, at odds with the age of the rest of the face. Thick eyebrows rest above heavily-lidded eyes, whose bottom lids sag slightly with age. Laugh lines extend outwards from the corners of the eyes, and lines above the eyebrows accentuate the figure’s pensive expression. The figure’s nose is crooked and asymmetrical, leaning slightly to the figure’s right. It overhangs the thick mustache and thin mouth, and a thick beard makes the figure’s jawline appear even more square. The lines around the figure’s mouth also emphasize the man’s age, as do his large ears. Below the neck, the figure is smooth with little detail on its chest, making the torso seem disproportionately young and flawless compared to the head. The nipples are barely visible, and the artist merely hints at the presence of the clavicle. The chest is hairless and supple, and the shoulders, rather than rippling with muscle, slope gently from the neck down. The artist has omitted the lower body of the